The dishwasher door does not stay open.

Dishwashers hold a huge amount of dirty dishes. Many people have adopted the habit of piling them up in the wash bin, then, when it's full, they run the dishwasher and wash them all at once—it's cheaper. After each meal, you have to open the dishwasher door and carefully stack the dirty dishes.

Imagine a situation where the dishwasher door, under the force of the return spring, constantly tries to close. You have to stack the dishes with one hand and hold the door with the other. This is both inconvenient and dangerous; if your hand slips, you could pinch your fingers and smash the pile of dishes. Why does the door close on its own? Is it a malfunction or a serious design flaw? How can this be fixed? Perhaps it's worth looking for answers to these questions.

Why does the door want to close?

The dishwasher door of any brand and model can be locked in a fully open position. Some models can also be locked in a half-open position. This is very convenient when you don't want to open the door completely, but rather slightly for ventilation to prevent mold from growing in the compartment.

It is generally best to keep the dishwasher door slightly open as long as possible, especially if the room has high humidity.

But we're not exactly "on a budget," because our dishwasher door doesn't lock open or half-open. So, if you need to load dishes into the machine, you have to hold the door with your free hand or even your knee, spreading your legs so you don't drop the dirty dishes or slam the door on yourself. What's the reason for this?

Most often, in such a situation, it is necessary to talk about a malfunction of the door locking mechanism, but in some cases, the door behaves this way due to the lack of proper adjustment. The fact is that the door of a built-in dishwasher is not adjusted from the factory, so that the technician can easily attach the front panel to it during installation. After the front panel is installed, the locking mechanism is tightened, and the door locks properly. The adjustment elements are located at the base of the door hinges.

Parts responsible for fixation

If you look inside the dishwasher door, you will see:

• metal spring;
• a rope attached to it;
• plastic locking element;
• loop.

When you open the dishwasher door all the way, the hinge starts to move. This causes the cable to tighten, stretching the spring. When you open the door, you apply a certain amount of force. This force is enough to stretch the spring to its maximum, and a plastic locking element secures the cable, preventing the spring from returning to its original position. It remains locked in place until you begin to return the door to its closed position. The locking element immediately releases, and the spring begins to compress, pulling the cable along with it.

At this point, if the door is not held, it will quickly close, slamming quite hard.

Let's imagine that the locking element has failed. In this case, keeping the door open becomes entirely your responsibility, as the spring will tend to return to its original position, and only your effort can prevent it from doing so. Operating the dishwasher door without the locking element is impossible, as the mechanism will quickly break, causing further damage.

Repair Features

If your dishwasher door won't stay in place and you can't adjust it, you'll need to take it to the next level. Here are some simple steps to take.

1. Open the dishwasher door all the way and hold it with your knee.
2. We unscrew the screws that are located along the perimeter of the end of the door or on its inner side.
3. Let's disassemble the door. Once you remove the screws, you'll realize the door is constructed like a sandwich: two halves with a mechanism in between. Once you remove the inner half, the mechanism will be visible.
4. We temporarily loosen the spring so that the door does not close.
5. We remove the cover from the cable.
6. We remove the old locking element and put a new one in its place.

A broken locking device cannot be repaired.

After installing a new locking element on your Bosch or any other washing machine, don't rush to reassemble the door. First, gently hold the cable and spring, and check how the door opens and closes, and whether it stays open. If everything is OK, you can reassemble the door of your Bosch or any other washing machine and begin using your updated appliance.

We've sorted out the problem of the door not locking properly when open, but the mechanism can also break in other ways, and the symptoms will therefore be different.

• The door falls and opens on its own. This means the cable has broken or the spring has snapped. Most often, problems arise with the cable. The problem can be solved by replacing the cable or spring.
• The door won't lock, and the dishwasher won't start. There's a problem with the door locking mechanism. In this case, the mechanism needs to be either repaired or replaced. A modern dishwasher will indicate a problem with the door locking mechanism by displaying an error code. What is it? You'll find out by reading this article. Error codes for different dishwashers.
• The door is leaking. The rubber seals are damaged and need to be replaced. Sometimes a broken cable can cause this problem.
• The door creaks loudly. In this case, you need to carefully inspect the hinges; they may need lubrication. If the hinges are damaged, they need to be replaced.

Repairing your dishwasher door yourself shouldn't be a problem. Housewives can often handle this simple repair, even without their husbands' help. If you do encounter any difficulties, don't take any chances; contact a professional. Good luck!

   

5 reader comments

1. February 14, 2019 at 1:48 AM

   Vadim:

   I was so stupid, I was about to take the dishwasher back and return it. But it turns out there's an adjustment, even though the instructions don't mention it. Thank you so much!

   Answer
   • March 29, 2019 at 8:18 PM

     Natalia:

     Ah, I can't adjust...

     Answer
     • September 18, 2019 at 11:05 PM

       Sergey:

       Were you able to adjust it yourself? Mine doesn't lock either.

       Answer
   • April 1, 2020 at 3:24 PM

     Dimka:

     Where is the adjustment? I still haven't found it!

     Answer
2. July 14, 2023 at 10:51 AM

   Irina:

   After I finish washing, the door opens completely. Is this how it should be? I have a Gorenje.

   Answer