Dishwasher does not draw water – Possible causes & solutions

Do you know this? You put the dishwasher away, press the start button, but after a short attempt the program stops again? The dishwasher does not draw water and your dishes cannot be washed. The problem can have different causes. Here we describe the most common of them and show you cheap solutions how to fix the problem. It’s better than spending money on an expensive repair.

Possible causes why the dishwasher does not draw water

We have gathered possible causes for you here. With some handyman skills, you can probably easily fix the problem yourself.

Possible cause #1: Door not closed properly

Before you might go crazy, you should first test if the door of the appliance is also closed properly and also if the stop button has not been pressed by mistake. Sometimes this can happen in a hurry, but fortunately it is not a big problem. Simply press it shut or press the start button again.

Possible cause #2: Water inlet closed

This will certainly not happen to you, but you should still check if the water inlet is really open. Of course, if the faucet is closed, no water can be drawn. If you don’t know where the faucet for the inlet is, you usually just have to look under the sink. You may also have to carefully pull the dishwasher forward to get to the faucet. You will also notice the problem if vibrating makes the dishwasher noisy.

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Possible cause #3: Problems with the inlet hose

While you are at it, please check if all the hoses are also connected properly.

Sometimes the inlet hose is also a bit kinked, so that the dishwasher under £300 can not draw water. Eventually, the complete inlet is blocked by the kink. In this case, you need to move the machine out of your corner to fix the problem. Most of the time, the hoses are located underneath the sink. Pull a little on the supply hose and also the drain hose. If there is a kink in the inlet or outlet, you can straighten it out by pulling. Before you do a test run, return the machine to its original location.

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Possible cause #4: Lack of water pressure on the faucet

A calcified faucet can also cause the dishwasher to not draw water. This fault mainly occurs when the faucet has not been moved for a long time. This contributes to the sluggishness of the backflow preventer, which increases the calcification enormously. The clogging leads to the fact that there is no longer enough pressure on the faucet, so the dishwasher does not draw water.

You can also solve this problem yourself. However, to do this, you should first turn off the main faucet so that you do not cause flooding. Then decalcify the faucet and the sieves with acetic acid. You can use an abrasive fleece to remove further contamination. Unfortunately, if this does not help, you will have to replace the faucet.

Also of interest: Water damage caused by the dishwasher

Possible cause #5: Clogged hose

On the other hand, it rarely happens that hoses are clogged or defective. However, it can happen and thus cause a water stop – the dishwasher under £400 stops drawing water.

If the drain strainer did not stop the dirt from the dishes, it can get into the dishwasher drain hose and cause blockage there. To clean them, please proceed as follows:

To do this, proceed as follows:
Step 1: Place a bucket or other suitable container between the sink drain and the drain hose to catch any water that may leak out.
Step 2: Now disconnect the drain hose from the sink and let the water in it run into the bucket.
Step 3: Next, check the drain hose for clogs and unclog them by blowing into the hose or using a suction syringe.
Step 4: Finally, reconnect the drain hose and check to make sure no water is leaking out. Done!

If the drain hose is so dirty that it keeps narrowing the flow, you need to dismantle it completely and flush it with lukewarm water and detergent. A long bottle brush or piece of wire can also be very useful in this case. If the hose is too dirty, you can probably only replace it. In the case of a built-in dishwasher, this can be a relatively large expense, since the kitchen must be partially dismantled.

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Possible cause #6: Pumping problems

There may also be problems with pumping out, so that the old water is not pumped out and the supply of fresh water is automatically blocked. Besides a defective pump, there are other possible causes here. You can find more information about this in our article “The dishwasher does not pump out – causes & solutions“.

Possible cause #7: Aquastop strikes

The quiet dishwasher also fails to draw water when the appliance loses water. Dishwashers on the market today are usually equipped with an aquastop hose or even full water protection. These safety mechanisms ensure that the water supply is stopped if there is a defect in the supply hose or water leaks elsewhere in the appliance to prevent major water damage. Of course, if the aquastop has been triggered, the dishwasher will no longer be able to draw water. In this case, the solution is to replace the defective inlet hose including the aquastop. If the water has leaked inside the machine, you should try to remove the water and start the program again. If this does not work, there might be an electronic problem that you should solve with the help of a professional company.

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Possible cause #8: Problems caused by faulty solenoid valve

A rusted outlet valve can also block the flow of water. The solenoid valve is located at the water inlet. If you hear a humming sound rather than the water intake when you start the program at this point, a faulty solenoid valve may be the cause of the dishwasher not drawing water. Often, your only option here is to replace the solenoid valve, though this is more of a task for a repair service.

Conclusion

If your dishwasher under £500 ever fails to draw water, there are several possible causes. Often, the problem can be fixed by yourself and with little effort. Kinked hoses, lack of water pressure at the faucet or contamination are causes that should not really be a problem for most of us. Only in the case of technical defects should you better call in a service technician.