Most washer leaks come from a fill hose with a worn or missing rubber washer, a drain hose that has slipped out of the standpipe, or, on front-loaders, debris caught in the door boot. Run an empty rinse and spin with a flashlight in hand and note whether the water shows up during the fill, the wash or the drain; that tells you which part to check first.
Shut off the water and make the area safe
Before you go looking for the leak, stop it from getting worse. Close the hot and cold faucets behind the washer. If the puddle has reached the wall outlet or the power cord, go to the panel and switch off the washer's breaker rather than reaching for the plug.
Mop up the floor completely and lay down dry paper towels or a light-colored towel along the base of the cabinet. A dry floor makes the next test far more useful, because you'll see exactly where fresh water appears.
Run an empty cycle and note when the water appears
LG suggests running a cycle with nothing in the drum as the first diagnostic step. If the washer stays dry empty but leaks with clothes in it, the cause is usually the load, the detergent or something trapped in the door seal. If it leaks empty, the machine or its connections are at fault.
Turn the faucets back on, restore power and pick Rinse & Spin or the shortest cycle you have. Stay with the machine and watch the floor and the back of the cabinet. The timing narrows things down fast:
- Water appears as soon as the washer starts filling: fill hoses, faucet connections or the water inlet valve.
- Water appears during tumbling or agitation: door boot, door glass, detergent drawer or an overloaded drum.
- Water appears during the drain or the spin: drain hose, standpipe, drain pump or the pump filter cap.
- A slow drip from under the middle of the machine at any stage: internal hoses, the pump body or the tub seal.
Check the fill hoses and the rubber washers inside them
A leak at the back during the fill is most often a hose coupling. Each end of a fill hose has a flat rubber washer that seals against the faucet or the inlet valve. If that washer is torn, flattened or missing, the joint drips even when the coupling feels tight.
Close the faucets, put a bucket under the connection and unscrew the coupling. Look at the washer, replace it if it's damaged, and screw the hose back on straight. LG specifically warns against cross-threading these fittings; if the coupling won't spin on freely by hand for the first few turns, back it off and start again. While you're there, run your hand along the full length of both hoses and replace any hose with a crack, bulge or soft spot.
If the drip is coming from the faucet stem or the pipe behind it, the washer isn't the problem. That's a plumbing repair. For its top-loaders, LG recommends house water pressure between 14.5 and 80 psi (100 to 552 kPa) and says a pressure-reducing valve is needed above 116 psi (800 kPa).
Look at the drain hose and the standpipe
Leaks during the drain usually trace back to the drain hose. Pull the washer out and follow the hose from the cabinet to the standpipe or laundry sink. Look for a crack, a split near the clamp at the back of the machine, or a section crushed by the cabinet.
Then test the house drain. LG's method is to pour a full pitcher of water quickly into the standpipe to imitate the washer's pump. If the pipe overflows or backs up, the drain line in the wall is partly clogged, and LG's advice is to call a plumber.
Hose height matters too. For its top-load washers, LG puts the drain hose end at roughly 35 to 47 in (0.9 to 1.2 m) above the floor. A hose that sits too low can siphon water out of the tub, which makes the washer keep refilling and can overflow a laundry sink.
Front-loaders: inspect the door boot and the glass
Water on the floor directly in front of a front-load washer almost always involves the rubber door boot (bellows). Whirlpool's list of usual causes: lint, pet hair and detergent residue on the seal or the glass, coins and other small items lodged in or under the seal, and clothing hanging outside the drum.
With the washer unplugged, peel back the inner lip of the boot all the way around and clear out anything lodged there. Check the small drain holes at the bottom of the seal so water can run back into the drum. Wipe the seal and the inside of the glass with a damp cloth, since Whirlpool says residue on the glass can cause drips too.
Then look closely for splits and holes in the rubber. A torn boot has to be replaced, and LG routes that job to service. Overloading also pushes laundry against the seal, so make sure every item is inside the drum before you shut the door.
Detergent drawer leaks and too many suds
If the drip runs down from the top left of a front-loader, look at the dispenser drawer. Whirlpool's first two checks are a drawer that isn't pushed all the way in and one packed with dried detergent or softener. Pull it out and rinse the old detergent and softener out of every compartment under hot water. A cracked drawer needs replacing, according to RepairClinic.
Laundry pods go in the drum before the clothes, never in the drawer. Whirlpool is firm on that point.
Excess suds are the other common cause. Too much detergent, or regular detergent in an HE machine, makes foam that can work its way out of the tub, and Whirlpool lists it as a leak cause. Use HE detergent only and measure it. Many brands also show a suds code (Sud, Sd, F0E2) when foam builds up.
Check the pump filter cap and the drain pump
A front-loader that started leaking right after someone cleaned the drain pump filter usually has a cap that wasn't screwed back in fully, or a short emergency drain tube that was left open. LG's front-load leak page warns about both. Open the lower access panel, tighten the filter until it stops, and push the small tube's plug firmly home.
If the leak continues during drains, look at the pump itself with a flashlight. On many front-loaders it sits behind the filter; on top-loaders you usually reach it by tilting the machine back or removing a rear panel. RepairClinic points out that a leaking drain pump can't be repaired, only replaced. Pull the plug and close both faucets before any panel comes off.
Leaks under the middle of the machine: internal hoses and the tub seal
Some leaks only show up as a puddle under the washer with no water at the hoses, door or drawer. RepairClinic says to inspect every hose inside the cabinet, such as the one running from the tub to the pump. Look for loose clamps and cracked rubber, and for streaks of dried detergent that show where water has been running.
The least welcome cause is a failed tub seal. Once that seal tears, water reaches the tub bearing and destroys it, so the two are replaced together. RepairClinic describes it as a job that means taking most of the washer apart. A grinding or rumbling noise during spin, together with a leak from under the tub, points toward this pair, according to RepairClinic's noise guide.
One more check before you blame internal parts: level the washer. Whirlpool lists an uneven cabinet among the causes of front-load leaks.
Leak codes by brand
Several washers detect leaks or water in the base pan and stop with a code. If yours shows one, the code page for your brand walks through the specific checks.
- Samsung LC: water leak or water level problem.
- Bosch E23 / F23: water in the base pan, or the AquaStop hose has triggered.
- Frigidaire E13: water or air leak detected in the system.
- Electrolux EF0: leak, too much foam or an unbalanced load warning.
When to call a professional
Call a technician if the water is coming from inside the cabinet and you can't see a loose hose, if the door boot is torn, or if the leak comes with a grinding or rumbling noise during spin, which suggests a tub seal and bearing failure. If the faucet itself or the standpipe is leaking, a plumber is the right call.
Parts involved
- Inlet hoses and screens
- Drain hose
- Door seal (boot)
- Drain pump
- Drain pump filter
- Detergent dispenser
- Tub bearing and outer tub
- Leak sensor and AquaStop
Error codes for this problem
- LCWater leak or water level problemSamsung
- E23 / F23Leak detected or AquaStop triggeredBosch
- E13Water or air leak detectedFrigidaire
- EF0Leak, too much foam or unbalanced load warningElectrolux
- F0 E2Too many suds in the drumAmana
- F0E2Too many sudsWhirlpool
- SudToo many sudsGE
- SudToo many sudsLG
- SudToo many sudsMaytag
- SdToo many sudsSamsung
- F8 E3Too much water or foamAmana
- OCWasher is overfillingSamsung
- FEWater level too highGE
- FETub has overfilledLG