Why is My Dishwasher Leaking?

Getting up in the morning only to discover a large puddle on the floor is never a great to start the day.

Fortunately, most simple explanations of dishwasher leaks are comparatively simple to pinpoint and resolve by yourself. Meaning you could not have to hand wash the dishes for too long, stay at home waiting for an engineer or need to pay a high call-out fee.

So, grab the manual if you have it, clean up the puddle and get something clean up any additional spills and so find out if you can find a do it yourself solution. If you cannot call us for local dishwasher repair.

Commonly Seen Causes of Dishwasher Leaks as well as How to Mend Them

Some of the more everyday causes of dishwasher leaks are not in fact due to a broken dishwasher at all. Prior to starting preparing yourself for an engineering task and watching numerous online videos there are a few issues you can rule out first.

Test to find out if your dishwasher is level. If your dishwasher isn’t aligned water can easily pool and leak without there being anything that needs to be mended or replaced.
Check you have been using the right detergent. You may have seen this with your washer. Too much detergent or the wrong variety may lead an excess of soap suds, the soap suds overflow and you get a leak.
Test your dishwasher door closes properly. If it doesn’t there may be an obstruction, or you may need to replace the door fixings.
Test the filter located in the base of the machine for any obvious obstructions as if your dishwasher isn’t draining correctly this will cause it to overfill and leak.

If none of the above issues apply it’s time to roll up your sleeves and really start the inspection.

To make your life easier start with the door and investigate for any visible issues inside of the machine prior to moving on to the underside. If you can find as well as resolve the leak before you have to pull out the dishwasher so much the better.

Before you do anything else make sure you unplug the appliance.

Door Seal

The most commonly seen place for leakage is around the door, luckily it is also one of the easiest issues to resolve.

If the leakage is periodic the issue might be as easy as a big pan or something else putting pressure against the door thus stopping it from sealing correctly.

On the other hand the door gasket may have come loose or got damaged.

Check the door gasket and check for any cracks, mineral deposits or other deposits, or any tracts in which the gasket might have separated from the door.

Taking off the seal and also giving it a thorough scrub has been known to improve the situation in some instances or you might need to purchase a new seal and replace it.

Water Inlet Valve (Solenoid Fill Valve)

The fill valve can be a further simple fault. This is in most cases situated under the machine which means you will need to unscrew the toe board and may have to unscrew the door cover.

The fill valve opens and also closes to let water into the dishwasher at different parts of the cycle. The inlet valve might be showing a leak, evidenced by a slight drip, or it could be damaged and so not opening or closing properly throughout the program.

When the fill valve fails to shut fully this can result in the dishwasher overflowing.

Generally inlet valve cannot be repaired, thus the entire component would need to be replaced.

Leaking Hoses

Your dishwasher uses hoses to fill, drain as well as recirculate water along the cycle.

Two issues could present themselves where hoses are concerned.

The gaskets can break or the connections could come loose so it’s a good idea to check all the connections first.
The other problem than may often happen as time goes by is that hoses could become damaged or get a hole in.

If you can see that the leakage is coming from a hose this should be relatively simple to change and new hoses are easy to procure.

Pumps and Gaskets

You can visually check the gaskets surrounding the pumps or motor to determine whether there is a leakage and change them if that’s the case.

The Float Switch

The float itself or the float switch could be not working correctly causing the dishwasher to overfill.

When working as it should the float will rise as the water rises until the desired or highest water level is reached. The tail of the float will then operate the switch. If something is blocking this or the float is broken this could be your issues.

Testing the switch will require a multi-meter but it may be noticeably broken in which case replacing it should resolve the issue.

Other Parts that Could Result in Leakage

A broken wash arm or support can build up pressure causing leakage. This could likewise often result in your dishes not being cleaned as effectively as they should.

Broken or faulty lines may also result in this fault as may a damaged pump cover if your dishwasher has one.

The motor shaft gasket may have cracked causing leakage. This generally presents as leakage coming from underneath the appliance.

Top Tips to Fix Your Dishwasher

Save money by checking the gasket instead of the whole part. In plenty situations, you can purchase the gasket without the rest of the part which saves you having to change the whole part.
Investigate the simple fixes before you get more complicated. There’s no point pulling the entire dishwasher out if the problem is the soap.
Photograph your progress. This can help you put the thing back together, show the component you need to a sales person, and explain the fault to a repair person if needed.
Stay safe. Water and electricity do not mix so unplug the machine first.
If you’re struggling call a repair person.

What To Do Next If Your Trouble Shooting Doesn’t Identify or Mend the Leakage

If the root of the problem can’t be discovered the thing you may do is to pull out the dishwasher to get better access beneath it and also add water to the tub to find out if the leakage presents itself.

If this doesn’t shed any light your appliance could only show a leakage when during a cycle. If this is the case, you may wish to employ a service engineer to determine as well as fix the fault due to the safety risks of running the dishwasher with electrical elements uncovered.