9 Reasons Why Whirlpool Dishwasher Not Draining [Solution]

The Whirlpool dishwasher not draining issue is mainly associated with dishwasher filters. Clogged or jammed dishwasher filters are common reasons for the draining problem in the dishwasher.

Besides this, there are also causes like faulty control panel, kinked drain hose, problem in the stuck valve are various other reason that could cause this issue in whirlpool dishwasher. 

If you are trying to figure out a draining issue in the dishwasher but couldn’t come up with a working solution, then you have come to the right place.

Today in this article, we will be discussing different types of solutions and the reason that causes this problem in Whirlpool dishwashers.

What causes Whirlpool dishwasher not draining?

As mentioned earlier, the major reason behind whirlpool dishwasher draining is the clogged dishwasher filter.

When you don’t clean or forget to clean your filter, food particles can build inside, causing drain issues. If there is no problem with your whirlpool dishwasher, there should be something else. 

If you are trying to figure out the issue, you have to inspect your dishwasher correctly. Here are some common problems that are likely to create drainage issues on the whirlpool dishwasher. 

Drain Clogged

While putting dishes into the dishwasher, removing food pieces from the dishes is very much necessary.

Otherwise, it could block the dishwasher filter while creating a blockage.

Therefore, always keeps empty dishes in your dishwasher if you want to prevent this issue in the future.

The solution for drain clogged is removing out all food debris and particles. 

If you don’t know how, don’t worry; later in this article, we will discuss a step-wise solution to clean the whirlpool dishwasher filters.

This is the first issue you can inspect fixing in the Whirlpool dishwasher. 

Garbage Disposal incorrectly installed

If your dishwasher is not draining, there could be some problem with the garbage disposal.

The garbage disposal problem is easy to troubleshoot as you don’t need to screw.

All you need to do is inspect the disposal pipe and ensure the drain traps are appropriately installed. 

If you have installed garbage disposal incorrectly, then you will experience water leaks from the garbage disposal.

You will also experience water leaks when the garbage disposal is clogged.

Therefore, make a proper inspection in the garbage disposal, disassemble the garbage disposal and remove food particles clog if present. 

Drain Hose is clogged

The drain hose can also cause the problem of draining in the whirlpool dishwasher.

Most people forget to clean the dishwasher hose as it is located just beneath the dishwasher.

But, I suggest you clean your dishwasher hose once a month.

It will prevent the dishwasher from building debris and decrease the chance of drainage issues. 

If there is no food or debris clogged, make sure that the drain hose is not kinked.

A kinked drain hose won’t let water properly flow and could cause debris build-up in the dishwasher hose.

Therefore, always make sure that your dishwasher hose is not kinked when running the cycle. 

Failed Drain Pump 

Failed or faulty drain pump is another problem that could cause a draining issue on the dishwasher.

The drain pump forces water out of the dishwasher through the drain hose.

When there is a problem with the dishwasher drain pump, you are likely to see a draining issue on your dishwasher. 

Failed drain pump issues cause problems like standing water, backflow of water, and error code in your dishwasher.

Make proper inspection in your drain pump consider restarting the dishwasher. If it does not work, you need to change the drain pump from your dishwasher.  

Faulty Control board

You can control almost every setting of the whirlpool dishwasher from the control panel.

Sometimes the panel can malfunction, which can cause draining issues on the dishwasher.

When the control board can’t instruct the dishwasher drain pump, it will not drain the water and cause draining problems. 

Therefore, if you feel like your control board is damaged, then restart the dishwasher first.

After this, Turn On the dishwasher on a regular cycle and see if it is draining or not.

If you cannot turn on and off the dishwasher from the control panel, you should contact Whirlpool customer support or technicians to fix the problem with your dishwasher. 

Drain Solenoid Kit

Solenoid Kit on dishwasher helps open and close the drain valve on the dishwasher.

You will face a standing water problem in the dishwasher when it fails to operate.

If you are facing a standing water problem on your dishwasher, consider inspecting the Solenoid Kit of the dishwasher.

If there is an issue with Solenoid Kit, you should replace it with a new one then the water can pass through the drain hose.

Solenoid Kit is located at the bottom of the dishwasher inside the kick panel.

You should have screwdrivers to remove the kick panel of the dishwasher. After this, you can access the drain solenoid kit. 

Timer

If your dishwasher is not draining properly and the machine runs cycle more than once.

The timer is the reason behind the draining issue on the dishwasher.

When your dishwasher timer is broken dishwasher cannot drain the water properly. 

Timer assembly is located at the top of the control panel or just behind the lower kick plate at the bottom unit.

To access the timer, you need to remove the control panel plate or bottom unit plate.

After this, see if there it is working correctly or not. You can use a multimeter to check if your dishwasher timer is working correctly or not. 

Incomplete cycle

An incomplete cycle is related to the dishwasher timer. When there is a problem with the dishwasher timer, it can cause irregular cycles or multiple cycles counts.

This could hinder proper draining on the dishwasher. If your last was not completed correctly, then you restart the cycle on the dishwasher should fix the problem. 

An incomplete cycle on the dishwasher is caused when there is a problem with the dishwasher timer.

Therefore, check the dishwasher timer, repair the problem, and restart the cycle.

If you are unable to repair the timer, you can Whirlpool customer service for your problem. 

Wrong detergent

You should always use the detergent that the dishwasher manufacturer recommends.

Otherwise, it causes clogged issues on dishwasher drainage.

A detergent containing phosphate can cause a draining issue, blocking water from getting through the drainage.

Therefore, avoid using such detergent that includes some amount of phosphate. 

Water Pump Belt

If you are using an older model of Whirlpool dishwasher, then make sure to inspect this problem in your dishwasher.

Sometimes the water pump belt can break or tear, causing the dishwasher to drain.

The water pump belt is connected to the dishwasher lower panel. It is located behind the kick plate;

all you need to do is remove the screw, and you can easily replace the belt if it is torn or broken. 

How to reset the Whirlpool dishwasher?

When you encounter an error code user manual suggests you reset the dishwasher to fix the issue.

It fixes the most minor problem in the dishwasher. Therefore, I suggest you reset your dishwasher once if you are facing a draining issue on your dishwasher.

Follow the below instruction to reset your Whirlpool dishwasher.

1. Remove the power cable from the power source or press the turn-off button from the control panel.
2. After this, wait for 10-15 minutes, plug the power cable on the dishwasher, and then restart the cycle. 

This is how you can restart your Whirlpool dishwasher within two steps.

Now see if the dishwasher starts to drain or not. If there is no effect and the problem still exists, get to the next section. 

How to fix The Whirlpool dishwasher not draining?

There are different methods to fix draining problems in the whirlpool dishwasher.

The common solution to resolve the issue is cleaning the dishwasher drain filter.

Here we will discuss how you should clean your whirlpool dishwasher filter with step-wise instructions.

1. Turn off the dishwasher from the power source. 
2. Now open the dishwasher door.
3. Remove the lower racks from the dishwasher. 
4. Now at the bottom tub, there you will see filter assembly.
5. You have to rotate the filter assembly clockwise to remove it from the dishwasher.
6. Once it is removed, you will see food debris and particles. Now rinse the dishwasher filter under the running water. You can also use a brush if necessary. 
7. If there is no food debris, then check the dishwasher drain pump. To access the dishwasher drain pump, you need to remove the propeller and spray arms from the dishwasher.
8. After this, remove the plate that was connected with the sprays arms.
9. Now there, you will see a hole beneath the cover. Here you will find debris and food build-up if present.
10. Now, reassemble all the parts, restart your dishwasher, and run a normal cycle. 

The above steps show to clean how you can clean a Whirlpool dishwasher filter.

After following all these steps, now restart your dishwasher and see if the draining problem gets fixed or not.

Call technicians or the Whirlpool customer center if a problem still exists. 

How to Clean Whirlpool dishwasher?

Regularly cleaning the dishwasher prevents most of the issues on the dishwasher.

It not only prevents problems but also prevents the stinky smell from coming out from your dishwasher.

In this section, we will be looking at how to clean a whirlpool dishwasher with step-wise instruction. 

1. Open the dishwasher door.
2. Remove dish racks and then wipe out food particles on all sides of the dishwasher. 
3. Now remove the filter and then rinse it under the water and clean it properly if there are food particles. 
4. Put the filter in its place. 
5. Pour 1-2 cups of vinegar into the container and put the container at the top racks.
6. Now run a normal cycle in the dishwasher; it will spread vinegar all around the dishwasher, and it washes away all the dirt present on the dishwasher. 
7. If vinegar does not clean the dirt, you can use bleach to clean out stubborn oily dirt from the dishwasher. 

This is how you should clean your Whirlpool dishwasher. You can do vinegar or bleach cleaning once a month. But, make sure to do light cleaning every day. 

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Conclusion 

Whirlpool dishwasher draining is not a serious issue to worry about if you have read this article. In this article, we have discussed the different reason that causes the draining problem.

In addition to this, we have also discussed step-wise instructions to fix the draining issue on your Whirlpool dishwasher. 

I hope that the article was helpful for you while fixing the draining problem on the Whirlpool dishwasher.

If the problem is still not solved, you should contact the Whirlpool customer service center. Besides this, if you have any issues, then let us know in the comment.

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