Most dishwashers last 9 to 12 years. That matches the repair data and it matches what rolls through our schedule. Some push 15 with a little care. Others start giving trouble around year 8 if they have been run hard or nobody ever cleaned the filter.
Age alone does not decide whether yours is worth fixing. What broke matters more.
The parts that give out, and roughly when
Here is the order I see them fail, and what each one tells you.
Door latch and seal. The gasket dries and cracks over time, worse in a hot kitchen. A leaking door is one of the more common calls we get. The parts are cheap and it is a quick job.
Drain pump or wash pump. If it hums but does not drain, or runs a full cycle and leaves dishes wet and dirty, the pump is usually in the mix. A mid-range repair. On a 5 to 8 year old machine it is worth doing. On a 12-year-old one, depends what else is tired.
Water inlet valve. Slow fill, no fill, or water seeping in while the machine is off all point here. Moderate repair, almost always worth it under 10 years.
Control board. Electronic failures show as cycles that will not start, mid-cycle stops, or random codes. Boards get expensive, sometimes more than half a new entry-level machine. This is where age starts to weigh heavy.
Spray arms and float switch. These clog or stick more than they truly fail. Often just a cleaning. Check them before you call anyone.
How we do the repair-or-replace math
The rule I use: if the repair runs past half the price of a comparable new dishwasher and the machine is already 8-plus years old, replacing is usually the smarter money. You are not just paying for today’s problem, you are betting nothing else lets go in the next year or two.
Flip it around and it is easy. A 4 to 7 year old machine with one failed part almost always wins on repair. A decent mid-range dishwasher runs $500 to $1,000 plus install. A pump or valve swap is a fraction of that.
Age, plus repair cost, plus how the thing has been treated. That is the whole formula.
One trap: if dishes come out with white film, spots, or grit and cleaning the filter and arms does not fix it, that is often hard water or the wrong detergent, not a failing machine. We have watched people junk a perfectly good dishwasher over buildup a descaling run would have cleared.
What to check before you book
Two minutes, no tools:
- Pull the bottom rack and clean the filter. Most twist out. Clogged with food debris is the usual reason cleaning went bad.
- Pop the spray arms and rinse the holes under the faucet. A toothpick clears the stubborn ones.
- Run a finger around the door gasket for cracks, gaps, or mold. Wipe it. Replace if it is visibly split.
- Find the float switch, the little plastic dome on the tub floor, and make sure it moves freely. Stuck up and the machine thinks it is full and will not fill.
- If you recently swapped a garbage disposal, check the knockout plug came out of the drain hose. That one causes a surprising number of “won’t drain” calls.
None of that needs a tech. If you have been through it and something is still wrong, that is the point to call.
What we do on the visit
First thing, we run the machine through a cycle and watch it. Noise, leaks, does it fill and drain, how hot the water gets, does the latch hold. That tells a story before anything comes apart.
Then it is component testing: pump resistance, inlet valve, board outputs. Most dishwashers get diagnosed in 30 to 45 minutes, and you get a straight repair-or-replace call with a price. It is a $75 diagnostic, credited toward the repair.
We do not push work that does not make sense. If it is 11 years old and the board is cooked, we say so.
When it is time to let it go
- Rust inside the tub or on the door liner. Once it starts it spreads and it gets on your dishes.
- Two or three parts failing in a short stretch.
- A 10-plus-year-old machine facing a major repair.
- Parts on long backorder or discontinued, which happens with older off-brand units.
- Running two to three times the water of a modern machine. Anything made before about 2013 drinks water by today’s standards.
A quick word on brands
Bosch tends to run long and parts are easy to get. Whirlpool and KitchenAid are solid mid-range. Samsung and LG have gotten better but were spotty on older models. Miele builds well but parts cost more and fewer independent techs stock them.
None of that means refuse to fix a Samsung or blindly trust a Bosch. Units vary. A well-kept cheap machine outlasts a neglected expensive one all the time.
When to call
Done the checks and it is still off? Stop running it, especially if there is water on the floor. Water near cabinets and flooring turns into a big problem fast.
Everything past the basic checks, pumps, valves, boards, latch hardware, needs proper testing and the right parts. Get a pump or inlet valve wrong and you can flood the kitchen. Not worth guessing.
Anywhere in the Bay Area, call Bay Area Appliance Repair Service at (925) 999-4095 or schedule a visit online. We get you on the schedule fast, often same or next day. You get a clear diagnosis, a $75 diagnostic credited to the repair, and an honest repair-or-replace call. No pressure either way.