Why is My Dishwasher Not Draining?

Although it’s never a pleasant sight to open your dishwasher and realize the machine is still full of water, don’t overreact just yet. You may be able to figure out the problem by yourself, without having to call a plumber or acquire a brand-new machine.

Standing water in your machine can have a number of of causes a proportion of which are easy to resolve. Therefore, in advance of calling a dishwasher repair service here is a selection of potential things you may identify yourself. A few of which are not even related to the machine itself.

Check the dishwasher wasn’t interrupted mid-cycle

If you’re fortunate the fact your dishwasher hasn’t drained may not be a problem at all. Rather, the cycle might have been cut short.

The program could have been stopped mid-way for multiple of reasons. Children pressing controls, mistakenly pushing against the control panel, a power outage or opening the machine mid-cycle might all interrupt the program and mean your dishwasher doesn’t empty.

If you think this may be the case, or you think it may be worthwhile checking run your dishwasher again on a short cycle.

A proportion machines could have an empty program so it’s worth consulting your instruction manual or doing a quick internet search to check.

Check the disposal

If you have a garbage disposal examine this first as a blocked disposal will block your machine from emptying. Turn on the disposal with lots of water to check there are no obstructions.

If you do find an obstruction drain un-blocker or a natural alternative can be used to clear the obstruction and this could fix the issue.

Check the plumbing for blockages

If you sink is draining slowly this could signify a plumbing issue rather than a fault with your dishwasher.

In the case that the kitchen sink is draining slowly you could try putting a little bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar down the plughole, leaving it for a few minutes, then flushing it away with hot water.

A plunger might also be used to try and dislodge the obstruction.

This might be all you need to do to let your machine to drain so run a quick program at this point. If this hasn’t solved the problem you can remove the standing water by hand using a cup as well as a sponge and troubleshoot the next few possible issues.

At this point make sure you disconnect the machine to stay safe.

If during any of these investigations you suspect you may have detected and repaired the fault there is no need to continue to the next issue. Just run an empty cycle to check your machine is fixed.

Examine and scrub the filters

Any number of things could block the filters including popcorn, labels from jars, film covers and broken glass. Clear film may also be hard to spot if you don’t look carefully.

Remove the filter and give it a good clean before replacing it. Not all filters are obvious and simple to remove so you could need to consult the instruction manual for this.

Is the drain hose obstructed?

The next component to inspect is the waste water hose. Many things could cause an obstruction including a build up of food debris, a kink in the hose, or a crushed hose. All of which may all impede your machine from draining.

Subject to the location of the waste pipe (generally the ribbed one) you might manage look at it simply by lifting away the kick board alternatively you may be required to pull the machine out from under the counter.

Visually inspect the pipe first to see if there are any kinks or it’s been squashed. You may have the means to fix these issues by hand which should rectify the issue, but be aware that once this has occurred it is much more inclined to happen again so you might wish to buy a spare hose.

If you can’t see an issue you can take off the waste water pipe from the pump and blow into it to discover any blockages. Make sure you put down newspaper or towels first as there might still be water in the pipe.

If you can’t blow air through the waste pipe this could be the problem.

Disconnect the other end of the hose and give it a thorough flush through to get rid of the blockage. If you can’t dislodge the obstruction or the pipe is cracked or damaged acquire a brand-new one. If you can remove the blockage then re-attach the hose and run a quick cycle to find out if you have solved the issue.

You could also inspect the point where the hose connects to the sink. This is a common point for blockages to occur so if you do take off the hose give this point a good scrub as well.

Examine the drain valve

You can examine the drain valve by hand to ensure it isn’t got stuck. The drain valve will usually be located at the base of the dishwasher on the valve bracket. Consult your owners manual if you’re not sure.

Depressing the valve or wiggling it a bit will likely be adequate to find out if it’s seized. If you can see something blocking it remove this. If you are unable to, this might be when you should ring a repair person unless you are happy in ordering and swapping out the valve on your own.

Examine your pump is not blocked

Your appliance pump makes use of impellers that can become blocked by broken china or other debris. Check your pump isn’t broken by taking off the safety cover and checking that the impellers can rotate freely.

Listen to your dishwasher while it’s on

If your dishwasher is making funny noises your dishwasher pump or motor could be damaged and need to be repaired.

Call a repair person

If none of the above checks has repaired the error, or you have reason to believe the pump, pump valve or motor are not working, it could be the right time to get the professionals.

At least having attempted to fix the problem yourself you have prevented having to pay a hefty repair charge for a blocked drain.

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