So my glassware cleaner decided to quit on me yesterday. Big mess when I opened it - cloudy residue everywhere, beakers looking worse than before washing. Just freaking perfect.

First things first

Unplugged the damn thing completely. Safety first and all that. Waited like five minutes while glaring at it, then plugged back in. Hit start button again. Same stupid error light blinking at me. Useless.

Pop the hood

Grabbed my screwdriver, took off the side panel. Saw this disgusting gunk buildup around the drain area. Looked like old detergent mixed with calcium deposits. Scooped out handfuls of nasty gray sludge wearing rubber gloves.

• Shoved bottle brush through drain holes
• Flushed pipes with hot vinegar solution
• Scraped mineral crusts off sensors with toothpick

Put it back together feeling hopeful. Ran empty cycle - still blinking error light. Wanted to kick the machine.

Detective time

Pulled out the manual (dusty as hell). That error code meant water pressure issue. Checked the intake hose - kinked like a garden hose someone drove over. Straightened it out, secured with zip ties.

Tried test run again. Heard the pump struggling like an asthmatic donkey. Checked filter basket: packed solid with broken glass shards and rubber stopper bits. Cleared that crap out.

Final showdown

Restarted the whole shebang. Machine made its usual glugging sounds then... beautiful humming noise! Green light came on. Threw in dirtiest beakers I had. Thirty minutes later - sparking clean glassware. Victory dance in the lab.

Moral of this crapfest: Always check the stupid simple stuff first. Hose kinks and gunky filters cause 90% of problems. Saved myself $200 service call by not panicking.