# Dishwasher not completely draining



## all3aok (Mar 21, 2009)

I have a less than 2year old kenmore elite dishwasher that is not completely draining.  we did just replace the garbage disposal. after that repair was complete is when i noticed it was not draining.  The water seems just like rinse water... rather clear and no odor that I have found.  I also have a drain button and have tried that several times with no luck.  Would the disposal have anything to do with it or any other suggestions??

katy


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## Wirenuts (Mar 26, 2009)

It is possible that if the dishwasher is draining into the disposal that the drain line connection is too small where the dishwasher pipe hooks into the disposal connection, you could run the drain cycle into a five gallon bucket for a test, and if that doesn't solve the problem I would check the impeller screen inside the unit (disconnect power to the appliance at the circuit breaker box first!) and see if you have gunk blocking the drain.  Do you rinse off the your dishes before loading them (always a good idea) or do you put them in with food scraps? If the latter, you probably have a plugged drain line.  I hope this helps you out.


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## Quattro (Mar 26, 2009)

Yes, first check the connection at the disposal. Remove the drain hose and look into the nipple with a flash light. It may be partially clogged, or it might have a knock-out that didn't get all the way knocked-out. 

This happened to me after I installed my new dishwasher. When it drained, I would hear a rather loud sound coming from the sink drain...like pressurized water entering the disposal. I just thought that's how those things worked, since I never had a DW before. But, as soon as the DW started not draining completely, I knew there was a problem. Once I realized the drain line was clear, I looked at the connection with the disposal. The old DW was hooked up to this same inlet, so I assumed it was OK when I installed the new DW. Turns out, there was a plastic knock-out in there (in case you don't have a DW) that was only partially knocked-out. In fact, it looked like the previous owner/installer just punched a hole in it with a screwdriver and called it good! Needless to say, it was clogged with food and stuff. I popped the knock-out all the way out, and it has been working 100% since, without the high-pressure water sound!


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