Soap is left in the dispenser and the top rack doesn't get clean.

Pour boiling water into the dispenser, it may be gunked up with soap residue

Hi,
There are three common problems that cause the Soap Dispenser or Cup not toopen. I have a tip that will explain these problems in detail....

Dishwasher Repair Problem Detergent Cup does not Open

heatman101

Connie,, make sure in loading the dishwasher you have room for the soap and water to make it to the top rack, (older models) on newer models you have a sprayer just under the rack make sure the sprayers are working fully,, to clean them you can use a hard brush and vinegar,, let stand for 5 minutes and rinse off, also, you can run vinegar ( white) through your machine,, to help clean the jets,, use in place of the soap , then run a couple of times empty to remove and let over odor

Since you mention that your dishwasher has a dispenser has a flap that opens but detergent does not come out, the problem could be the wash water is not getting to it.

Can you confirm if during wash cycle the water is circulating especially through the top wash arm.

Keep a small container on the top rack and see if there is water collected in it at the end of cycle. Alternatively run the dishwasher with door open (you will have to find a way to enable the door switch inside the latch).

Please post a comment to confirm what you observe.

check the top of the cabinet after the unit has started to wash the water droplets is the key. if you see water droplets on the very top all over then the unit circulation pump is working. If that checks out then check the jet dry compartment. here is a trick.
open the compartment door, fill compartment until it cant hold anymore liquid,close compartment door,lower and raise the door 3 times,open compartment door check to see if you fill with more jet dry,repeat this process untill it cant take anymore.
what this does is removes the air out of the compartment. this will last for about 10-12 washes. last thing is to turn your faucet water on until it is the hottest then start your machine. use cascade soap and no tablets. when you use tabletrs with jet dry the machine over suds, the rinse aid compartment or dispenser is vidal to drying,cleaning spots and film. hope this helps.

Yes that's normal for that machine. The soap has to be washed out of the soap drawer by the top spray arm turning, and that's usually the problem - the arm isn't turning. Check both spray arms for blocked jets at the very end - remove blockages with a pin and water flow from tap. In the worst case, you may need a new spray arm - but they are usually cheap.
More points to remember - on a rapid 30 minute wash program only, if you are using wash tablets, don't put them in the soap drawer as there wont be enough time for them to dissolve. put the tabs in the cutlery basket. Also - a dishwasher is not a garbage disposal unit, and uneaten food must be scraped of plates before putting them in the dishwasher. Run a dishwasher cleaner through now and then, or do a full program wash with nothing in the machine to clean it out and to keep spray arms clear.

This happened to me as well. I think I solved the problem. It started when I first lowered the top rack. In doing so, the door doesn't open all the way. It also won't open all the way if your cutlery rack is in the front and you've put large utensils like a spatula. Consequently, detergent dried under the latch and it wouldn't firmly catch. For months I put up with it never emptying completely. The other day I took a tooth brush and very hot water and cleaned under the latch. After, I could feel a difference in the way the latch operated (with greater pop on opening). So far its been doing fine. Hope this helps.
Denise

If you are you using a liquid soap or packets that will be the main problem.If your unit fills with water circulates the water and drains the water,and also heaters are working then you probally need to change to cascade powder soap.The film on the dishes is soap.The unit has so much build up in it that when it gets to the rinse cycle it is rinsing dishes with soapy water.You need to get 2 medium bowls fill both 2/3 up with white vinager,place one in upper rack and one in lower rack and run unit on longest cycle letting the vinager splash out during wash.do this with no soap and no dishes.Having soft water will allow you to use less soap.

I have the same dishwasher and kept having soap still in the dispenser at the end of the wash. Someone mentioned this, but what was happening is that the soap dispenser lid was blocked from fully opening by the top rack. You also typically have large pans in this area, so the water spray is blocked from getting under the half open lid well. I started opening the dishwasher after I heard the dispenser latch release, so the lid could fully open. After that, I had no problem with soap still in the dispenser. I started setting a timer to open and shut the dishwasher door about 20 minutes into the wash process (after the latch had released for the 2nd wash cycle), so the soap dispenser lid would be fully open. This was a pain, but it worked. The other thing to be careful of with this dishwasher is to ensure you have pushed the top rack in tight before closing the door. Look at the water connection for the top "spinner" and you will see how the plastic pipe fits up to the supply. If you don't have the rack pushed in tight, you get leakage around the connection and don't get good water spray from the top spinner arms. This can definitely affect the quality of the wash. You mentioned the dispenser lid is open when the cycle is complete, but that is because once you open the door it can fully open.

Your soap is clotting because there isn't enough water being sprayed around inside.  The water spray washes the soap out of the dish, if all is working well.  My machine had the same problem.  I had sufficient water level, but the spray head wasn't spinning very well.  I found the end-most hole in the spray bar to be plugged.  It is the end hole that provides a jet that makes the head spin.  I cleaned a bunch of debris out of the hole and the mchine started working and cleaning like it was new.  That was quite an axccomplishment since the machine is 15 years old.