MDBS561AWQ Maytag Dishwasher - Instructions

Most of the time was spent pulling out the dishwasher from under the counter, as a new tile floor had been installed after the DW was installed.

Great pictures of components on this website confirmed what part to order.

Shut off water feed to DW and disconnect power to DW.

Unplug wire connector to old valve (solenoid) and disconnect water inlet hose. Observe that valve is attached to sheet metal bracket.

Remove bracket, with valve attached. Don't remove valve from bracket. New valve comes with sheet metal bracket.

Remove female threaded adaptor (brass) from back of old valve and screw on to new valve using Teflon tape. That is the only piece you need to reuse.

Attached the new bracket (with valve attached) to DW. Attach water inlet hose. Attach plug to new valve.

Turn on water to DW. Check for leaks. Retighten hose connection if required. Run dishwasher. Keep lower panel off for a couple of days to be certain no leaks develop.

I had to remove the 4 screws holding the toe panel. Then I had to take out the one screw holding the floater switch housing in place. It snapped open to release the floater and that just lifted out. I put the new float in and snapped the new housing on. I put the screw back in to hold the housing in place attached the two wires to the switch and put the toe panel back on. It was all very easy to do and my first home repair went very well. thank you.

I pulled the unit from under the counter. the springs and cables are on the front sides of the dishwasher. I moved the insulation removed the broken spring and cables and replaced them with the new parts. just one side was broken, but I replaced both while I had the unit out.

Turned off water and power to the unit. Removed kick plate from under the dishwasher to access the water contol valve. Placed an absorbant rag under the water valve and water line. Disconnected solenoid on water control valve from electrical connection with my fingers. Used a standard adjustable wrench to disconnect the water line from the water control valve. Then used a 1/4" nut driver to loosen the two bolts that hold the water control valve on to the mounting bracket. Pulled the water control valve slightly forward to disconnect the water feed line to the dishwasher. Used a blunt end plier to pinch the clamp open and slowly wiggle the feed line off of the water control valve. Then removed 90 degree elbow off of the water control valve and used pipe dope and connected the elbow onto the new water control valve. Replaced water control valve in reverse order and utilized new hose clamp to reconnect feed line to new water control valve. Saved door seal for future use, when seal goes bad.

I could not reach the heater element nuts from under the dishwasher so had to pull out the dishwasher. I removed the screws around the front of the dishwasher and pulled it about half way out before the water inlet pipe and the electrical wires stopped me. I shut off the water, unhooked the copper pipe, and unhooked the electrical wires (shut off circuit breaker first). Pulled the dishwaser out so I could remove the element nuts and wires to the element. Removed the old element and installed the new one - the old nuts would not fit. I went to a local appliance parts store and found that my element is no longer made. I had the correct replacement element but you need to order the nuts also. Luckily, the local store had a small brass nut that worked. Reattached the electrical wires to the element, pushed the dishwasher half way in, reattached the water inlet and electrical wires, pushed the dishwasher all the way in and scewed back into the cabinets. All is well now and the dishwasher is working much better.

The spring mechanism is on the side, so you have to pull the dishwasher out onto the floor. To do that, you have to remove the floor molding (preferably without breaking it) and remove the base coverings (painted metal plates on the bottom of the washer. Unscrew the side gasket plates on the side of the dishwasher (just inside of the door) where it attaches to the cabinet and the screws in the braces at the top (inside the door) where it attaches to the counter top. Now you will be able to slide the washer forward to look at the sides where the door springs are. Depending on the floor, you may have to raise the washer's front feet. They screw up. As you pull the washer forward be careful to not mess up the insulation which drapes over the top and sides. You only need to come out 1/3 of the way to see the sides where there is a plastic wheel at the forward bottom corner. As you move the door up and down you can see the hook where the cable goes and further up the side you can see several notches where the spring goes. Hook the cable and bring it around the wheel and attach it to the spring. To reinstall, just follow these directions backwards. Good luck.

This isn't a how to fix it....it's what part was bad. I had originally contacted the local Maytag repair center and the owner swore up and down that our problem had to be the thermostat and not the heater. He said he had only replaced maybe 5 heaters in 15 years. But our heater looked like heck, with hard water deposits and all, and it wasn't that old, but we went ahead and ordered the thermostat from PartSelect, which came in a day. The problem wasn't the thermostat, so we ordered the heater from PartSelect (again, only one day delivery) and our dishwasher is working again. The heater coil actually had a hole in it from some sort of corrosion. My 18-year-old son did the repair job in a jiffy.

Unpluged the electric, Disconnected the water line and the drain line. Removed the dishwasher. Removed and installed the new water inlet valve and the float switch. This was a very simple repair. Reinstalled the dishwasher and connect
the water and drain line. Pluged in the power line. Turned the dishwasher on and it worked perfect. Thank you for the correct parts.

Remove the 4 screws at the lower panel, turn power off to dishwasher, remove single 1/4 attaching screw from float switch, open the door remove the old float assembly. Make sure you install the float in the machine first than side the switch over the end of the float before screwing it back in.

First shut circuit breaker to dishwasher and close water valve under the sink. Remove the screws that hold the dishwasher to the counter, then remove the bottom cover plates. I slid the diswasher out almost all the way...On the left side bottom I could see the old water inlet valve was attached by 2 hex screws and a clip with 3 wires..after removing the 2 screws and clip I was able to remove the water line (place something to catch a small amount of water) and remove the black rubber hose from the old intake valve by squeezing the clip.. Removed the brass nut from the old valve you'll need it. I installed the new water inlet valve by connecting the old brass nut
(replace with new thread seal tape) , replace the water line and black rubber hose...attach to frame with the 2 hex screws and replace clip with wires...I slid the dishwasher back under the counter, turned the water on and power back on...I ran the dishwasher before I secured it in place to check for leaks...Dry as a bone...I then secured it to the counter and replaced the bottom plates.. the dishwasher is working like new...everything comes out spotless...Sometimes repairs are not as hard as they look, just take your time.

First I removed two bottom plates (two screws on each) Then I pulled dishwasher out about six inches. That's as far as it would go because I did not disconnect the water and drain hoses. That was enough to remove the broken cable and collect the disabled spring. I then reattached the new cable to the spring and reworked them into position. NOTE: There is a right and left cable and spring set-up. I used the "good" side as a guide. I then pushed the dishwasher back into place and replaced the two bottom plates.

I pulled the dishwasher out from under the countertop. It was quit easy to get to in the lower left front corner of the appliance. I loosened up the bracket that was holding the valve in place. Removed the wires, and taped and ID them so that I would know which one went where. Removed the hose clamp, pulled the hose off and removed the old valve. Put the new one back in just as I removed the old one in the same order. It was a snap! This is not the first time I have used PartSelect! Our evaporate fan went out on our refrigerator a couple years ago, replaced that. A shelf broke in our refrigerator twice, each one different at different times bought both from Part Select. This is the first place I look for help with repairs! I at least attempt to save money, then if it's too difficult I will hire a repairman. So Far, PartSelect has saved me a lot of money on doing it myself! Thanks PartSelect for making small repairs easy to tackle yourself, along with reasonable prices for parts!

took screws our of side trim and top trim, decreased height on leveler legs and pulled dishwasher from the cabinet, replaced cables and springs from both sides on the door, lubed door hinges cleaned everything under dishwasher re-inserted and re-installed trim screws. took around an hour with clean up.

remove old seal, put in new - my 10 yr old could do it. Note - there is a white mark on the back of the seal indicating the middle so you can line it up when installing the new seal - makes it easier.

Took the dishwaher apart. Found out the float was damaged. Replaced the float and the float switch. Put back together