The short answer
On an AEG Electrolux dishwasher, dishes not coming out clean most often comes back to scale from hard water, with blocked spray-arm jets close behind. Age, not electronics, sets the ranking here: hardened door seals, worn pump impellers, scaled heating elements and a chafed door harness fail long before the board does, and they fail in the order wear predicts. That puts the first move in your hands rather than a technician’s: work the checks below in order and stop at the first one that explains what you are seeing.
What you are seeing
- What this fault looks like, and which observations point somewhere else.
- food film left on the upper basket while the lower basket is acceptable
- a gritty deposit on glassware and in cup bases
- detergent left undissolved in the dispenser at the end of the cycle
- items shadowed by a large plate or a tray coming out untouched
- Not this fault: if there is standing water in the sump at the end, read the drain page
- Not this fault: if the load smells rather than looks dirty, read the odour page
Ranked causes on this platform
- Ranked for an AEG Electrolux dishwasher, which runs an earlier-generation controller whose indicator sequence, not a numeric display, reports the fault on many models. No measured frequency exists for this address, so the order is platform judgement rather than a share.
- Scale from hard water — Why: A chalky film that wipes off dry is mineral rather than soil, and no amount of extra washing removes it.
- Blocked spray-arm jets — Why: Jets block with seeds and scale from the outside in, so the pattern of what stays dirty maps directly onto which jets have gone.
- A filter stack that has not been cleaned — Why: Once the filter passes less water than the pump wants, wash pressure drops everywhere at once and every basket suffers.
- A wash pump that is no longer making pressure — Why: This is last because it is diagnosed by eliminating everything above it, and the symptoms are identical until you do.
- Loading rather than the machine — Why: Water can only clean what it reaches, and a shadowed item is untouched no matter how healthy the machine is.
What to check, in order
- The order follows the ranking above: most likely and cheapest first, nothing needing a meter until everything else is eliminated.
- Scale from hard water — Because: a chalky film that wipes off dry is mineral rather than soil, and no amount of extra washing removes it.
- Blocked spray-arm jets — Because: jets block with seeds and scale from the outside in.
- A filter stack that has not been cleaned — Because: once the filter passes less water than the pump wants, wash pressure drops everywhere at once and every basket suffers.
Checks you can safely do yourself
- Isolate the appliance before any panel comes off, and stop at the first step that explains the fault.
- Wipe a dry glass; if the film comes away, treat it as hardness and set the machine or the rinse aid accordingly. — Tools: a dry cloth — Time estimate: a few minutes
- Take the arms off, hold them up to the light and clear each jet with a cocktail stick. — Tools: a cocktail stick — Time estimate: a quarter of an hour
- Twist out the filter stack, wash it under a tap with a brush and refit it locked. — Tools: a brush and warm water — Time estimate: a quarter of an hour
- With clean filters and clear arms, watch the arms through the door vent or listen for them turning steadily. — Tools: nothing — Time estimate: a short observation
- Stop condition: Stop there: the next step means metering live terminals or opening a sealed system.
Safety first
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel, because a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Isolate the circuit before reaching into the sump, and treat the water in a machine that has just run as hot enough to scald. Never defeat the door latch to run the machine open; the latch switch exists to stop the wash the moment the door moves.
When to call a technician
Call a technician when the filters are clean, the arms are clear, the load is spaced and the machine still leaves food on the upper basket, or when the wash phase sounds weak. A pump or a diverter that will not make pressure is a service repair.
The fact bundle for this address was empty, so no warehouse figure appears. Every number on the page is a program safety constant, cited to its publisher. — Sources
General guidance- 1910.147 — The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout) — Occupational Safety and Health Administration, fetched 2026-09-06
Other faults documented for this brand and appliance. — Nearest pages of the same kind
What this page does not cover
This page is generalized across every AEG Electrolux dishwasher family and model number: no family fault list, no model parts list, and no measured figure from the program warehouse. Where a family- or model-specific page exists it goes deeper, and it should be preferred over this one.
Links: - [Common AEG Electrolux Dishwasher Problems](/blog/aeg-electrolux-dishwasher-problems) - [AEG Electrolux Dishwasher: Abnormal Noise or Vibration](/blog/aeg-electrolux-dishwasher-abnormal-noise) - [AEG Electrolux Dishwasher: Controls, Display or Error Code](/blog/aeg-electrolux-dishwasher-control-fault)
Adjacent pages for what this one rules out. — Where to go next
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
