Why is My Dishwasher Leaking?

Getting up in the morning only to discover a large puddle coming from the dishwasher is never the best to start the day.

Fortunately, most simple sources of dishwasher faults are comparatively straightforward to diagnose and mend by yourself. Meaning you could not need to wash the dishes by hand that much, call an engineer or need to pay a high call-out charge.

So, if you’re feeling up to it grab the manual if you know where it is, find a towel to clean up the leak and so get a towel soak up any further leaks and find out if you can’t diagnose the issue. If you can’t call us for local dishwasher repair.

Commonplace Sources of Dishwasher Leaks as well as How to Resolve Them

A lot of the most simple causes of dishwasher leaks aren’t actually a result of a broken dishwasher at all. Prior to starting preparing yourself for an engineering task as well as flicking through endless online videos there are a number of things you might want to take a look at first.

Investigate to see whether your dishwasher is aligned. If the dishwasher isn’t level water can easily puddle and so spill out regardless of whether or not the dishwasher has a fault.
Test you have been using the correct detergent. You could be familiar with this issue with your washing machine. An excess of detergent or the incorrect type could result in to too many soap suds, the bubbles bubble over resulting in a spill.
Investigate your dishwasher door fully closes. If there’s a gap there may be a blockage, or you might need to adjust the door fixings.
Test the filter at the bottom of the machine for any obvious obstructions because if your dishwasher isn’t draining properly this will result in fill too much and leak.

If none of the above issues apply it’s time to roll up your sleeves and begin a thorough check.

The easiest place to start is the door as well as investigate for any obvious damage in the interior of the machine prior to moving on to the underside. If you are able to find as well as resolve the issue before you need to pull out the dishwasher you’ll save yourself a lot of hassle.

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

Door Gasket

The most commonplace place for leakage is around the door, luckily it is also one of the easiest issues to fix.

If the leak is periodic the issue could be as straightforward as a big pan or something else pushing into the door and stopping the door from shutting fully.

On the other hand the door seal might have come out of place or got damaged.

Check the door gasket and test for any brittleness, a build-up of limescale or other gunk, or any tracts where the seal has come away from the door.

Extracting the seal and giving it a good wash might help in some cases or you may be required to buy a new seal and change it.

Water Inlet Valve (Solenoid Fill Valve)

The water inlet valve can also be a simple issue. The Valve is usually situated underneath the machine and so you will most likely have to take off the kick plate and also may have to unscrew the door cover.

The fill valve opens and closes to allow water into the tub at different parts of the cycle. The fill valve could be showing a leak, evidenced with a slight drip, or it could be broken and not functioning properly while the dishwasher is running.

In the case that the fill valve doesn’t shut correctly this can result in the dishwasher overfilling and cause a leak.

Generally water inlet valve are not able to be refurbished, which means the entire valve would have to be replaced.

Leaking Hoses

Your dishwasher uses hoses to supply, empty and also redistribute water along the programme.

Two issues may present themselves where hoses are the cause.

The gaskets may go or the contact points can come loose so it’s worth examining all the connections .
The other problem than can often develop as you use the machine is that hoses can be damaged or cracked.

Luckily damaged hoses are relatively easy to procure and change, even for a novice.

Pumps and Seals

You are able to visually investigate the rubber gaskets that are part of the pumps or motor to determine whether there is a leak and replace them if that’s the case.

The Float Switch

The float itself or the float switch might be broken resulting in the dishwasher overfilling.

A working float will lift up as the water rises until it reaches the desired fill level. The end piece of the float will then turn on the switch. If something is blocking this or the float is broken this could be causing your problem.

Checking the switch would need electrical equipment although it may be clearly damaged in which case getting a new one should stop the leak.

Alternative Components that Might Cause Leakage

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

Broken or damaged tubes can likewise result in this problem as could a broken pump cover if your machine has one.

The motor shaft gasket could have come loose resulting in leakage. This generally presents as a leak coming from the underside of the appliance.

Top Tips to Fix Your Dishwasher

Save money by changing the seal instead of the entire part. In most cases, you can buy the gasket without the rest of the part which saves time as well as money.
Check the easy resolutions before you get more complicated. You don’t need to pull the whole thing away from the wall if the problem is the soap.
Photograph your progress. This can make your life easier when you come to put the machine back together, describe the component you need in a store, as well as identify the problem to an engineer if required.
Be careful. Water and electricity are not good friends so unplug the machine first.
If you’re struggling get in a professional.

What To Do Next If Your Initial Investigation Fails to Identify or Resolve the Leak

If the cause of the leak remains a mystery the next step you may take is to pull out the dishwasher to get a clearer view of the underneath it as well as add water to the tub to find out if the leak presents itself.

If you don’t discover any leakages with this method your appliance may only show a leakage when during a cycle. In this instance, you should employ a service engineer to diagnose as well as resolve the problem due to the safety risks of checking for faults with electrical elements exposed.