Hey! Bosch Has Got REAL Service Reps!

And — get this! — Bosch service representatives actually answer the phone!

Readers Elissa and Jestjack remarked that they thought the dishwasher repairman I described yesterday — the one with the side gig where he peddles cut-rate appliances to his employer’s customers — sounded a shade on the sketchy side.

Well, come to think of it, so did I. And when I went online to try to learn more about the worn-out “impeller” he claimed was the problem ($350, + …maybe not worth it if he could come up with a new Bosch for $450 or $500), a great deal more suspicion was cast upon “Richard” and his line of bull.

A Google search with terms combining “impeller,” “Bosch,” and “dishwasher” in various creative ways comes up with next to nothing. The most intelligible post I could find on the subject claimed that if the “impeller” isn’t working, the washer won’t drain. But this washer drains just fine. Otherwise…scarcely a mention. Eventually it occurred to me to call the customer service number glued to the side of the dishwasher door, on the same tag that reveals the model and serial numbers.

So having remembered that customer service number in the middle of the night, by light of day I called Bosch and asked the owner of the male voice that answered if he could please tell me what an “impeller” is, what it looks like, and how the washer would behave if it’s not working.

He said, in short, “Huh?”

I explained that I thought a repairman was trying to scam me and recited the story.

He said, “Maybe the guy defines an ‘impeller’ differently than I do, but … take a look on the inside of the tub.”

“Yeah?” from inside the washer.

“See that pipe going up the back?” I’d have called it a small duct, but yup, I saw the pipe going up the back.

“The impeller is what pushes water from where the lower spray arm is, in the bottom of the tub, up  that pipe to the top spray arm, the one that’s attached to the upper rack. All it does is get water to the upper spray arm.”

“Uh huh…”

“What’s your washer doing? What’s wrong with it?”

I explain that it fills with water fine but then the wash cycle doesn’t kick in. He says probably the problem is the circulating pump, which is what causes the water to slosh around inside the machine to wash the dishes. A new one costs $138. Plus of course the cost of labor.

Bosch has one, count him, (1), authorized service man in this area. He says the guy will charge me $99 to walk in the door. I say I’ve already paid $90 to get a crook in the door but I don’t object to paying about the same to lure someone who’s not going to rip me off. He says Bosch will eat the “diagnostic charge” if I will pay the parts and labor. I remark that I have no objection to paying for the replacement part or for the guy’s work, since a man has to eat, after all.

In the course of conversation, I say that repairmen have told me all appliances on the market today are engineered to give out in seven years, and the Bosch in question is about nine years old. So I’m not anxious to do repairs on something that’s going to fall apart like the minister’s one-hoss shay.

He now says that a dishwasher is a surprisingly simple device. It basically consists of a couple of pumps, a water heater, a couple of spray arms, and a control board. As long as the tub doesn’t rust out — an unlikely event given that mine is made of stainless steel and does not get banged around — the thing should run practically forever on the strength of an occasional replacement part. Forever, or until Bosch quits making the parts, which isn’t happening anytime soon.

The Bosch CSR’s attention now turned to Accredited Appliance and its service dude, Richard. He wanted their phone number. Expressing considerable interest in Richard’s sales tactics, he took the time to look the company up in Bosch’s records. It appears that Richard is about to land squarely in the dog house.

LOL! Nothing like the hive mind, is there?

😀

Bosch Customer Service:
1-800-944-2904