GE recalls 2.5 million dishwashers due to fire hazard

[News Hound]

As we suspected, the defect that was responsible for the recent Maytag/Jenn-Air dishwasher recall was not limited to those brands. Today, General Electric announced a similar recall for 2.5 million dishwashers it manufactures under the brand names Eterna, GE, GE Profile, GE Monogram, Hotpoint and Sears-Kenmore. These models, sold between September 1997 through December 2001, all suffer the same type of leaks in the liquid rinse-aid compartment identified as the problem in the recently recalled Maytags and Jenn-Airs. The liquid rinse-aid can leak on to the internal wiring, causing an electrical short and overheating, posing a fire hazard. GE has received nearly 200 complaints of overheating, 56 cases of property damage and 12 fires that escaped the confines of the dishwasher itself. You can find the recall notice and specific models affected on the CPSC's Web site. CPSC spokesperson Julie Vallese commended GE for doing the right thing and being well poised to address this recall. She also said the CPSC will be looking at the universe of dishwashers to see if short circuits due to leaking rinse-aid is an industry-wide problem. Based on reports from our readers and even from one of our own engineers, we think they should. Our readers have reported at least one smoke and/or fire incident for each of several other brands including Bosch, Frigidaire, and Asko, though it's unclear whether these incidents were due to leaks in the rinse-aid compartment. If you or someone you know has encountered smoke, flame or excessive heat from any of these or other dishwasher models, please report it to us immediately, as well as the manufacturer and the CPSC. We use reader information to help us focus our tests and work with government agencies and industry standards groups to reduce the likelihood of safety problems....

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