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jbinma

bosch dishwasher doesn't drain after cycle

jbinma
16 years ago

i have a bosch dishwasher (not sure of the exact model) that is not draining after the cycle is complete. if i set it to run another cycle, it will drain the waste water at that time no problem but every now and then there is a rancid smell from the water that's been left sitting. i'm assuming this is not normal, what should i be looking at to remedy?

Comments (20)

  • jerrod6
    16 years ago

    When do you check to see if the water is still there? Are you checking as soon as the cycle is complete?

  • jakvis
    16 years ago

    Check your installation. Most likely the drain hose has not been installed with a high loop.This is the most common mistake I see with Bosch dishwashers.
    You may want to search GW for High Loop to get more info on how to correct your problem.

  • jraz_wa
    16 years ago

    I am having this problem as well. We just installed model SHX55M yesterday and ran it through a full cycle last night before heading to bed. When I looked in there this morning, there was a lot of water in the bottom - not quite enough to spill out the door when I opened it, but not too far off. I ran it through a few cancel cycles to get it to drain. Then after testing with a few cycles I noticed the same thing jbinma said above - it would not drain completely at the end of a full cycle, but would drain at the beginning of the next. And in between the rinse/wash/rinse stages, it seems to drain partially, but not fully, so that at the end I am left with a lot of water left over from all those stages.

    Our drain is in back of the dishwasher - it doesn't run to the disposal. There is an air gap that vents to the outside. We thought maybe the hose was being bent too much (kinked between the dishwasher and the connection to the drain), preventing draining. So we slid it out and ran it through a fill and cancel. It still didn't drain. Then we let the high loop down. It drained nearly all the way. Then we put the high loop back up. It drained completely. I just ran it through a quick wash with the high loop up and it drained pretty well. Still a little bit of water down in the filter housing.

    When it is in the drain stage - there is a "growling" noise that starts and stops a few times and then the pump runs for a while. We weren't sure if this cycling during the drain stage is normal. It isn't loud or obviously wrong. Just strange. When it does the drain at the beginning of a new cycle, the pump runs continuously until the water is gone - no cycling.

    I think if we notice the problem again, we are going to try running the drain into the sink or garbage disposal and see what happens. We're not sure whether it is the dishwasher or the drain pipe it is connected to.

  • joslin99
    16 years ago

    Having water below the filter housing after the cycle is complete is by design in bosch DWs ( maybe so the pump is never dry- dunno). It will empty that water out first thing the next time you run it. It is this remaining water that some think causes the rancid smell often attributed to Bosch DWs. You can search this forum for "Bosch DW smell" to get the gist. My Bosch DW has never smelled rank- knock wood, and is installed with the high loop directly to sink drain- not to disposal. Water clearly visible or above the filter screen is aberrant and indicates a problem. The quick "growling" and cycling of the pump off and on during the drain cycle is normal/correct functioning of the cycle as per my Bosch DW repair guy (it seemed weird to me too so I asked). My old kenmore just drained all the water in one fell swoop so the off and on drain pump might seem odd to many, like me, that were used to an american style DW.

  • jraz_wa
    16 years ago

    Joslin - Thanks for sharing your experience on the growling/cycling. I was worried about that.

    I pushed the DW back into place last night, but didn't push it back as far as we had it previously. This morning there is water above the mesh filter screen - maybe 3/4 inch. I'm guessing that given where our drain is, the bend that the drain line has to take is too severe. Will try a few more things and report back.

  • davidg_tgi
    16 years ago

    Your Bosch is doing exactly what it's designed to do. It doesn't completely drain once the cycle is done. It takes apprx. 48 hours for that standing water to go stagnant. Sooner depending on how much bacteria is around the water filtration system.

    Bosch is fully aware of this design flaw but to date it still has that flaw. If you call Bosch, what they'll tell you is to just run the machine daily (if you need to wash dishes or not) to dump that old water and then have it again standing in the machine until it's next use.

    I tell all my clients of this, but in cases wherein the machine is run daily it's not an issue. But if it's run every other day or longer then I don't recommend the Bosch.

  • jraz_wa
    16 years ago

    Ok, problem fixed. There must have been too much of a bend in the hose caused by the tight space between the drain outlet (dedicated drain behind the DW) and the back of the DW, causing it to not drain properly. (That, or the dedicated drain has issues of it's own, and I'm not touching that until we remodel next year). I now have the hose running into the disposal with a section lifted about 23" above the floor. I've run it through three full cycles and there hasn't been any water left standing that I can see without taking the filter housing out. If I take the housing out, there is some water down there, but it looks like the amount described as being normal.

  • jakvis
    16 years ago

    davidg_tgi
    All dishwashers leave some water in their sumps.
    This is not a design flaw but done purposely to make sure the pump seals don't dry out. I have serviced appliances for over 30 years and I can tell you that every dishwasher I have worked on has some water left in the sump. The Bosch D/W actually has less left in the sump than some other brands.
    Most manufacturers recommend that if you are going away for a long vacation to add about a quart of water to the sump to make sure the water doesn't evaporate all away which would cause the pump seal to stick. When you get back home you are supposed to run a regular cycle with detergent and no dishes to wash out the system

  • jerrod6
    16 years ago

    Can someone give more details about the quick growling and cycling on and off of the pump while the DW is draining the water.

    What exactly happens?
    Anyone know why it is designed to do this?
    How long is the drain period?

  • jraz_wa
    16 years ago

    I can't answer the why question, but I can tell you what I hear. When the dishwasher drains after the rinse, wash and rinse cycles, it will repeat this three times: drain for a couple seconds then "growl" (it sort of pulses three times in quick succession). Following that it will do the final drain, which lasts for 8-10 seconds. The growl may sound more like a dull thump - it probably depends on how tight fitting the dw is. We have quite a bit of space around ours, so more sound may escape. If you can find a showroom with one hooked up, put it through the drain routine by cancelling the cycle.

    I am really curious why it does this as well.

  • stacers
    14 years ago

    I have a bosch dishwasher and I am having the same problem with the sour smell. The water in the "sump" might not be a flaw, but that yucky smell is. All dishwashers may have that water in the sump, but most dishwashers don't smell sour. It stinks that I have to run the dishwasher everyday, since It is just me and my husband. We don't use enough dishes to run it everyday. It defeats the purpose of saving energy and water. Lame... I will keep trying tang.

  • champansky
    13 years ago

    Thank you for the information as to why water is to remain below the filter screen. However the water in my sump is usually dirty. One would think this water should be relatively clean after the last rinse cycle.

    Does this mean I may have a partial clog?

  • gnovotny
    13 years ago

    My Bosch dishwasher wash cycle RUNS TOO LONG, compared to the cycle durations stated in the manual. I cleaned the filters, checked for debris in the impeller chamber, checked the drain line, air gap, and ran some commercial dishwasher cleaner through....to no avail. The "delicate/econo" cycle is advertised in the manual, to take 72 minutes, but is often takes 120 minutes. The dishes are always rinsed, and we do not overload. I am begInning to wonder if it is a computer control board issue. CAN ANYONE ASSIST ME PLEASE? MANY THANKS!!!

  • gnovotny
    13 years ago

    More info from my previous post, earlier today. The issue seems to be something to do with the last cycle. The time countdown display will stay at "1" for over an hour, before the dishwasher completes its cycle, shutsdown and displays "CL" or clean. Something is awry with the shutdown cycle. How is it sensed, and is there some sort of remedy?
    THANKS AGAIN FOR ANY IDEAS. DESPERATE FOR A SOLUTION IN KONA.

  • burdelik_sbcglobal_net
    13 years ago

    WHich buttons do I press to drain this never ending cycle? I think my motherboard is broken. Thanks!

  • belle1_wi_rr_com
    13 years ago

    I had the same problem, not draining at all. I ensured the drain hose was not crimped. I then removed the hose from the air gap and put it in the sink and ran the DW, it did drain into the sink so the problem was: the air gap, or the hose from the air gap to the garbage disposal. I took the hose off from the air gap to garbage disposal and checked that - no blockage. I took the air gap out, and saw it was blocked. This air gap allowed me to take it apart: a broken piece of glass had jammed in the air gap, and a small piece of plastic had jammed against the glass thus totally blocking the air gap. I cleaned it out the the DW works fine.

  • TWCHAN62_YAHOO_COM
    12 years ago

    I WRONGLY INSTALL MY DRAIN HOSE NOT AT HIGH LOOP for a few years. What will happen to my dishwasher. My wire overheat melt and control panel chip of heater spoil and cause it short circuit when I plug in . Electricity leak. Where to find a reliable technician in Johor bahru?

  • lrod_678_yahoo_com
    12 years ago

    Please describe what is the "air gap" and where is it located?
    Thank you in advance.

  • someguy_somehost_com
    12 years ago

    I had about 12 quarts of excessive water left in the bottom of my Bosch dishwasher after a normal cycle. This is beyond the normal amount that is left at the bottom, in the tub. I am posting a link with the solution. The instructions were accurate right down to the #20 torque screw.

    Petri

    Here is a link that might be useful: Solution

  • samam_alum_rpi_edu
    12 years ago

    I had the same problem and quickly discovered that the air gap was obstructed. The second I removed the cap water poured out into the sink and the dishwasher drained.

    Louis, the air gap is there to keep a clogged sink from draining into your dishwasher. They're located next to the faucet. A lot of times the dishwasher drain hose just connects directly into the drain pipe of your sink. When the sink clogs, water overflows into the dishwasher and can cause a huge mess.