No-one wishes to open their machine and discover standing water but, try not to overreact just yet. You might manage solve the issue without having to call a repair person or invest in a new machine.
Your dishwasher refusing to empty could have a number of of causes a proportion of which can be straightforward to deal with. So, before you call a dishwasher repair service try this selection of possible components you can identify on your own. A proportion of which are not even a fault of the dishwasher itself.
Check the cycle wasn’t cut short
If you’re lucky the standing water you have discovered may not be a problem at all. Instead, the program might have been interrupted.
The cycle could have been stopped mid-way for a number of of reasons. Children pushing controls, accidentally pressing against the control panel, a power surge or opening the machine mid-cycle could all interrupt the cycle and mean your machine doesn’t empty.
If you believe this may be the case, or you just want to be sure it’s not the issue run the machine again on a quick program.
A few machines could have an empty program so it’s worthwhile checking your instruction manual or consulting google to find out.
Examine the garbage disposal
If you have a garbage disposal inspect this first as a blocked disposal will block the dishwasher from emptying. Turn on the garbage disposal using lots of water to make sure there are no issues.
If you do uncover a blockage drain cleaner or a natural alternative can be employed to remove the blockage and this may solve the error.
Inspect the sink for clogs
If you sink is emptying reluctantly this might indicate a plumbing issue instead of an error with your dishwasher.
In the case that the sink is emptying reluctantly you could attempt putting a little bicarb and white vinegar down the plughole, letting it sit for a few minutes and then flushing it away with hot water.
A plunger may also be utilized to attempt to dislodge the blockage.
This may be sufficient to permit the dishwasher to empty so run a short cycle to check. If this hasn’t sorted the issue you could manually drain the dishwasher using a bowl and also a sponge and troubleshoot a few more areas.
At this point make certain to disconnect the machine to stay safe.
If during any one of these checks you suspect you may have detected and repaired the error you don’t need to go through the remaining steps. Just start an empty cycle to check the dishwasher is fixed.
Examine and clean the filters
Corn Kernels, labels from containers, film lids and broken glass, plus food debris, can all obstruct the dishwasher filter. Clear glass can also be difficult to spot if you aren’t looking for it.
Take out the filter and give it a good wash before replacing it. Not all filters are obvious and easy to remove so you could need to refer to the instruction manual for this.
Is the waste water pipe blocked?
The next place to examine is the waste water hose. 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 prevent your machine from emptying.
Depending on the location of the hose (usually the ribbed one) you could have the means to look at it simply by lifting away the base or you may have to pull the dishwasher away from the wall.
Look at the hose first to see if there are any kinks or it’s been squashed. You might have the means to fix these issues by hand which is likely to resolve the issue, however, it’s worth noting that when this has occurred the probability of it happening again is significantly increased so you could need to purchase a new hose.
If you can’t find an issue you can take off the waste water pipe from the pump and blow through it to figure out if there are any blockages. Be sure to put down newspaper or towels before you remove the hose as even if you have emptied the machine there could still be waste water in the pipe.
If you can’t blow through the pipe this could be the problem.
Take off the other end of the hose and give it a good flush through to remove the blockage. If you are unable to dislodge the blockage or the waste pipe is split or damaged invest in a new one. If you can remove the obstruction then re-attach the hose and start a quick cycle to check that you have solved the issue.
You could also examine where the pipe connects to the sink as well. This is a common place for blockages to occur so if you happen to remove the waste hose give this point a good scrub as well.
Examine the drain valve
You may check the drain valve by hand to check it isn’t stopped working. The drain valve will often be situated in the bottom of the machine on the valve bracket. Check your instruction manual if you can’t see it.
Depressing the valve or giving it a wiggle should be adequate to find out if it’s stuck. If you can see any debris stopping it from moving carefully extract this. If you are unable to, this could be a good time to ring a plumber unless you are happy in purchasing and repairing the component yourself.
Inspect your pump is not blocked
Your water pump makes use of impellers that could be obstructed by pieces of glass or other debris. Check your pump isn’t obstructed by removing the safety cover and checking that the impellers can rotate freely.
Listen to your dishwasher while it’s running
If the dishwasher doesn’t sound right your pump or motor could be damaged and need replacing.
Call a repair person
If you have been through the above list and the fault remains, or you have reason to believe the pump, pump valve or motor are not working, it might be the moment you need to call for help.
At least having tried to troubleshoot you have managed to avoid needing to pay a hefty call-out charge for a blocked drain.
More Dishwasher Problems:
- Dishwasher Being Loud
- Dishwasher Not Turning On
- Dishwasher Leaking
- Dishwasher Not Drying