The short answer for the F models
On the AEG-Electrolux F dishwasher models, dishes that come out dirty, filmed or wet leads somewhere the brand-generic article does not put first — hard water and scale. The brand-generic ordering opens instead with this: a blocked filter or sump screen. It moves down behind the lead here, because this family is a short run on a common stem, so its behaviour is consistent in a way the brand as a whole is not.
What you observe on these models
- Baked-on residue that was not there before — Something is being cooked onto the load rather than washed off it.
- A smell from the machine between cycles — Trapped debris, which is usually the same debris that is blocking the filter.
- A gritty film on glasses and smooth surfaces — Deposit rather than leftover food: the machine washed, and then put something back on.
- NEAR MISS — the dishes are clean but soaking wet — Drying alone is a rinse-aid and temperature question rather than a cleaning fault.
Causes, most likely first on the F family
- Hard water and scale — Scale builds on the element, the arms and the glassware. Ranked first on the F models.
- A blocked filter or sump screen — Everything the machine washes off has to be caught somewhere. Second.
- Salt, rinse aid and the water-softening setting — A machine built around a tight water budget depends on its consumables being right. Third.
- The diverter or the wash pump — When the upper arm never gets water and the jets and the filter are clean, the fault is in what routes the water, and that is behind the sump. Last, and that is the point of the order.
- Body: The spine for the F family records 6 model codes built on a common stem — a short run rather than a long one, which is why a single ordering covers all of them. Where this departs from the brand-generic ordering: the cause that moves up on these models is this one — hard water and scale — and the brand-generic lead moves down behind it.
Check in this order on the F models, and why
- Spin each spray arm by hand and look through the jets — First: An arm that will not turn freely, or jets you cannot see light through, explains a patchy result immediately.
- Run the tap at the sink until it is hot, then start the machine — Second: It tells you what the machine is being fed with, and it is the cheapest way to test the heat half of the list.
- Reload the machine deliberately and run the same programme — Third: Same soil, same detergent, better spacing.
Before you open anything
Safety
Power off at the breaker and water off at the valve, in that order, before anything comes apart — the capacitor stays charged after the switch and the sump stays full after the cycle. Put a towel down, wear gloves, and do not reach blind into a sump where a glass has broken. The door catch is never to be defeated.
Models covered by the F family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| F45078I-M | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
| F65478VI-S | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
| F89078VI-M | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
| F89078VI-S | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
| F89088VI-M | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
| F89088VI-S | aeg-electrolux:dishwasher:f |
When to call a technician
Call when the filter is clean, the arms turn freely and spray, the water arrives hot and a deliberately loaded cycle still comes out dirty — at that point the water is not being routed or not being heated, and both sit behind the sump. Call sooner if the machine trips the breaker, if you can smell burning plastic during a cycle, or if the inside of the door is hot enough to be uncomfortable. On the F models the line sits where the check stops being one you can make from outside the cabinet. Top the consumables up and run one more cycle before you book.
Other symptoms covered for the F family
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
