Dishwasher not Draining - Easy Fix!

Please be advised BlvdHome will not be responsible for any damage or further issues caused to your appliance by trying these methods yourself. If you don't feel comfortable trying the methods shown in this video, call a professional to help you.

If your dishwasher is not draining correctly what can you do to fix it before you call the expensive appliance repairman? In this video we share some easy and important things you can check which will resolve most reasons why dishwashers are not draining correctly. We hope this video will save you time and money!

Usually when a dishwasher is not draining and leaving water in the bottom of the dishwasher it means that there is some type of clock in the drainage system. This may be in the drainage hose, dishwasher filter, or even inside the dishwasher components.

Here are the three steps that you should take before you call that appliance technician or repairman.

1. Make sure that you can hear the pump trying to pump water. This is done by turning on the dishwasher and listening for a sucking sound that has kicked on to try to drain the water that is siting in the bottom of the dishwasher. If you turn the dishwasher cycle on and here absolutely no sound after a couple mins you most likely have a broken pump and that will need to be replaced. If you do here a sound (this is the case most of the time) you will know the pump is trying to work, but for some reason it is not working and it may be as simple and something has clogged it. Now you can go to step 2 and check the most common areas that get clogged.

2. After you have verified that the dishwasher is tying to pump the water you need to open the dishwasher and usually you will have sitting water in the bottom that needs to be removed. To do this it can be as simple as taking a cup and scoping the water out manually or you can grab a shop vacuum that will quickly allow you to suck all the water out. With the water removed, you can now access the first layer of filter that your dishwasher has. Sometimes you may need to remove the lower wash arm to access the filter. To remove the lower washer arm usually all it takes is a simple twist and it will come off. At this time remove the filter and if this has not been done before it may have food and scum/grim that has built up on the filter that is not allowing water to freely move into the dishwasher pump. This filter can be cleaned easily by removing it and rinsing it in the sink while giving it a scrub with some type of brush. (Tooth brush works great!) Tip: Some dishwashers have multiple filters connected together and you should remove all of them and clean each of them thoroughly. With the filters removed you should also check the small opening where the water enters into the dishwasher pump to make sure there was not some item that make it around the filters and is now clogging or blocking the drain.

Tip: If you have recently had a new dishwasher installed and you have a garbage disposal that the dishwasher drain hose is attached to. You should check to make sure that the disposal plug was removed prior to dishwasher installation. Each disposal has a plug that blocks the connection where the drain hose from the dishwasher is connected. This is because they want consumers to be able to use a disposal with out a dishwasher. To check this all you need to do is unhood the dishwasher drain hose and then put your finger or long kitchen utensil into the hole and if it does not enter the disposal cavity because of a solid wall you will need to remove the plug.

3. Now we are going to check to see if there is a clock in the dishwasher drain hose. This hose is on the back side of the dishwasher and usually is ran under through the underside or back of your cabinets connecting to your sink or garbage disposal. The best way to make sure there is nothing stuck in the hose is to remove the hose if possible. You unhook it from underneath the sink. (There may be standing water inside the hose so make sure you have somewhere for it to drain into once you unhook it.) You can not pull the dishwasher out by removing the installation screws that are usually drilled into the underside of you countertop. With those removed you are able to pull the dishwasher out and unhook it from the back side of the dishwasher. Now if possible it is best to run water through the hose to see if there is something stuck inside of it not allowing water to flow freely.

These are the three tips to help you fix a dishwasher that is not draining correctly. Hopefully it has help solve your issue and saved you some money.

@BoulevardHome

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[Yousnoob]

I have watched several videos to figure out the problem. Lo and behold I had indeed put in a new disposal and left the plug in. Now to try and get it out...thank you!

[charbelmalacon]

Thanks after watching your video I was able to fix our dishwasher wife very happy!

[robertmoneypenny]

I used a shop vac to clean out the hose which worked well. Thanks for the tip.

[ranwilso]

The morning after...Thanksgiving! I cleaned the filter and everything around it and that seems to be the issue (fingers crossed- dishwasher is working) Thank you!!

[becca]

Thank you so much for this! I watched a couple other videos that didn’t mention the height of the drainage and that was my issue. Just repositioned it and it worked!

[ceebee]

Blockage in the drain hose. Thanks for the excellent advice!

[bmix]

I left the plug OMFG. Thank you for this

[CassD]

I can't see how to remove the wash arm because your tip text covers up that part of the video. This is my kind of video though. Quick and to-the-point.. But FYI, I couldn't see the video during that section

[Paul-GrnHil]

My problem was the opposite. For years my dishes didn’t clean well. I finally discovered that the plumber connected the drain hose to a drain pipe below the unit instead of up to the disposal under the sink. The dishwasher never held much water as gravity would drain the unit before the pump cycle ever started.

[dianabinkowski]

I am75 and arthritic. I had no idea I could maybe fix my dishwasher myself. I had a technician come, paid $160 and he barely looked at it. He never checked the hose under the sink (no garbage disposal). He kept going to his phone (I think he was checking YouTube what to do). Waste of money. Tomorrow I will try to check everything myself.they

[summerbauer]

Ours isnt draining and it runs out onto the floor. Is this still the same advice? Will definitely try these suggestions. Thankyou.

[travisdeese]

MY MAN!! It was the new disposal. I forgot to knock out the drain plug. THANK YOU!

[robynsieverding]

YOUR VIDEO SAVED THE DAY!! Thank you so so much

[jtrobbie]

New disposal was installed by someone else and they never pulled the plug out. Easiet way to remove it without pull out the whole disposal is to take a screwdriver and tap it through with a hammer and pull the plug from the disposal side of the sink. (Cut breaker to make sure disposal doesn’t kick on while your hand is in there. Hope this helps.

[maryannosterberg]

Thank you for the advice when you have a new disposal and need to break the drain

[mrmissterious]

What would cause the dishwasher to sometimes drain and sometimes not? After I scoop out excess water and clean the filter, it seems to drain fine, but then a couple days later it won't drain. The hose position maybe?

[ReesRetuta]

Thank u about the punch in new disposal

[illumss]

Thanks. This fixed my dishwasher drainage issues

[UmbrellaWatch]

Perfect.. I never took out the disposal plug tada!!!

[foreignfilmfan]

And what does the pump sound like? My dishwasher is a little too quiet.