Sealant for dishwasher

[Andy Champ]

Yesterday SWMBO phoned me at work to say the dishwasher had died. Last straw on a bad day! So I opened it up, mopped up the trivial amount of water in the bottom, and settled down to fault find.

Nothing. Nada. Seemed fine. Finally worked out that the trivial amount of water (5mm) was enough to set off the anti-leak system and cut off the water inlet. Ran through OK, but more water was evidently appearing. No more during the day when it was off.

Tonight covers off and run. Fills, starts washing - and instant needle jet. The kid of size you get from a syringe with a needle on it. There's a pin prick hole in the feed pipe that goes up the side and into the top washer arm. So - online search for right plastic moulding. It's a shaped piece a couple of feet long, looks like a polythene or such moulding in two parts. Easily available.

For 35 quid.

So as it's pretty ancient anyway I just want to cover the hole over. Bearing in mind it gets hot and has dishwasher detergent (alkali) running over it, and it's made from polythene which isn't the stickiest material in the world - what's the best thing to use?

Andy

[Andy Dingley]

Polythene. Hot weld it. Awkward, but I can't imagine any other way to do it. Certainly glue is on a hiding to nothing for polythene.

If you can get it there, you might achieve something at a garage that does dent repair in plastic bumpers. They have some very nice hot air guns for plastic welding.

[Malcolm]

Wrap with self amalgamating tape?

Malcolm

[Tabby]

As long as the poly pipe is rigid, another option would be rubber tied in place with SS wire. Certainly forget glue.

NT

[Matty F]

Slide a larger short piece of pipe over the hole with a Jubillee clip at each end.

[fred]

I'd say the same, held under pressure with a jubilee clip.

[Bob Eager]

I was under the impression (having worked on our own dishwasher) that this wasn't so much a pipe as a plastic moulding with a channel in it. That really needs a *patch* as it's not of round cross-section.

[Dave Liquorice]

First thought was self amalgamating tape(*) but how thick is the plastic and how big is the hole? With a hot knife or spatula you might be able to smooth over enough surrounding plastic to seal the hole without thining things too much.

(*) I've used it to hold a broken bleed plug into the top hose of a cars cooling system so it can take temperature and a little pressure.

[Ronald Raygun]

Indeed, but in untrained hands a hot knife or spatula could end up just making the hole bigger and causing irreparable[1] damage.

I'm not saying don't try it, but do practice wielding said hot implement on some similar material first, e.g. some plastic pipe offcuts. But be mindful that the pipe in the machine may well be thinner, so more care will be needed.

[1] Of course to any self-respecting DIY-er there is no such word as "irreparable", so I should have said "damage more difficult to repair". :-)

[.newman]

How about drilling a small hole and use a small machine screw [10BA or

2mm] cutting its own thread into the plastic?

Regards

[The Natural Philosopher]

Mmm.

hoseclip and a patch?

actually you might get away with a puncture repair patch and use evostik solvent contact adhesive.

But I'd pay the 35 quid.

I managed to repair both the crappy Dyson vacuums that my wife swears by, thereby avoiding yet a third being purchased.

Waste of money sure, but not such a waste of money as a new one.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Not contact adhesive. That does indeed adhere to polythene.

[Dave Liquorice]

Yep that's an alternatice but in that enviroment I think I'd go for a small stainless self tapper. It would depend on the thickness of the plastic thoughand a small fibre washer under the head.

[Spamlet]

That is how I temporarily repaired our leaky rads - though I cut a thread with a tap and araldited/loctited the screw in for good measure. For a plastic moulding I would probably be looking at making a bigger hole and using a blind grommet of some sort. or even cutting a rubber bung to size.

One has to wonder (as in our rads) how the pinhole got there though: could just be the first of many...

S

[Andy Champ]

It's round alright.

It's also concertina bellows sort of thing just there!

I'll try some evostik on an inconspicuous area. If that doesn't work weld looks the best bet.

Thanks everyone!

Andy