What FA Means
WHICH MACHINES THIS APPLIES TO: FA appears in both the DW20 and the DW70 fault tables. The DW90 platform numbers the same fault F:44.
DW20 AND DW70 PLATFORM - WHAT FA MEANS: the service manual reads "Turbidity sensor fault. Indication only in the service menu. The machine assumes high turbidity for 'choice of route' in the automatic programme." The turbidity sensor measures how dirty the wash water is by how much light passes through it. The automatic programme uses that reading to decide how long to wash and how many rinses to run. With the sensor faulted, the control stops asking and simply assumes the water is dirty.
WHAT THE MACHINE DOES NEXT: it keeps working, and it errs on the side of caution. Because it assumes high turbidity, the automatic programme takes the long route every time. The owner never sees a code - the manual places the indication in the service menu only - and the symptom is an automatic cycle that used to vary with the load and now always runs long, using more water and more time than it needs to.
CLASSIFICATION: fault. Nothing is at risk and nothing stops, but the machine has lost the measurement that made its automatic programme automatic.
Common Causes of FA
- Turbidity sensor window fouled with grease or scale
- Turbidity sensor failed electrically
- Poor water quality or a blocked filter keeping the water permanently cloudy
- Drain system not clearing dirty water between stages
🔧 One Safe Check You Can Try
There is no message to clear and no adjustment for an owner to make, but two of the four items on Asko's own check list are things you can look at without opening anything. Switch the dishwasher off at the outlet or the breaker, let it cool, and clean the coarse and fine filters thoroughly - a film of grease over the sensor window reads exactly like permanently dirty water. While the filters are out, look at the water quality question honestly: a machine in a hard-water area with an empty salt reservoir, or one fed from a supply that runs cloudy, gives the sensor a harder job than it was designed for. Beyond that, the sensor and the drain system belong to the technician. Write down whether the automatic programme now always runs to its longest time, because that observation is what confirms the fault from outside the machine.
⚠ Why You Shouldn't Go Further Than That
- The sensor sits in the sump below the filters and is reached by isolating the machine from power and drawing it out of the cabinet, not through the tub.
- Any work at the sump means the wash water and element have to have cooled first.
Opening a panel to inspect or repair something yourself doesn't automatically cancel your manufacturer's warranty — but it can risk accidental damage, and some manufacturers do have specific service conditions. Check your product's warranty terms, or ask us, before deciding.