[IrishEagle36]

We have a Maytag dishwasher that has been working well for the past few years. Now, however, when we run the dishwasher the heating element will not turn off, even after the drying cycle has completed. All of the lights on the control board are off but the heating element is still VERY hot. I have to turn off the breaker to the dishwasher in order to let the dishwasher cool down. Any ideas on what could be causing this ?

Thanks....

[PS Staff - Sheila]

You may have a faulty door switch.

Is the element still heating with the door opened?

Here is a link to your dishwasher model MDBS561AWB.

[IrishEagle36]

The heater element only gets hot when the door is closed. It will get hot, however, when the door is closed and the cycle has completed, even if all the lights are off.

Thanks..

[denman]

Looking at your schematic I would say the circuit board is shot
If they use a relay to control the heater, there is a good chance that the contacts are welded together
This would not be that hard to troubleshoot since you know the board connections
If it is just the relay this could be replaced, the problem would be finding an equivalent or better relay