Hi,
I've recently moved to my first home with enough space in the kitchen to have a dishwasher and a washing machine. I have both linked up to the same waste water supply. I know next to nothing about plumbing, dishwashers, washing machines, etc.
The dishwasher was plumbed in when i moved in as the previous owners left it behind. I noticed the waste pipe has a non-return valve next to the dishwasher. It then flows into the same outlet pipe as the (clothes) washing machine, which runs through a u-bend and then into the sink waste outlet pipe.
My first question: should I have fitted another non-return valve to the washing machine waste pipe as well? I didn't, but thinking about it probably should have done..?
My second question is this: About a week after I moved in I found the dishwasher wasn't making things clean and realised that it probably had something to do with the fact it hadn't drained itself properly after the wash, as there was still dirty water sitting in the bottom. I drained all this out, took out the filters and rinsed them and checked there was nothing obvious obstructing the pump. Then I ran a rinse to see if it would drain. It didn't, so I took the non-return valve off and found some small bits of food stuck in it. However it still seemed able to open a little bit.
I cleaned it out and the dishwasher drained fine, so I wondered off feeling vaguely pleased with my new-found diy abilities.
However, since then, I've had to take the valve off and clean it out about three times in the next fortnight to sort this problem again. I take it this is not usual. Is there something wrong with my dishwasher? Should I be doing something cleverer with the pipes?
Any help would be much appreciated,
Many thanks,
Don