Washing machine not draining? Why it happens and how to fix it

Half a drum of grey water and a door that won't open. It's the fault we get called out to more than any other, going on the jobs our engineers log: around 22% of our recent washing machine repairs are a machine that won't drain or spin.

A good number of those turn out to be a blocked filter, which is half an hour of your time and a pile of towels. Below are the checks worth doing before you book anyone, and what it usually means when those checks come back clear.

Safe checks you can do first

Switch the machine off and pull the plug out before you do anything else. You're about to let several litres of water onto the kitchen floor and there's a socket somewhere near it. If water has already leaked and reached the plug, the socket or an extension lead, leave all of it alone, turn that circuit off at the consumer unit and get someone in to look at it.

1. Get the water out

You drain it at the filter, behind the flap or kick panel at the bottom front of the machine. Most machines have a short drain-down hose sitting next to the filter with a cap on the end. Pull the cap off, hold the hose over something shallow and let it run. A roasting tin works better than a bucket because it fits under the machine. There'll be more water than you expect, so get towels down first and have something bigger to empty the tin into.

If there's no drain-down hose, unscrew the filter itself instead, but do it slowly. Quarter of a turn at a time lets the water weep out around the thread rather than come at you all at once. If the machine stopped part way through a hot wash, the water can still be hot enough to scald.

A locked door will normally release once the water is out and the machine has been off for a couple of minutes.

2. Clean the filter

Take the filter right out. You'll usually find coins, hair grips, buttons, the odd screw, and a grey mat of fluff. Rinse it under the tap and clear out anything left behind in the housing.

Then reach into the housing and turn the impeller, the small plastic fan you can feel at the back of it. It should turn freely. If it's seized solid or it grinds as it goes round, either something is caught in the pump or the pump itself has failed.

Screw the filter back in firmly and check the rubber seal is clean and sitting flat. We do get called out to leaks that started with a filter someone didn't quite do up.

3. Check the drain hose

Pull the machine forward and look at the grey corrugated hose running from the back of it to the waste pipe. Machines get shoved back into a tight gap and the hose gets trapped against the wall or crushed under a foot. A sharp kink is enough on its own to stop it draining.

If the hose looks all right, take it off at the waste end with a bucket underneath and check inside. Detergent scum and fibres build up in there over the years, particularly on machines that only ever run 20 and 30 degree washes.

Check the height while you're back there. Manufacturers set a maximum height for the waste connection and a machine plumbed in above it is asking the pump to work against more water than it was built for.

4. Check the standpipe or sink waste

Pour a jug of water down the standpipe. It should disappear straight away. If it backs up, the blockage is in your plumbing rather than your appliance and the pump has nowhere to send the water.

If the machine drains into the spigot on a sink trap instead, check the sink is running away properly as well. And on a machine that's only just been fitted, look for a blanking cap still sitting on the spigot. It catches people out regularly.

Once you've been through all four, plug it back in and run a rinse and spin. If the water goes, you're done.

When it's a repair, not a blockage

Clean filter, clear hoses, waste running away fine, and the drum still full. At that point the fault is inside the machine.

The drain pump is the usual answer. When a no-drain fault needs a part, it's one of the parts we replace most on washing machines. Pumps tend to go one of two ways. Either the motor dies and you get silence where you'd normally hear it running, or it hums and buzzes but doesn't shift any water. Either way the cycle stalls before it reaches the spin and you're left with water in the washing machine at the end of the programme.

A pump that's blocked rather than dead behaves exactly the same from where you're standing. Something small and hard gets past the filter, a coin, a bra underwire, a piece of broken plastic, and jams the impeller or wedges itself in the pump body. Getting it out means draining the machine down, laying it over or taking the front off, and disconnecting the pump electrically.

Then there's the electrical side. A corroded connector, a pressure sensor telling the board the drum is already empty, a door lock that never confirms it's shut so the programme won't move on, or a fault on the board itself. All of them present as a machine that won't drain. Error codes help narrow it down and they're different on every brand, so a Bosch washing machine won't report a drainage fault the same way a Hotpoint does. The code tells you what the machine thinks is wrong, which isn't always the same as which part has failed.

Anything past the filter means working on a mains appliance sat in water, with the pump and wiring underneath the drum. That's the point to get an engineer out.

What a repair costs

Our typical band for a washing machine that won't drain is £75 to £160. Parts, if any are needed, are quoted separately on top, and you'll have the exact price confirmed before any work starts rather than after it's finished.

Our engineers carry the common parts with them, so about 95% of our repairs are completed on the first visit. If something less common has to be ordered in, we'll tell you on the day and book a return rather than leave you wondering.

One thing worth knowing: we only take independent work, paid for directly by the customer. If your machine is still inside its manufacturer warranty, ring the manufacturer first and get it repaired at no cost to you.

Book a washing machine repair

If you've worked through the checks and there's still water sitting in the drum, we can sort it. Book a washing machine repair and we'll get a qualified engineer out to you, or find your local washing machine engineer to check we cover your postcode.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my washing machine not draining?

Usually a blockage somewhere in the water's way out: the filter, the drain hose, or the standpipe and waste pipe. When it isn't a blockage, the drain pump is the most likely cause, though a jammed pump, a faulty pressure sensor or a wiring fault all look identical from outside the machine.

Can I fix a washing machine that won't drain myself?

Often, yes. Draining it down, cleaning the filter, sorting a kinked hose and checking the waste pipe are all reasonable jobs to take on, as long as you unplug the machine first and keep water away from sockets. Opening the machine up to reach the pump isn't, and neither is anything on the electrical side.

How much does it cost to fix a washing machine that won't drain?

£75 to £160 for this fault, with any parts quoted separately. You'll have the price confirmed before we begin.

How long does the repair take?

Usually about an hour on site once the engineer has diagnosed it, and most washing machine repairs are finished on the first visit. If a part has to be ordered, we'll book a return date with you there and then.