Why is My Dishwasher Not Draining? | Honolulu Appliance Repair

Although it’s never a welcome sight to open your machine and discover it hasn’t emptied fully, try not to overreact just yet. You could be able to deal with the problem without having to call a plumber or acquire a brand-new machine.

Your dishwasher failing to empty can have any number of of causes some of which are straightforward to rectify. So, in advance of calling a dishwasher repair service here is a selection of probable components you could identify by yourself. A number of which are not even a fault of the dishwasher itself.

Ensure the dishwasher wasn’t interrupted mid-cycle

If you’re lucky the standing water you have discovered may not be an issue at all. Rather, the program could have been cut short.

The cycle could have been stopped mid-way for multiple of reasons. Children pressing buttons, mistakenly pressing against the buttons, a power cut or opening the machine mid-program might all stop the cycle from completing and mean your machine doesn’t empty.

If you believe this may be the case, or you feel it may be a good idea to check run the dishwasher again on a quick program.

A few machines could have an empty cycle meaning it’s worth having a look at your instructions or consulting google to find out.

Examine the waste disposal

If you have a waste disposal check this first as an obstructed waste disposal will stop the dishwasher from emptying. Run the waste disposal with fast running water to ensure there are no obstructions.

If you do find an obstruction drain cleaner or a plunger can be employed to clear the obstruction and so this could solve the fault.

Examine the sink for clogs

If you sink is emptying slowly this may indicate a plumbing issue as opposed to an issue with your dishwasher.

If the sink is draining inefficiently you can try putting some bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar down the drain, letting it sit for a while and subsequently rinsing it away with hot water.

A plunger might also be employed to attempt to dislodge the obstruction.

This may be sufficient to allow your machine to work again so start a short cycle to check. If not you may manually drain the dishwasher using a cup and also a sponge and troubleshoot a few more areas.

Make sure you disconnect the machine to stay safe.

If during any of these checks you suspect you may have found and repaired the error you don’t have to go through the remaining issues. Just start an empty program to make sure your machine is repaired.

Check and wash the filters

Any number of things could block the filters including corn kernels, labels from containers, film lids and broken glass. Clear plastic lids can also be difficult to spot if you don’t look closely.

Take out the filter and wash it thoroughly before replacing it. Not all filters are obvious and easy to remove so you could need to consult the owners manual for this.

Is the drain hose obstructed?

The next component to check is the waste water pipe. 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 dishwasher from draining.

Contingent upon the location of the waste hose (generally the ribbed one) you could have the means to inspect it simply by lifting away the base or you may need to move the dishwasher out from the wall.

Look at the pipe first to discover if there are any kinks or it’s been squashed. You might manage fix these issues by hand which should fix the issue, but it’s worth noting that when this has occurred the probability of it occurring again is significantly increased so you could wish to purchase a spare hose.

If you can’t see any obvious kinks or obstructions you could remove the drain hose from the pump and blow into it to check for any blockages. Make sure you line the floor with newspaper or towels first as even if you have emptied the dishwasher there could still be waste water in the hose.

If you can’t blow air through the hose this could be the reason your dishwasher isn’t emptying.

Take off the hose at the sink end in order to give it a thorough clean to get rid of the obstruction. If you can’t shift the obstruction or the pipe is split or worn buy a brand-new one. If you can clear the blockage then re-attach the hose and start a short cycle to check that you have repaired the error.

You may also inspect where the waste pipe connects under your sink as well. This is a likely point for debris to build up so if you happen to remove the pipe give this area a good scrub as well.

Examine the drain valve

You can manually examine the drain valve to make sure it hasn’t stopped working. The drain valve will often be situated in the bottom of the dishwasher on the valve bracket. Examine your manual if you can’t see it.

Pushing down on the valve or giving it a jiggle should be adequate to tell you if it’s seized. If you can see any debris blocking it remove this. If you can’t, this could be a good time to get in touch with a repair person unless you are happy in ordering and repairing the part yourself.

Examine your pump is not blocked

Your dishwasher pump makes use of impellers that may be blocked by broken china or other objects. Check your impellers aren’t broken by removing the safety cover and making sure the impellers can rotate freely.

Run your dishwasher and listen for any unusual sounds

If your dishwasher doesn’t sound right your pump or motor may be faulty and need to be repaired.

Call a plumber

If none of the above investigations has solved the problem, or you suspect the pump, pump valve or motor are not working, it might be the moment you need to call for help.

At least having done your best to investigate what is wrong you have prevented having to pay a big repair charge for a blocked hose.