The job of GE dishwashers is to reduce your hardship and get the dishes cleaned ASAP, right? But, it would be very annoying if your GE dishwasher is malfunctioning and it just increases your trouble all of a sudden. Not a very convenient situation, right?
Well, don’t worry, we’re here to help you out. There are many complaints on the internet that the GE dishwasher starts then stops. That’s why we’re here with a detailed explanation of why this problem might occur.
Also, we have explained how you can easily solve this issue without having to seek the professionals’ attention. So, if you want to fix your GE dishwasher right away, stay tuned to this discussion till the end!!
Why Your GE Dishwasher Starts Then Stops
When you notice that your GE dishwasher is starting and then suddenly stopping without completing its full washing cycle, you have to understand that there’s a mechanical problem in this machine.
And, the only way to get rid of this problem is to get rid of the mechanical issue ASAP. So, let’s explore why such issues might arise in your GE dishwasher and how you can easily solve it:
1. Damage Or Jam In The Air Inlet Hose:
Remember, in order for the washing cycle to be completed by your washing machine, it needs to drain the existing water and take in new water.
However, in order to do this, it needs to suck in air as well. And, that’s why every GE washing machine will have an air suction inlet that supplies air into the washing machine when it’s draining its water after a wash cycle.
Now, the common problem that occurs is that sometimes the air inlet is jammed or damaged. As a result, the air cannot be sucked into the washing machine and the water draining cannot happen. Consequently, you see that the washing machine has started and then suddenly stopped.
The Solution:
The best solution to this problem is to get rid of the jam as soon as possible. In order to do that, you can use a long metal stick or a long screwdriver to poke into the air inlet hose and unjam the air inlet hose (if any food particle has been jamming it till now).
Or, you can also pour hot water into the air inlet so any existing food particles that might be jamming can get melted away very easily. And, as a result, you get an unjammed air inlet.
2. Incorrectly Plugging Into The Electrical Outlet:
In addition to checking if your dishwasher has a jammed air inlet hose or not, you should also check if the power plug is correctly plugged into the electrical outlet or not. Sometimes, it just so happens that the electrical power cord is not properly / carefully plugged into the wall outlet.
Consequently, when your dishwasher starts its cycle, it instantly gets stopped due to a loss in power draw.
The Solution:
The solution to this problem is actually very simple. All you have to do is check if the power cord is tightly / correctly connected to the power source or not. Also, don’t forget to check if your dishwasher is having any water leaks that can cause sudden electrical shocks.
Now, if you indeed are able to detect any water leak that is causing a short circuit in the power cord, you have to immediately take action to solve the water leak as soon as possible. And, hopefully, it will solve the short circuit issue as well.
3. Jammed Filter:
Another probable cause for your dishwasher starting and then stopping all of a sudden can be a jammed filter. Note here that all dishwashers have an internal filter that filters the water that is sucked into the dishwasher (the filtered water is used to wash the dishes).
Now, if the water in your water supply line is contaminated with excessive iron/sediments, the filter can get jammed very quickly. And, in such cases, you might see your dishwasher starting and then suddenly stopping.
The Solution:
If you want to permanently get rid of this problem, the best way to go about it is to take the filter out and replace it with a newer one.
You can also take the filter out and reinstall it after cleaning up. But, we recommend that you get a new filter for your dishwasher altogether, so your dishwasher can perform the best to its capacity.
4. Jammed Spray Arm:
The GE completes the dishwashing cycle by spraying water onto the dishes with a spraying arm. A spraying arm in a dishwasher is a rotor-like object that has small spray nozzles to spray water into the dishes.
Now, sometimes it is commonly seen that food particles have gotten into those spray nozzles and blocked the way of spraying water. As a result, your dishwasher eventually fails to spray water into the dishes and quickly stops after starting its cycle.
Related: Frigidaire Dishwasher Not Spraying Water
The Solution:
If you want to get rid of this problem in a prompt manner, you have to open up the door of your dishwasher and take out the sprayer arm. Then, you can use any kind of brush (it may be a paintbrush or toothbrush) to clean out the locked nozzles of the sprayer arm.
And, after you are absolutely sure that there are no food particles in the sprayer arm nozzles which are blocking the way of the water coming out, you can install the sprayer arm back on into the dishwasher.
Relevant: Whirlpool Dishwasher Not Spraying Water
5. Using The Wrong Type Of Detergent (Oversudsing):
Remember, you cannot use normal dishwashing detergents in the washing machine. Rather, you have to use HE (high efficiency) dishwashing detergents in the GE dishwashing machine.
Now, sometimes it is common to see that people put normal detergents into the dishwashing machine. As a result, normal detergents create a lot of suds which is too much to handle for the dishwashing machine.
Consequently, when the level of suds generation is extremely high (above the critical level), the washing machine detects the excessive generation of foam/suds and stops in mid-cycle.
The Solution:
As this problem occurs due to the lack of care from the user, if you see that your dishwasher is starting and stopping in mid-cycle, you have to check if the right type of detergent has been input into the dishwasher or not.
If you notice that the dishwasher detergent put on the dishwasher machine is not a HE detergent, you should run a few rounds of water draining and get rid of the excess foam/suds from the washing machine.
Consequently, a few minutes later, you will be able to start reusing the GE washing machine.
Conclusion:
Since the GE dishwashing machine is an electronic machine, it is not practically possible for a general user to be able to solve every issue that it faces. That’s why you have to know your limits and get immediate attention from professional technicians whenever your dishwasher is not behaving correctly for multiple days.
In addition to that, even if you try to fix the issues with the GE dishwasher, we recommend that you stay cautious and wear safety equipment such as safety gloves, goggles, etc. Best of luck to you!!