It sounds to me like you have some sort of bearing that has grease in it that has gone awry. Probably going to need a repair man. Sorry

I put a cup of cider vinegar in mine once a month and recently was told that the Oxy-Clean Dishwasher Booster was also good.

I have not had this problem but I did find that when I took a paper towel and ran it across the bottom hinge area of the door/unit, it came up black! So, I wipe all the rubber door seals down until no more black. Just wondered if your rubber door seal could be falling apart?

I have no idea what it could be.

I do use a dishwasher cleaner at least once a month. I use the one that is in a square bottle that has a wax plug that melts when the dishwasher is ran.

Also- those packs plugged up my dishwasher. I only use liquid and crystals ---- NO PACKS.

I use Lime-Shine in every load and Cascade complete. Yes it cost more but cheaper than replacing the dishwasher. Had to do that a year ago.

Since that stuff is obviously not food residue it may be harmful to people's health - even the molecules of it that are not visible.

Another thought is that the bearings are there for a reason, and if you keep running it without getting it fixed, it might cause further damage. Gaskets are seals, and when they're gone in a dishwasher, obviously water is getting in where it shouldn't. I'm thinking rust and decay.

I'm inclined to worry excessively, but I would definitely get this problem solved and forget using the dishwasher until it is.

LOL, I'm just the opposite, if I ignore it long enough it will go away.

Where do you find dishwasher cleaner? I checked while I was out over the weekend and didn't find it in the grocery store.

I can't help your problem, but appreciate all the comments on newer dishwashers. I haven't had one for a long time and considered putting one in recently when we removed a section of cabinet that would allow for one. We had pretty much decided that it was going to be replaced with drawers, you confirmed our decision. Thanks

Buy a 8oz.-12oz. jar of TANG, use the whole jar, just dump it into the dishwasher and run a cycle. If it is the gasket you will probably have water leaks and I would guess you would see the water on the floor.

They still make Tang?

Well, anyway, I washed with 2 cups of white vinegar 2 times and it seems to be clean now. It's not throwing any stange gummy spots any longer. I may just start doing that periodically.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.