A & B Appliance Repair
22 yrs in businessLouisville, KY
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +3 more
Appliance repair
Dishwasher repairs are among the cheapest in the kitchen, and poor cleaning is far more often a spray-arm or filter problem than a failed pump. Most of what people replace machines over is maintenance.
664 of the 873 businesses in this directory list dishwasher repair, across 50 states and 316 cities. Below them: what actually fails, what the repair costs, and when replacing is the better call.

The 12 highest-rated of 664 businesses that service dishwashers. Call the number on the listing — we never take a cut.
Louisville, KY
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +3 more
Torrance, CA
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +9 more
Stamford, CT
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +3 more
Portland, OR
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +2 more
San Diego, CA
Refrigerator Repair · Refrigerator Installation · Washer Repair +8 more
Wheat Ridge, CO
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +3 more
Fargo, ND
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +4 more
Tampa, FL
Refrigerator Repair · Freezer Repair · Washer Repair +5 more
Fayetteville, AR
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +4 more
Dallas, TX
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +4 more
Seattle, WA
Refrigerator Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +2 more
Bennington, NE
Dishwasher Repair · Washer Repair · Dryer Repair +2 more
652 more dishwasher repair businesses are indexed by state and city further down this page.
Symptom, the cause it most often turns out to be, and whether it is homeowner work or a job that has to go to a licensed technician.
The complaint that brings most dishwashers to a technician is not a breakdown at all — it is cleaning performance. Food residue on the top rack, cloudy glassware, grit in the bottom of cups. Nine times in ten that is a clogged spray arm, a filter nobody has ever removed, or an inlet temperature below 120°F, and all three are homeowner fixes.
The genuine failures are worth knowing because they present differently. A leak at the door is a gasket; a leak from underneath is the pump seal or a hose clamp, and it usually shows first as a warped cabinet toe kick. A machine that fills and does nothing is a door latch switch or a control board. None of these cost more than a few hundred dollars, which is why dishwashers are usually worth repairing.
Dishes come out with food residue still on them
Homeowner fixBlocked spray-arm jets, a filter that has never been cleaned, or inlet water below 120°F. Rarely the wash pump.
Step-by-step: Dishwasher Not Cleaning →Standing water in the bottom at the end of a cycle
Homeowner fixA clogged filter or sump, a kinked drain hose, a blocked air gap at the sink, or a failed drain pump — in that order of likelihood.
Step-by-step: Dishwasher Not Draining →Water seeping from the bottom of the door
TechnicianA hardened or displaced door gasket, or a door that has dropped out of square on worn hinges.
Step-by-step: Dishwasher Leaking →Water under the cabinet with no visible door leak
TechnicianThe wash pump shaft seal, or a loose hose clamp under the tub. Usually spotted first as a swollen cabinet toe kick.
Step-by-step: Dishwasher Leaking →Fills but the wash motor never runs
TechnicianThe door latch switch, the thermal fuse on the control board, or the board itself.
Glassware comes out cloudy and permanently etched
Homeowner fixSoft water plus too much detergent, or hard-water scale. Etching is permanent; scale is not. A rinse aid and a correct dose fix both going forward.
Grinding or buzzing during the wash cycle
TechnicianGlass or bone fragments in the chopper or sump, or a failing circulation pump bearing.
Trips the breaker or the heating element does not heat
Licensed trade onlyA failed heating element shorting to the tub. Anything beyond the appliance cord is licensed electrical work.
Each item below maps directly onto a fault in the list above. This is the whole of dishwasher preventive maintenance — there is nothing else worth doing.
Remove and rinse the bottom filter
MonthlyPrevents: Poor cleaning, drainage faults, and odour — the three most common complaints.
Clear each spray-arm jet with a toothpick
Every 3 monthsPrevents: The top rack coming out dirty while the bottom is clean.
Run a hot empty cycle with dishwasher cleaner or vinegar
MonthlyPrevents: Grease film and scale on the heating element and sump.
Run the kitchen tap hot before starting a cycle
Every washPrevents: A first fill of lukewarm water, which is the most common cause of poor cleaning.
Scrape but do not pre-rinse; keep rinse aid topped up
Every loadPrevents: Detergent that never activates properly, and spotting on glassware.
Free step-by-step guides and the replacement parts that fix most dishwasher faults, with realistic difficulty ratings.
8 more dishwasher repair guides cover the rest of the faults above.
| Part | Typical price | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| Spray ArmLasts 5–8 years | $15–$40 | easy |
| Inlet ValveLasts 8–12 years | $15–$40 | moderate |
| Drain PumpLasts 8–12 years | $35–$120 | moderate |
| Door Latch and Switch AssemblyLasts 6–12 years | $20–$80 | easy |
| Heating ElementLasts 8–14 years | $25–$85 | moderate |
| Float SwitchLasts 10+ years | $10–$35 | easy |
| Door GasketLasts 6–12 years | $20–$75 | easy |
| Rack Roller and Adjuster KitLasts 5–10 years | $12–$50 | easy |
| Detergent DispenserLasts 8–12 years | $30–$100 | moderate |
| Circulation Pump and MotorLasts 8–14 years | $90–$330 | advanced |
Counts are how many of the 664 businesses servicing dishwashers name that brand. 54 distinct brands are covered in total, and 34 of these businesses hold a factory-authorized servicer credential.
Bosch, Miele and Thermador dishwashers use different sump and pump architecture from mainstream US models, and their parts are typically ordered rather than stocked. Confirm brand coverage on the phone so the first visit is not purely a diagnosis.
50 states with listed dishwasher repair businesses. Each opens a ranked list for that state.
316 cities have at least one listed dishwasher specialist. Ranked by how many.
National ranges for parts and labor together, before the diagnostic fee. Regional labor rates move these by roughly 20% either way, and no figure here is a quote.
| Repair | Parts + labor |
|---|---|
| Filter, sump, and spray-arm clean-outOften just the diagnostic; ask to be shown how so you can repeat it. | $80–$160 |
| Door gasket replacementCheap part, fiddly fit — worth having done properly. | $130–$260 |
| Drain pumpHave the sump checked for glass first. | $150–$300 |
| Water inlet valveSymptom is a machine that fills slowly or floods. | $150–$300 |
| Door latch or lock assemblyThe most common no-start cause. | $130–$280 |
| Heating elementDishes wet at the end of a cycle is the tell. | $180–$350 |
| Circulation / wash pumpApproaching the replace threshold on a budget machine. | $250–$450 |
| Electronic control boardOn a unit past year eight, price a replacement first. | $250–$500 |
Blue Book
A quote above $350 on a dishwasher past 7 years old is usually money better spent on a replacement. Below that line, and with life left on the clock, repair wins almost every time.
Estimate my dishwasher’s valueAdjusts for brand tier, age and condition. Free, no sign-up.
9–10 years, the shortest expected life of any major kitchen appliance. Built-in units in hard-water areas trend to the low end unless scale is managed.
Two habits account for most early failures: pre-rinsing every dish, which starves modern enzyme detergents of the soil they need and leaves residue that hardens in the sump, and running short eco cycles exclusively so the tub never reaches a temperature that clears grease.
Every listing above is a real business with a real phone number. Compare two or three on rating, licensing and years in business, then call the one that explains the job best — and tell them what you found in the fault list above.