Why is My Dishwasher Not Draining?

No-one wishes to open their machine and discover standing water but, don’t panic just yet. You might manage figure out the issue by yourself, without having to call a plumber or acquire a new machine.

Standing water in your machine can have a number of of causes a number of which can be straightforward to figure out. So, in advance of calling a dishwasher repair service here is a selection of possible components you may identify yourself. A number of which aren’t even caused by the dishwasher itself.

Check the program wasn’t cut short

If you’re fortunate the fact your dishwasher hasn’t drained may not be a fault at all. Instead, the program could have been stopped mid-way.

The program may have been interrupted for any number of of reasons. Kids pushing controls, mistakenly pushing against the control panel, a power outage or opening the machine mid-program could all stop the cycle from completing and mean your machine doesn’t drain.

If you believe this could be the situation, or you think it might be worthwhile checking run your dishwasher again on a short program.

A number appliances may have a drain capacity so it’s worth checking your instructions or consulting google to find out.

Inspect the garbage disposal

If you have a disposal examine this before you move on as an obstructed garbage disposal will prevent your dishwasher from emptying. Run the disposal with plenty of water to make sure there are no obstructions.

If you do uncover a blockage drain un-blocker or a natural alternative could be employed to unclog the obstruction and this could rectify the issue.

Check the sink for blockages

If you sink is draining inefficiently this might indicate an issue with the plumbing instead of a problem with your dishwasher.

If the sink is emptying inefficiently you could try putting a little bicarbonate of soda and vinegar down the drain, leaving it for a while and subsequently rinsing it through with boiling water.

A sink plunger may also be utilized to try and dislodge the blockage.

This may be sufficient to allow the machine to drain so start a short cycle to check. If this hasn’t worked you may manually empty the dishwasher using a bowl as well as a sponge and troubleshoot the next few possible issues.

Make certain to disconnect the machine to stay safe.

If while you are carrying out any of these investigations you suspect you may have found and fixed the issue you don’t have to go through the remaining steps. Just run an empty cycle to ensure the dishwasher is fixed.

Examine and rinse the filters

Any number of things could block the filters including corn kernels, paper from tupperware, plastic covers and broken glass. Clear film may also be hard to see if you aren’t looking for it.

Take out the filter then give it a good wash before putting it back in place. Not all machines have their filter in the same place so you may need to look at the owners manual for this.

Is the waste water pipe obstructed?

The next area to examine is the waste water pipe. Many things could cause a blockage including a build up of food debris, a kink in the hose, or a crushed hose. All of which could all stop your machine from emptying.

Depending on the location of the waste pipe (generally the ribbed one) you may have the means to look at it by means of taking off the base or you may have to move the dishwasher out from under the counter.

Have a look at the pipe in the first instance to see if there are any kinks or it’s been squashed. You could manage manually remove any kinks which should resolve the issue, but be aware that once this has happened it is much more likely to happen again so you could wish to buy a replacement hose.

If you are unable to find an issue you may take off the drain pipe from the dishwasher and blow through it to check for any blockages. Make sure you line the floor with newspaper or towels before you remove the hose as even if you have emptied the machine there may still be dirty water in the hose.

If you can’t blow air through the waste hose this might be the issue.

Remove the hose at the sink end and then give it a good flush through to remove the blockage. If you are unable to remove the blockage or the waste pipe is split or degraded buy a new one. If you may remove the obstruction then re-attach the hose and run a quick cycle to double check that you have repaired the issue.

You could also inspect where the waste pipe attaches to the waste disposal as well. This is a likely spot for a build-up of gunk so if you do take off the hose give this connection a good clean as well.

Check the drain valve

You could manually inspect the drain valve to check it isn’t stopped working. The drain valve will often be situated in the bottom of the dishwasher on the valve bracket. Examine your owners manual if you’re unsure.

Depressing the valve or giving it a wiggle should be adequate to let you know if it’s stuck. If you are able to see any debris stopping it from moving carefully extract this. If you are unable to, this might be a good time to get in touch with a plumber unless you are undaunted by purchasing and replacing the part yourself.

Check your pump is not blocked

Your dishwasher pump makes use of impellers that can become blocked by pieces of glass or other objects. Check your pump isn’t obstructed by removing the safety cover and checking that the impellers can be easily rotated.

Run your dishwasher and listen for any unusual noises

If it sounds unusual your pump or motor may be damaged and need to be repaired.

Call a repair person

If none of the above examinations has fixed the issue, or you suspect the pump, pump valve or motor are damaged, it might be time to call for help.

This way though you will at least be able to give them more information and have managed to avoid needing to pay a hefty call-out fee for a blocked hose.

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