HELP! MY DISHWASHER IS NOT DRAINING COMPLETELY!

If you have a dishwasher in your Boston-area home, you may notice at some point that the dishwasher is not draining completely after you’ve run the appliance. Standing water in the bottom of the dishwasher may be causing unpleasant odors, or residual soap accumulation on the dishes or the inside of the dishwasher.

What could be responsible for the standing water? Several causes come to mind immediately. First, check the dishwasher for a kink or crimp in the drain hose. Over time, these hoses, which are usually made of flexible rubber, can kink or pinch, making it very difficult for the water pump to empty the dishwasher completely. Residual wash water will accumulate in the bottom of the dishwasher. In this case, you may or may not notice a smell along with the water, unless the water stands for several days without draining.
Second, food left on the dishes can cause a clog in the drain hose. Most dishwashers have a very limited ability to handle food scraps. Over time, these food scraps, combined with grease and accumulated soap can partially or totally occlude the drain hose. This situation may produce a dishwasher that isn’t draining completely and foul odors inside the dishwasher or in the sink, even immediately after the dishwasher has finished its cycle.

Third, if the clog is not in the dishwasher’s drain hose, it could be located where the dishwasher hose joins your sink plumbing, or in the sink itself. If you have a garbage disposal, small bits of food waste might be clogging the dishwasher drain, or may have drifted into the dishwasher’s drain hose from the disposal.
For clearing clogged drains, Boston Standard Plumbing uses and recommends Bio-Clean. Bio-Clean is an enzymatic drain cleaner that tackles the source of the clog without using dangerous chemical mixtures that can damage pipes, hoses and connectors in your plumbing system. Bio-Clean is non-poisonous, and begins to work within an hour. It completely destroys the clog at the source and leaves your hoses, connectors and drains exceptionally clean. Bio-Clean works on all drains, not just those in your food preparation areas. If you would like assistance with a clogged drain, our drain cleaning service and Bio-Clean treatment can have your drains flowing freely again in no time!

If your hoses and drains are clear, another source of trouble could be the dishwasher itself. The water pump on your dishwasher may be leaking – a condition you might not notice with the dishwasher in place. Signs of a leaking pump include water on the floor around your dishwasher after it runs; the dishwasher may also make an exceptional amount of noise when draining. In this case, you may want to consult an appliance repair specialist for advice.

Categories:
DIY Blog, DIY Plumbing, Tips and Tricks

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