Why is My Dishwasher Leaking?

Getting up in the morning to find a large puddle coming from the dishwasher is no-one’s chosen way to start the day.

Luckily, most everyday sources of dishwasher faults are relatively straightforward to determine and mend by yourself. Meaning you might not be required to wash the dishes by hand that much, call an engineer or have to pay the call-out charge.

So, if you’re feeling up to it get out the manual if you have it, get an old towel to clean up the mess and so get something clean up any further leaks and find out whether you can’t find a do it yourself solution. If you can’t call us for local dishwasher repair.

Simple Sources of Dishwasher Faults as well as How to Resolve Them

Many of the most simple sources of dishwasher leaks aren’t really because of a dishwasher issue . Before you start preparing yourself for an engineering task and also looking at endless online tutorials there are a couple of issues you might want to take a look at first.

Check to see if your dishwasher is level. If the dishwasher is misaligned water can quickly pool and so leak regardless of whether or not the dishwasher has a fault.
Check you are using the correct soap. You may be familiar with this problem with your washing machine. An excess of detergent or the wrong type can result in to too many soap suds, the suds deluge and so you get a leak.
Test your dishwasher door fully closes. If there’s a gap you might have an object obstructing it, or you could have to replace the door fixings.
Investigate the filter located at the base of the machine for any obvious obstructions as if your dishwasher isn’t emptying properly this is likely to cause it to overfill and leak.

Once you have eliminated these possible causes it’s time to roll up your sleeves and really start a thorough check.

The easiest place to start is the door and investigate for any obvious damage in the interior of the machine prior to moving on to the underside. If you can find and so mend the issue before you have to pull out the dishwasher so much the better.

Also make sure you disconnect the appliance first by either unplugging it or turning off the circuit breaker for the dishwasher.

Door Seal

The door is seemingly the most common place for leakage as well as one of the easiest problems to solve.

If the leak is occasional the issue could be as simple as an oversize dish or something else putting pressure into the door thus preventing it from shutting fully.

Otherwise the door seal might have been dislodged or got damaged.

Inspect the door gasket and also check for any brittleness, a build-up of limescale or other gunk, or any areas where the seal might have come away from the door.

Removing the gasket and also giving it a good scrub might improve the situation in some cases or you may be required to acquire a new gasket and change it.

Water Inlet Valve (Solenoid Fill Valve)

The inlet valve can also be a everyday fault. The Valve is usually found under the machine therefore you will most likely need to take off the toe board and also may need to take off the door cover.

The water inlet valve opens and also closes to allow water into the machine at various parts of the cycle. The water inlet valve may be showing a leak, demonstrated by a slight drip, or it may be broken and so not opening or closing correctly throughout the cycle.

In the case that the inlet valve fails to close properly this can mean that the dishwasher overfills, causing a leak.

Often these valves cannot be repaired unless it is only the rubber gasket that is faulty, and so the entire valve would have to be replaced.

Leaking Hoses

Your dishwasher uses hoses to fill, empty and also recirculate water within the cycle.

Two issues may arise when it comes to hoses.

The seals might break or the connections might work loose meaning it’s worth checking all the connections .
The alternative problem than can often happen over time is that hoses might become degraded or get a hole in.

Luckily broken hoses are relatively simple to buy and also change.

Pumps and Gaskets

You can visually test the rubber seals surrounding the water pumps or motor to see if there is a leak as well as change them if that’s the case.

The Float Switch

The float itself or the float switch may be faulty causing the dishwasher to overfill.

When operating correctly the float will go up with the water level until the optimum or maximum water level is reached. The tail of the float should then turn on the switch. If something is blocking this or the float is broken this could be causing your issues.

Testing the switch will require electrical equipment although it might be noticeably broken in which case replacing it should resolve the issue.

Other Parts that Might Lead to Leakage

A damaged wash arm or support may push water under the door causing a leak. This will also often result in your dishes not being cleaned as effectively as they should.

Broken or cracked tubes may likewise cause this problem as could a damaged pump cap.

The motor shaft seal may have degraded resulting in a leak. This will generally show as leakage coming from underneath the dishwasher.

Top Tips to Mend Your Machine

Spend less by changing the gasket in place of the entire component. In plenty cases, you can buy the gasket separately which saves you having to replace the entire component.
Check the simple fixes before you get more complicated. There’s no point pulling the entire dishwasher out if the problem is the detergent.
Photograph your progress. This can assist you to reverse the process, explain the component you are looking for to a sales person, and also identify the fault to an engineer if required.
Stay safe. Water and electricity are not good friends so turn off the power first.
If you’re not sure get in a repair person.

The Next Steps You Should Take If Your Trouble Shooting Fails to Identify or Resolve the Leakage

If the cause of the leak is still a mystery the next step you could take is to pull out the machine to get better access beneath it as well as fill it with water to see if the leakage can be seen that way.

If this doesn’t shed any light your dishwasher might only show a leakage when it’s running. In this case, you may wish to employ a qualified technician to diagnose and also mend the leak due to the safety risks of checking for faults with electrical elements exposed.