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Kitchenaid Dishwasher Won’t Drain

Kitchenaid Dishwasher Doesnt Drain At End Of Cycle

10 minute Fix: KitchenAid Dishwasher Won’t Drain (How to Unclog)

Is your dishwasher not draining at the end of the cycle? There are a few issues that can result in this problem.

Drain Valve If the drain valve is not operating properly or is clogged with debris, it will not allow water out of the dishwasher.

Drain Hose Check the drain hose to see if it has clogged or kinked. Some of the most common areas where a clog occurs are where the hose turns or where it connects to the garbage disposal.

Garbage Disposal Although it is not part of the dishwasher, the garbage disposal needs to be operating properly for the dishwasher to drain.

Often, a problem with the garbage disposal can be identified by water backing up into the sink. Unplugged the garbage disposal, clean it, and try again.

Kitchenaid Dishwasher Wont Start What To Do

Are you having issues with your KitchenAid dishwasher? Have you loaded up the dishwasher only to press the start button and find that the cycle doesnt begin? What do you do in this situation? And what could be causing it? We have researched why KitchenAid dishwashers may fail to start on occasion, and in this post, we will go over it with you.

KitchenAid dishwashers may fail to start if they have electrical issues, unlocked latches, power problems, or water supply issues. Its best to troubleshoot the dishwasher by looking for any error codes and double-checking that the door is completely closed. Its also helpful to refer to your user manual to determine what the error codes are indicating.

Sometimes the dishwasher may not start and may require only a simple and quick fix or adjustment. And at other times, the issue may be more complex, requiring thorough troubleshooting or for you to have an appliance technician look at the unit. Lets take a look at the most common reasons why a KitchenAid dishwasher wont start and how to troubleshoot this issue.

Check The Dispenser Unit For Damage

Before you look into any of the components that make the dispenser work, start by giving the whole dispenser unit a good inspection to see if there are any obvious signs of it being damaged or cracked.

Try to open and close the unit to make sure it isnt stuck. If it gets stuck, give it a good clean, and then check if this solves the problem. If it is cracked or heavily damaged, replace the whole unit as they are difficult to repair. If there are no signs of damage, you can start checking the components listed below.

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Tableware Blocking Door From Closing

The most common issue is a utensil like a spatula, or fish slice is not positioned in such a way that the door can close. It can be sticking out to the side, which blocks the rails that the rack is on. And the racks wont be all the way in.

Do a thorough check of where all of the plates, cups, utensils, and other things you have in the dishwasher are to ensure they arent stopping the racks from closing all the way. Or, sticking out in such a way as to block the door from closing.

To know for sure, you can remove everything from the dishwasher and place it on the counter to check that the racks are going all the way in as they should.

Check The Electrical Control Board

Kitchenaid Dishwasher Troubleshooting Not Draining

Solving the dishwashers power problem could be as simple as examining the control board.

  • Check that all the connections on the control board are connected, making sure they are plugged in tightly.
  • Check the control board for any signs of corrosion, burn marks, or other damage to the board and wires.
  • If you notice any damage, this may indicate what the problem is.

It is difficult to test the control board, so it is best checked by a professional. If you are unsure, it would be wise to check all the steps on this list before replacing the control board.

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How To Troubleshoot No Power And The Water Not Draining In A Kitchenaid Dishwasher

KitchenAid dishwashers are equipped with an LED display on the front panel to alert you when the appliance malfunctions or encounters a problem. However, if your dishwasher will not drain and has no power, the display panel will not help you. Try troubleshooting the electrical connections as a starting point to fixing the problem yourself before spending money on a service call. Minor issues can be corrected in a few minutes. Even if you cannot solve the problem, narrowing the malfunction to a specific area, such as a bad water pump, will save the time and cost if you must call in a technician.

Is The Loop At The End Of The Drain Hose In The Proper Place

KitchenAid dishwashers dont depend on the pump alone to remove the wastewater. The drain hose must be positioned under the sink to create a siphon effect when the drain cycle starts.

The drain hose loop must be at least 20 above the floor to create this siphoning effect. If the drain hose doesnt have this loop or the loop is too low, your Kitchenaid dishwasher may not drain completely.

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Troubleshoot A Mechanical Control Dishwasher Soap Dispenser

As with the electronic control dishwasher, if you have a mechanical control dishwasher, you should make sure the control knob is rotated completely to OFF. If the knob is past OFF, go ahead and manually rotate it clockwise to OFF.

Like an electronic control dishwasher, if a mechanical control dishwasher isnt in the OFF position, the soap cup may not function properly.

Once you do this, try closing the soap dispenser. If it closes, that was the issue, as stated in the case of an electronic control dishwasher. If it doesnt close, sit tight. Time to move on to the next round of troubleshooting.

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Clear Drain Tube Under Sink

Dishwasher not draining FIX. D.I.Y. KitchenAid & Whirlpool
  • Loosen the hose clamp on your drain tube where it connects to your garbage disposal or kitchen sink drain. Do this by turning it counter-clockwise with flat-head screwdriver.
  • Put the drain hose in a bucket and set your dishwasher to drain by pressing the drain/cancel/start button for three seconds. Then close the dishwasher door to start it.
  • While the drain tube is in the bucket, shake it to loosen the obstruction.
  • When water comes shooting out, let it continue until its fully drained. If the bucket fills up, open the dishwasher door to stop the drain.
  • Wiggle the drain hose back onto the garbage disposal unit or kitchen sink drain and tighten the hose clamp.

Pro tip: If you just installed a new garbage disposal before the dishwasher drain problem occurred, the cause may be a plastic plug inside the tube that connects to the dishwasher drain. To remove this plug, put your flat-head screwdriver in the disposals drain tube pipe and hit the back of the screwdriver with a hammer. That will knock out the plastic plug.

Scott Flint for Family Handyman

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Kitchenaid Dishwasher Keeps Beeping Clean

A KitchenAid dishwasher, by default, beeps whenever the cycle has been run fully and the dishes are clean. This is to alert you that the dishes are ready to be removed from the dishwasher.

At times, however, a dishwasher may malfunction and it could be as if the dishes were clean but the cycle is not finished running.

There are actually numerous issues that could be involved with this problem. A little troubleshooting is in order to determine what exactly is going on.

Did the dishwasher stop running and there is still water inside? Did the cycle not fully complete?

If you discover that there are more issues other than the dishwasher beeping at an inappropriate time, you should have those repaired first. This may require the use of a qualified KitchenAid technician.

You might also try resetting the dishwasher and starting over. There are a number of ways to do this, but the first thing you can try is holding down the start button for three seconds until it beeps.

Holding down the start button for three seconds causes the dishwasher to go into a short cancel cycle. All of the water should drain out of the dishwasher within a matter of a few minutes and then you can try running the cycle again.

In some cases, it may also be necessary to do a hard reset on the dishwasher. This is a matter of turning off the power for a full minute before turning it back on again.

If those options do not stop the dishwasher from beeping clean, you may need help from a technician.

Plugs Or Clogs In The Line

If there are no kinks or bends in the drain line, it is unlikely that there is a clog in the drain line. However, clogs can occur where the drain line attaches to the waste pipe or the garbage disposal. To find a clog in the drain line, you must disconnect the drain line from the connection to the garbage disposal or the waste pipe.

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Kitchenaid Dishwasher Not Cleaning Properly

If your KitchenAid dishwasher isnt cleaning your dishes, the spray arm could be clogged, the soap dispenser could be broken, youre using low-quality detergent, or the inlet valve could be defective or damaged.

Before you call your local technician, go through the steps outlined below.

Possible Solution:

Spray Arm
  • Check the spray arm to ensure it has not been obstructed by a plate or utensil. Gently spin it around to see if its free of any impediments.
  • Check that the small holes that spray water are not clogged with grease and grime. If so, take it out and gently clean it with detergent.
Low-Grade Detergent
  • Are you using the cheapest detergent tablets from the supermarket?
  • Spotty dishes can be caused by using low-quality or ineffective detergent. Too much detergent can also cause issues.
  • Use the proper type of detergent and the appropriate amount. A final rinse agent should also help with results.
  • Consider installing a water softener if you have hard water to reduce mineral deposit damage. Finally, make certain that the dishwasher is properly loaded.
  • Check to see if the detergent is being released by the soap dispenser.
  • Sometimes the dispenser gets stuck releasing the detergent at the correct cycle time, which is usually caused by grease and grime.
  • If this is the case, clean the soap dispenser gently with warm water to remove the grease and grime.
Dirty Filter
  • A clogged filter is a common cause of your dishwasher failing to drain making your dishes dirty.
Inlet Valve

Kitchenaid Dishwasher Stops During Wash Cycle

Kitchenaid Drawer Dishwasher Won

The wash cycle that a KitchenAid dishwasher does, involves spraying water over the dishes a few times. This part of the cycle, and when your dishwasher is draining are when your dishwasher is at its loudest. There are a few issues that will cause a KitchenAid dishwasher to stop during the wash cycle, here is what they are, and how to stop it from happening.

In general, water cant enter your dishwasher because of an issue with the water supply line, or the spray arms. Both need to be inspected and adjusted. It can also be caused by a blockage where the water drains from the bottom of your KitchenAid dishwasher, begin by doing the following steps.

I have put together numbered steps a bit further up in this article. Refer to those, and start with step 1, which is to check your dishwasher can drain. Then do each of the steps one by one. If your dishwasher still stops during the wash cycle, do each additional step until youve identified and fixed what the issue is.

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Kitchenaid Dishwasher Not Draining Burning Smell

If your dishwasher is leaving behind a burning smell, it could be due to a few different things. Check the following:

-The dishwashers heating element may be damaged or burned out.

-There may be food or grease build-up on the heating element.

-The dishwashers spray arm could be clogged with food or grease.

-The dishwashers drain hose could be clogged with food or grease.

If the dishwashers heating element is damaged or burned out, it will need to be replaced. If there is food or grease build-up on the heating element, clean it off with a vinegar and water solution.

If the dishwashers spray arm is clogged with food or grease, clean it off with a vinegar and water solution. If the dishwashers drain hose is clogged with food or grease, clear the obstruction and then run a cycle of hot water through the hose to flush it out.

Check The Dispenser Door Spring

The dispenser unit has a spring in the door that helps the dispenser to open during a wash cycle so that soap can get into your dishwasher. Sometimes, the spring can become defective, which will stop your dispenser from opening.

Heres how to check the door spring:

  • Open the dishwasher door.
  • Open the soap dispenser door.
  • Locate the door spring and check to see if its damaged or has become bent out of shape. If the door spring is not damaged, move on to checking the next component.
  • If its damaged, replace the spring, and then check if the problem has been solved. If not, youll need to check the next component.
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    Resetting The Dishwasher Manually

  • 1Unplug the dishwasher from the outlet if it isnt responding to commands. Kind of like you might turn a computer on and off to try and work out some bugs, you can do the same thing with your dishwasher. Leave the dishwasher unplugged for 5 minutes to let the computer reset itself if possible.XResearch source
  • It wont hurt anything if you leave the dishwasher unplugged for a longer amount of time.
  • Tip: If your dishwasher is wired directly to the power source, youll need to turn off the breaker that powers that room for 5 minutes and then turn it back on.

  • 2Plug the dishwasher back into the outlet to see if that fixes the problem. Once the 5 minutes have passed, go ahead and plug the dishwasher back in and look at the display panel to see if there are any flashing lights or error codes. Give the dishwasher 5-10 minutes, as it may be recomputing or running a diagnostics test.XResearch source
  • If an error code is on display, look it up in the users manual to see what needs to be done next.
  • If there are no flashing lights or indication that the machine is working, skip ahead to reset the control panel.
  • On some versions of dishwashers, youll need to press the first 3 buttons starting on the left side in a 1-2-3 sequence to start the test cycle. Repeat the 1-2-3 sequence 3 times and then press start to trigger the cycle.
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    Clean Around The Overfill Protection Float

    Kitchenaid Dishwasher Wont Drain Clogged pump repair CLR Cleaning

    The overfill protection float does just what its name implies. The float is a switch that will stop your KitchenAid dishwasher from operating if the depth of water is too much. If too much water is in the bottom of the KitchenAid dishwasher, the machine will stop.

    If food debris or other objects keep the float valve in the up position, the KitchenAid dishwasher may also refuse to start or pump away the wastewater. Make sure this float moves up and down freely, then restart the dishwasher.

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    Kitchenaid Dishwasher Buttons Not Working

    If the buttons on your KitchenAid dishwasher are not working, the display may be defective or power supply issue.

    If some of the buttons are working and others arent the keypad may also be the culprit of your troubles.

    Additionally, there is also a chance the entire control board has suffered internal damage and needs replacement.

    Possible Solution:

    • First, ensure that your washing machine is receiving an uninterrupted power supply by ensuring that the power cable is properly plugged in and the socket works.
    • Check that child lock is not enabled and there is no food impeding the buttons.
    • Replace the faulty display, touchpad, or keypad.

    Tighten Or Replace The Door Springs

    The door springs are attached to the door hinge at either side. Their purpose is to counterbalance the weight of the door. If theyre too loose, the door cant stay closed because its weight is pulling it downward and theres nothing there to keep it in place. In that case you should tighten it. But if its too tight the door could be closing on its own when you want it to stay open. So its important to find the right balance.

    The only necessary tool is a screwdriver. If the door spring is broken at either side the door will drop quickly. In that case the only option is to replace it with a new door spring. Heres a video tutorial:

    Categories Dishwasher, Home and Kitchen, KitchenAid-Dishwasher

    Ive been using my KitchenAid dishwasher and so far Ive been really happy with it. But, recently the door wont close all the way.

    Im quite good with fixing appliances and did a bunch of research about how to fix it. So, in this article Ill explain how to fix a KitchenAid dishwasher door that wont open or close.

    As a general rule, the door spring tension can have changed and needs to be adjusted, or the dishwasher isnt level. Also a utensil, plate or similar can be blocking the door and not allowing it to close, or the door latch itself is broken.

    Its difficult to know exactly whats causing the issue, so its a matter of applying the troubleshooting steps below one by one until its fixed. So, in this article, I will explain step by step how to resolve each of these issues.

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