Is there anything worse than knowing that you need clean dishes but your dishwasher isn’t working properly? Opening the dishwasher door reveals that the dishes are mostly clean, but there is a large puddle of water resting at the bottom. You don’t want to wash them by hand because it uses far too much water and electricity. That standing water can be a real problem, but it might not be as big of a deal as you may imagine. Sometimes, it only requires a simple adjustment that you can do all on your own.
Before you get overwhelmed at all of the possibilities, take a few moments to survey the situation for yourself. You might just find that you can get your dishwasher to drain again all on your own!
Make sure the cycle is right
Is it possible that your dishwasher simply didn’t get to finish draining properly? The door might have been opened prematurely or the cycle might have been interrupted when someone pressed a button by accident. Try to see if you can get the rest of the water to drain by closing the unit and pressing a button that just allows you to drain the dishwasher.
Look for an obvious clog or block
If you don’t rinse your dishes off thoroughly before putting them in the dishwasher, you may have accumulated quite a clog. This is the first thing to look for when you notice that there is a ton of water in the bottom of the unit. At the very back of the tub, you should see the sump area and the drain hose. If you see lots of food and slime built up, you need to remove as much of it as possible. Put on a pair of gloves and start pulling out as much as you can.
Check for a kitchen sink clog
A clog in the kitchen sink could be the main issue for why your dishwasher isn’t draining properly. You may have some food debris in the kitchen sink that is blocking the pipes. If this is the case, you are going to need to loosen up the clog here before you can fix the dishwasher. Consider what the kitchen sink might be clogged with. You could try a store-bought drain cleaner that can dissolve food debris and other particles or hire a professional to take a closer look.
Run the garbage disposal
Some homes have their dishwasher wired through the garbage disposal system. Generally speaking, you should run the garbage disposal to ensure that it is clear before you turn on the dishwasher. If you forgot to do this, make sure to run the garbage disposal now and see if that can fix the issue.
If you have tried all of these simple tasks and the dishwasher still isn’t draining, you need outstanding appliance repair. Don’t hesitate to give Mike’s Quality Appliance Repair a call so we can take care of you today! We can make sure that you get your home back up and running with clean dishes in no time at all.