LG Dishwasher Reviews

After having a Maytag for 21 years, I researched dishwashers thinking that after this time, dishwashers had improved. I always loved LG products. The love affair is over. Customer service awful. I do not think I will ever buy an LG product again. In short, I would not recommend LG dishwashers. Their other products may be a worthwhile purchase, but from reading the other reviews, LG dishwashers should all be recalled. Mine turned out to be junk. I wish I had my Maytag back again.

After his visit the unit worked. About two weeks ago, the problem started again and then the unit stopped completely draining. I looked at a couple of YouTube videos (because, heaven forbid I try to get LG to help). I shut the power to the machine at the breaker box. I found no problem with the filter or anything else. I started up the power, and I watched the unit re-boot, it worked fine. Then it struck me - we have a couple of short power outages every year. Every time the dishwasher stopped working, we had lost power from a few seconds to a few minutes. In order for the dishwasher to work, every time there is a power outage, it needs to be powered down at the breaker box for 10-15 minutes and allowed to reboot. WHY CAN'T LG LET PEOPLE KNOW THIS???? I am going to buy a new dishwasher and it's going to be anything other than an LG.

Upon the first use, this dishwasher gave the dishes- particularly glassware- a strong smell similar to a riverbank with submerged, slimy roots and vegetation. At the beginning, the smell would sometimes not occur until about 20 minutes after the cycle ended, but it would last indefinitely on dishes put into the cupboard. The dishes would hold this odor, even when completely dry, unless we rinsed and dried all the dishes by hand or set them all out on the counter for 3 days to air out.

On my first 2 warranty service calls to LG, 5-12-21 and 6-7-21, the technicians recognized an odor but could find no mechanical issues with the machine. The 3rd time I called, on 6-7-2021, LG refused to send someone to my house, saying that they would not send someone for the same issue since they found nothing at the last service call. (Incidentally, a technician told me that if LG has to send someone 3 times for the same issue, the policy is to replace the machine.)

For the next 2 years, despite efforts to clean and drain the machine, try different cycles, and various dishwashing products, the smell continued to get worse and worse. Eventually, when we opened the dishwasher after any cleaning cycle, our entire downstairs would reek like a riverbank. The only thing that helped somewhat was running a cycle with the dishwasher empty and some Clorox bleach in the bottom. That was only effective for one load following the bleach load.

We have lived in our home for over 30 years and had two previous dishwashers with no problems. The only time I have ever smelled this swamp odor in my home was several years ago when I left a pitcher of water undisturbed and unrefrigerated for about a month. It produced a thin slimy film and that very characteristic submerged-vegetation-in-a-swamp odor.

On 6-23-2023, I tried again to get some satisfaction from LG. After several calls, hours on the phone and weeks of waiting, my case was escalated to the Presidential Liaison. I was told that the best they could do was give me a courtesy check for $100 for my troubles, and a rebate for 20% of the machine cost. I expected $100 plus $206. I did receive the $100 check, and then I received a coupon off the price of my next LG appliance purchase for $58 with a notice that the case was closed. After 2½ years of dealing with stench, we replaced the LG dishwasher with a Bosch model a couple weeks ago – NO MORE SMELL.

I have read reviews on LG and found that this issue is not unique to our machine. I believe I know what is causing the problem, which comes from the factory. Dishwashers are tested at the factory to be sure they function correctly. A portion of that water remains in the machine until it is installed and used by a customer. I believe that impure water was introduced into my washing machine and bacteria multiplied inside it, to the point where it cannot be rinsed or washed away without taking the machine apart. I have this machine in my garage, and I think it could easily disassembled and tested for internal bacteria. I believe the public need to know that this is a very possible problem they could have with a new dishwasher, and that there is absolutely no recourse or satisfaction through either LG or Lowe’s.

I called LG back and told them the problem was not solved after their recommendations. They refused to send a technician. I bought the dishwasher two months ago (so of course still on warranty). I called customer service at the store where I bought the dishwasher and they convinced LG to send a technician (you have to beg, even though you spent nearly 900$ for a defective product!) The technician looked at his Iphone and told me to change soap and not rinse the dishes before loading them in the dishwasher. But, he also brought a part called turbidity detector and said, "If the problem continues although you change soap and stop rinsing the dishes, it would be a good idea to change this detector."

I followed his recommendations but nothing changed. I called LG back and they told me: «we don't send a technician for an code error». Pardon me ? I have a brand new dishwasher that doesn't work properly (this error code keeping the dry cycle from functioning) and I have to manually dry my dishes each time? A dishwasher is supposed to wash AND dry. LG continued to refuse to send another technician. What a lousy service! Now reading all the reviews I realize many customers are dissatisfied with LG and won't buy a LG product ever again...just like me. They just don't care about their clients, they just want your money!

The bottom rack is a nightmare and a fight to get in and out. I don’t believe the rack is the right one, I was told they would send me a new one and it would take time because they are really slow that was 9 months ago. Still no new rack. My husband is a smart guy and very mechanically inclined and he didn’t install it incorrectly or forget to level it, anyways he checked everything again. Sadly in all my years of using dishwashers (30 years easily) I have never purchased dishwasher cleaner. Crampy apartment dishwasher worked better than this one. Clean the trap weekly?? Again, I never did this until my 16-year-old one I replace was showing signs of I am really old. I took my dishwasher apart and cleaned it really good once and which I continued to use for 2 more years before replacing it with this piece of junk. I wish I had my old one back.

4. Hot Water Heater.

So after showing him I was using 4 different things. He told me it wasn’t the dishwasher but I need to get a better hot water heater in order for my dishwasher to actually wash & dry dishes. My setting are on dry but nothing is dry, they are more wet the next day after I get around to putting them away than when I washed my dishes for my dishwasher to wash them. (Not issues with a 16-year-old machine) One thing we learned was the dishwasher doesn't do anything to dry your dishes the only way they dry is from your hot water, this is the energy-efficient feature. Told to run my hot water for 5 to 10 minutes every time before using the dishwasher to get hot water flowing.

The dishwasher is energy efficient but in order for it to work you have to waste water and electric from the water heater. Hmmm, are people really this stupid?? He checked the reading on the machine, was told everything is working fine and there was no issue with the machine. The repair man was very nice, on time, communication was excellent from setting up the appointment, reminding us, calling to let us know he would be here in 15 minutes and offering us to call him with any more issues. What I really learned was LG suck. After the purchase, you need to waste more water, spend 8.99 for Affresh Dishwasher Cleaner regularly, 28.75 for 70ct Cascade Pods Quantum or 53.90 for the 70ct of Cascade Pods Platinum, 19.99 for Lemi Shine Pods, 10.29 for Finish Rinse Aid.

This is a lot of supplies to maybe have your dishwasher actually wash your dishes. Oh let’s not forget, you may need to replace a hot water heater and make sure it is set high. It would be a lot cheaper just go back to washing by hand since the dishes have to be cleaned even before you put them in the dishwasher. Sadly, we are now looking into a brand-new dishwasher that is really a dishwasher. LG dishwasher is just expensive hole filler in your kitchen. We are not purchasing from Home Depot either since you get no help with issues on appliances from them and no returns. Only nice thing I can say about it is does looks good and is quiet. I have the same issues with LG washing machine.

At that point, I contacted LG who sent their closest authorized service technician (a 3rd party firm). Nice fellow. The night before, running the machine so the tech would not have to face dirty dishes (the machine washes more or less but stops before drying), it ran all the way thru. The tech was unable to replicate the problem, stated he had never seen the bE code before, and after consulting with HIS tech support help on the phone, told us: "It's probably the motherboard or maybe the motor but is impossible to pinpoint. Besides the cost to replace either of those is almost as much as buying a new machine. I'd recommend Bosch, not LG." Service call cost was $85.

I contacted LG's supposed "Presidential" Customer Service. A "Presidential" CSR called and texted and left messages, asking what "day" she can call me. I responded by stating there is no one day - you need to schedule a day and TIME and offered several suggestions. She refused. I tried calling her and could only reach generic customer service who told me they were unable to contact "Presidential" Customer Service. After 3-4 attempts, the Pres. CSR happened to call at a time when I was free to take her call (meetings). She showed zero understanding, zero interest other than "clearing" her case, and fell back upon twin tropes - "your machine is out of warranty" and "company policy yada yada".

I had asked for LG to 1. reimburse me for the $85 service call charged by their authorized service teach that they had sent and 2. to either fully repair the machine or replace it at their cost. Motion denied. In conclusion, DO NOT buy an LG dishwasher. If you do buy an LG product, do not expect any substantive support from their disparate, unsupportive, uncoordinated, customer service processes. LG does not stand behind its products!

The dishwasher cost $679 new, and it doesn’t make good sense to spend that much on it when it will only break again. I’m going to research which manufacturer make the most reliable dishwasher and buy another new one. I’d only read performance reviews the first time. I have an LG clothes washer that I love, but their dishwashers aren’t reliable. I won’t be buying any more LG products.

For the Dishwasher I have called into customer service over 5 times spending upwards of 15-30 minutes per call. Have had 2 visits from certified LG repairmen. Have had multiple parts replaced on the dishwasher. And as of tonight, October 2022 the dishwasher has again stopped working. It does not complete the wash cycle, dishes never completely cleaned, it turns off still filled with water, and does not show any error messages. It just stops working. I paid $969.98 for a NEW dishwasher that does NOT wash dishes. Multiple calls and multiple repairs and it still is not working. I also purchased an extended warranty on top of the standard warranty it comes with. I have asked during the many calls to LG that they either replace the unit or refund my money.

The standard response by customer service: We need to repair it. At what point is enough repairing is enough? My wasted time, my frustration, my wasted water, the cost of electricity to run the dishwasher multiple times to complete a wash, and having to mop the floor because of water not emptying the dishwasher. This is not worth anyone's time to do. My recommendation is to buy a tried-and-true product from a company with a long history in the appliance business. Buyers, please take your business elsewhere.

Few months ago, I couldn’t run the dishwasher. It wouldn’t start or was stuck on child lock or another program and I couldn’t release it. I had to unplug the machine, or power the machine on and off multiple times, for the machine to work on whatever program it was on. I was told there is an issue with display control panel. The cost to replace the part was $425 including labor.

Last year, I had a similar issue with my gas range and I had to spend $350 at the time to replace the control board. I called LG and explained the situation and I told them my repair guy did recently multiple similar repairs. Obviously, they had issues with the control circuits running their machines. They wouldn’t take any responsibility for the failure. Their response, the machine is outside warranty. We will give you 20% discount to purchase a new LG dishwasher. Any sane person would not buy another LG appliance, after having 3 bad experiences. LG doesn’t care about customer loyalty nor customer service. They just want to sell new machines, with no regard to quality control. They lost me as a longtime customer.

The tech, named Jude, called LG with me standing next to him and told them unit continues to leak and is unrepairable. He did a live video with the LG techs showing them the leak and another crack he found in the door. After many emails, texts, phone calls, LG is refusing to refund/replace saying damage was due to incorrect installation of unit. This determination was made after 6 service visits in which the dishwasher was taken in and out each time by an LG authorized service person. It was never noted or mentioned to me the consumer that there was an install issue at any of these service appointments. Nor did their expert say that to LG when he spoke to them In front of me.

If it was truly damage caused by installation why did LG pay for 6 service calls? Wouldn’t that have been noted after the first visit ? I now have a new piece of junk that worked for 6 weeks and had been non functional since 10/30, when I made the call for service. LG has offered me 20% off a new dishwasher. Why would I buy another LG product after this experience? The least they could do is provide me a replacement unit if they won’t give a refund.

Do not buy this dishwasher. LG reps give you a constant runaround and the supervisor basically said LG would do nothing to correct or fix this. She put another work order in to CVS; their rep Randy called and said he had already repaired the dishwasher and that I should get another service company to come out. I have reached out to Ferguson, the company we purchased the DW from, they are my last hope. I cannot and will not live with this annoying noise which can be heard throughout my home, not just in the kitchen.

I sent an email to their CEO at LG. If I don't get my refund (sent all paperwork 2 times) I am going to ask consumer media TV people to publicly help me. We still don't have any dishwasher, want our money back to purchase a different one from anyone but LG. My situation sounds like one of another person's review.... That worries me that we won't get a fair solution.

April 2- Offer to repair machine at their expense is forwarded to me through CA by an unidentified person. I agree to offer. Sometime after this point, LG orders 2 replacement parts, a new main control board and a display board. I am not sure why the control board was ordered, as it was obvious the display board was the problem. The display board is the problem on every one of these machines.

April 6-I get a notification by text from a random number (never identified) informing me that I recently scheduled service for my machine to be performed on April 8. Only problem is, I didn’t schedule service. Someone from LG (never identified) took it upon themselves to schedule this service without consulting me as to whether this was an acceptable time. The text number this was sent from could not receive return calls or texts, and no contact information was available to reach out about this scheduled appointment.

After some digging around on the LG site, I figured out that the service was indeed scheduled, and also found out at this time that the above-mentioned parts had been ordered (one part was on backorder) and shipped to the billing address I originally gave on CA. Only problem with this is that the machine is not at the billing address, therefore both the parts and the service tech were heading to the wrong address. If someone had contacted me when the appointment was made, I could have given the correct address. If some useable contact information was made available to me, or if anyone in this process so far had identified themselves, I could have shared the situation with the incorrect address. But none of those things had happened. I share this latest update with the unidentified PM contact on CA.

April 7- A box arrives from LG. I open it to find a new control board. Not the display (the part that is actually broken) but the other random part. Turns out that the display board is on national backorder. Not surprising since the OEM display boards have a 100% failure rate. With every single unit of this model needing this part replaced, demand is clearly high.

April 8-Tech Visit #1. The service technician calls me to tell me he is 10 minutes away. I then tell him that he is 10 minutes away from the wrong address. He finally gets to the machine (I was able to be there), swaps out the mainboard, figures out mainboard is not the problem. I knew this already. So did the tech before even doing the job. Once he determined the main board was not the problem, he swapped the original board back into the machine and left, planning to return when the display board arrived. Since the mainboard did not appear bad, he returned the new mainboard to LG. This would prove to be a regretful decision.

April 13- New display board arrives. I contact service tech and he schedules the next day to come install it. April 14-Tech shows up for Visit #2 (the fact I am giving numerical designations to tech visits should tell you something) and installs display board. I am not at the house this time, or much of the remaining catastrophe would likely have been avoided. According to my wife, he swapped out the board, hit the power button to see it power up, packed up his stuff and left. He did no function check or system diagnosis whatsoever, just looked for the lights to power up. He also went into the LG service system and reported the repair job complete. It was not, and the fact that he did report it as such would create problems down the road.

After tech leaves, wife loads machine and tries to run it. After about a minute, it shut down and gave an error code indicating no water flow. I get home and check water supply to make sure that we didn’t have that turned off. I will also mention at this time that I have degrees in both electronic and mechanical engineering, and have been working as a design engineer and troubleshooting technician for electro-mechanical systems over 30 years. So I was able to deduce that we had sufficient water flow, but the electric water valve in the machine was not turning on. I contacted the tech, and he informed me he would come by the next day and check it out.

April 15- Tech comes back for Visit #3. During this visit I learned the tech was a refrigeration expert, and had limited experience with dishwashers. He was competent, just not that experienced with LG dishwashers. He figures out that he had plugged something together incorrectly. I am not clear whether this mistake was made during Visit #1 and the incorrect connection was made at the mainboard, or during Visit #2 and the incorrect connection was made at the display board. I suspect it was #1 and the problem was at the mainboard because one of the connectors he attached incorrectly was to the main water valve, thus the valve did not work, as I had identified. Wherever the problem, he swapped the connectors around, ran a diagnostic, declared it good, and left again. When we powered up the machine I could hear the water valve now working, but after about a minute, the same error code and shutdown occurred.

April 15 Part 2-The tech comes back that night for Visit #4 (told you we needed numbering). I am there, and we spend quite a bit of time checking out the machine. I teach him a few things about how the systems operate, and using some of my electronic testing equipment we figure out that the system is not seeing a signal from the water flow sensor. Hoping sensor might be bad, the tech ordered a replacement sensor.

April 20-Tech got part, and stops by for Visit #5. Flow sensor not the problem. He spends over 2 hours of troubleshooting, including 2 calls to the service center for technical support. They go through everything, including checking the wiring harness. Nothing bad with wiring, but the mainboard is not supplying power to the sensor. It was never admitted to me, but I will bet a month’s pay that when he incorrectly connected the plugs in Visit #1 or #2, the sensor power supply on the mainboard was damaged. If he had not already sent back the new mainboard (remember I said this would be a regretful decision?) he could have swapped in the new board and likely fixed the problem. But he didn’t have the parts, and he was eventually told by the Service Center to stop attempting repair and RMA the machine.

April 21- An unidentified person contacted me by text to inform me that the Alternate Resolution claim was started. But I should be prepared for it to be denied because the computer system says that all parts are functional. Remember the tech incorrectly reporting the machine repaired after Visit #2? An explanation by myself containing actual factual information and logic did nothing to change the response.

April 23- I receive a phone call from LG asking about how I rated the service I had received in early April. Because the tech had reported he completed the repair, the gentleman calling me had no idea the job was botched, and he wanted to know how I rated my service experience on my freshly-repaired and perfectly-operating LG dishwasher. I don’t think he was very fond of my answers.

May 1- Received voice mail from someone at LG telling me I was to be offered a bit over $500 for my permanently broken $1k machine. It further instructed me to contact Shakiah M about payout. May 5-When I talk to Shakiah, I’m told the actual number offered is even less. After several back and forth discussions on both text message and email, I agree to accept the offer, as long as there is no legally-binding contract included. I am assured there is not.

Side note: It’s bad enough that almost no one from LG ever identifies themselves, but I am even more amazed by the amount of correspondence throughout this process done by text message on a cell phone. Is this what we call professional corporate behavior in 2021? Text messages? What are we, high-schoolers? May 28- Finally get a written offer. And that assurance there is no legally-binding component to the offer? Not true. I must waive off all rights to pursue further action if I accept this offer.

Let’s recap: I started this process with a top-shelf machine with a single defective part. A $200 replacement part and 15 minutes of effort to install this part would have fixed my machine. But thanks to the mistake made by the service tech, I now have a junk machine. And what is the offer from LG after three months of hassle to fix all of this? Half what it will cost to replace it. Now I have a choice. LG is so in breach of contract here (not the warranty, BTW) that I will almost assuredly win in court. But small claims court is a hassle. I have tried to give LG the opportunity to make this right, and they continue to fail me, and will no longer even respond to me.

30 day deadline to accept offer is June 27, three days from now. If LG really wants to make this right, then they need to do something better than half replacement cost for a machine THEY BROKE. If not, looks like I will see them in court. And I won’t be suing for just the cost of the machine. Punitive damages will be added on as well, and I have high confidence in my case and my ability to present it. I have been an expert witness in court proceedings several times, so court does not faze me. I don’t want the hassle of it, but I won’t be treated as a pushover either. This is LG’s mistake, LG needs to fix it with a reasonable offer.

Original Review: We bought an LG LDP6797BD dishwasher in 2018, with the intentions of putting it in our house being remodeled. We used it in our rental home for about 8-10 months before removing it from service and putting it in storage. It never got installed in the house, so after sitting for 2 years, we pulled it out of storage and put it in another rental property where it has worked flawlessly for 5 months.

Now after a total service life of 13-15 months, we walk in the kitchen one day to find it dead. Won't power up, won't light up, won't reset. Looking at a few videos, I picked up a line filter. Not the problem. In fact, once I had it apart to change the line filter, I could see the red LED lighting on the board. So clearly it has power. Then after some more research, I find the web full of similar complaints. The number of purchasers with failures occurring, conveniently almost immediately after the end of their one-year warranty, is simply staggering. The Amazon listing for this dishwasher has 100% 1-Star ratings. Let that sink in. 100% 1-star ratings, I have never seen that on ANYTHING in my life. And especially not on an item that costs $1000.

This design clearly has a significant design flaw somewhere. The number of instances of identical failure occurring within a span of 12-16 months of service life is not a coincidence, and this statement is coming from a highly-experienced engineer with 3 decades of experience in design and manufacture of electro-mechanical systems. I know better than to believe that any manufacturer can take products to market and NEVER make a mistake in the design cycle. But what that manufacturer chooses to do about it when mistakes happen is what defines a company. This machine has a major design flaw, LG knows it, and apparently has chosen to do nothing about it.

And I guess they have a right to not do anything about it. Well, I have a right to do something about it as well. If LG continues to leave customers like myself that spent quite a bit of money on a clearly defective product, then it will be the last of my money LG will ever see. And I will go out of my way, every chance I get, to encourage as many people as possible to also not ever spend THEIR money on an LG product. This is site number 2 for the day, I wonder how many more times I can tell this story before the weekend is over?

If LG believes that not addressing this issue will save them money, I can assure you it will not. They will lose far more money from me alone than what it would cost them to make this right with me. Add to that lost revenue the amount of money they will lose with all the people I convince to not ever buy LG as well, and this will quickly become an expensive mistake many, many times over what it would take to fix it. If everyone else being screwed does the same, we can make a statement that LG simply will not be able to ignore. LG, the ball is in your court.