Why is my washing machine leaking?

Washing machines leak from a small number of predictable places, and the stage of the cycle at which water appears identifies which. Most causes are a five-minute fix; the expensive ones are rare.

Safety

What you'll need

• Towels
• Torch
• Shallow tray (optional)
• Screwdriver (optional)

Step by step

1. Unplug the machine and pull it out where you can see behind it.Most leaks are visible from behind and invisible from the front. Have towels ready — moving it often releases trapped water.
2. Note at which point in the cycle it leaks.Filling, washing or draining. This is the most informative single observation and it narrows the cause immediately.
3. Check the inlet hoses and their connections.Leaking during fill means the inlet hose, its washer or the connection. Hand-tighten first; a perished rubber washer is a very cheap part.
4. Check the door seal for tears and trapped objects.Pull the rubber back and inspect all round. Coins, wire and grit lodge in the fold and cut it. A torn seal must be replaced.
5. Check the detergent drawer and its housing.Overflowing during fill usually means a blocked drawer or too much detergent creating excess suds. Remove the drawer and clean it and its cavity thoroughly.
6. Check the pump filter at the bottom front.Leaking while draining is usually a partially closed filter cap or a perished filter seal. Put a tray down before opening it — there is more water in there than expected.
7. Check the waste hose connection.Where it meets the standpipe or sink trap. It can work loose from vibration, and it only leaks while pumping out, which makes it easy to miss.
8. Consider overloading and detergent quantity.Too much detergent creates suds that escape through the door and drawer. It looks like a fault and is not.

Tips

• Rubber inlet hoses perish and are a classic cause of serious flooding. Replacing them every five years is cheap insurance.
• Clean the pump filter every few months. It catches coins and buttons and is the most-neglected part of any washing machine.
• If the machine leaks only on a fast spin, check it is level and not walking. Vibration loosens connections over time.

Common mistakes

• Investigating without unplugging it — Water and mains electricity together are genuinely dangerous, and it takes two seconds to remove the risk.
• Opening the pump filter with no tray — It holds a surprising amount of water and it will all end up on the floor at once.
• Over-tightening a hose connection — It splits the plastic thread and turns a washer replacement into a much bigger job. Hand-tight plus a small nip is right.

Questions people ask