After a soak or wash cycle a GE washer will drain first and then begin spinning to make the laundry hang-dry. For a GE washer to function correctly it needs to drain but there are a few reasons why a GE washer won’t drain. Here’s what they are and how to fix your GE washer when it won’t drain.
As a general rule, there is a clog in the drain pump, the drain pump has failed and no longer works, the onboard computer has frozen and needs to be restarted, there is a kink or clog in the drain hose on your GE washer, or there is a blockage in the drain pump such as a sock.
Many of these issues can be identified and fixed yourself, whereas, others require a repair technician. Below, I will cover each of the main reasons why a GE washer won’t drain, how to fix each of the issues that can cause it, and whether each reason can be repaired yourself or requires a repair technician to fix it.
GE Washer Won’t Drain (How To Fix)
Once laundry in a GE washer has been agitated they are mostly clean, and the only things left are to drain the water, rinse the laundry, and spin it dry. But, unless a GE washer drains the laundry will need to be rinsed and rung out by hand which is not ideal. So, here’s how to fix a GE washer that won’t drain.
Overall, the drain pump has failed and needs to be repaired or replaced, there is a kink or bend in the drain hose, or the drain hose is not fitted properly into the stand pipe, your GE washer needs to be restarted, there is a blockage in the drain pump, or the lid is not completely closed.
Some of these steps are pretty easy to check and fix yourself, and with a bit of luck you can get your GE washer working again in no time. In other cases, you’ll need to get a repair technician out to do the repair. It’s possible the repair is covered under warranty, so you should contact GE to explain the issue, and see if the repair is covered under warranty.
Top Reasons Causing GE Washers To Not Drain
There are a few different reasons that a GE washer won’t drain. But, there are some main reasons that are more likely to be why it won’t drain. Here are the top reasons why a GE washer won’t drain.
As a general rule, the drain filter is clogged, the drain pump has failed, the drain hose is kinked, clogged, or not installed into the stand pipe correctly, it needs a restarted, and the lid not being completely closed are the top reasons a GE washer won’t drain.
Below is a rundown of each of these reasons, how to fix each one, and if the repair can be done yourself, or if you need a repair technician to do it.
GE Washer Won’t Drain Because The Onboard Computer Has Frozen
There is an internal computer on GE washers. It controls the flow of power to the individual components in your GE washer, turns them on and off and tells them what to do. In some cases the internet computer can freeze, and can’t fix itself without being restarted.
Therefore, you should try restarting your GE washer to see if there is a glitch with the computer that is causing the drain pump not to start. To restart your GE washer unplug it at the wall, then plug it back in again, and turn it back on. After that do a cycle or a ‘drain/spin’ cycle to see if the issue is fixed.
GE Washer Won’t Drain Because The Drain Filter Is Clogged
Many GE washers have an easily accessible drain filter which is designed so that anyone can access it and clear it. It’s common that the water in a GE washer contains debris, lint, and muck that can clog the drain filter. The drain filter is located behind a small compartment on the front of your GE washer.
Once you open the lid to this compartment there is a knob that you unscrew. This allows you to pull out the drain filter and clear it if there’s a blockage. But, bear in mind if there is still water in your GE washer it will come pouring out when you undo the drain filter.
Therefore, you should put something underneath it such as a paint roller tray or shallow dish to catch the water. Also, when you unscrew it only a little bit the water will flow out more slowly. Whereas, if you unscrew it all the way the water will come out very fast.
Therefore, it’s best to only unscrew it a little bit to give you time to close it again to empty what you’re using to catch the water. For details on where the drain filter is for your specific GE washer it’s best to refer to your owners manual. It can also be found online on this page of the official GE website.
GE Washer Won’t Drain Due to an Issue With the Drain Pipe
The drain pipe is a bendy hose that exits the back of your GE washer and connects to the wall. From there is connects to the plumbing and the water goes out with all the other waste water in your home. If the drain hose has a bend in it, there is a blockage in your GE washer, or it’s not fitted into what is called the ‘standpipe’ the water won’t drain properly, and in most cases most of the water will remain in the tub of your GE washer.
If you have the ability to pull the washer out slightly from the wall, you can visually inspect the drain hose to see that it doesn’t have any kinks in it. Here’s a video from GE where they show how a drain hose should be installed into the standpipe so you can see that it hasn’t come lose somehow:
GE Washer Won’t Drain Because The Drain Pump is Faulty
There is a drain pump at the bottom of GE dishwashers. It is also commonly called an ‘impeller’. A drain pump and impeller are the same thing.
Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on September 5, 2022.
It has a mechanism that spins, and forces the water out the other side with enough speed so that it can get into the waste water lines. When the drain pump is faulty the water can’t get to the waste water lines. It just sits in the bottom of the dishwasher because the force of gravity is not enough to push it out where it can get to the waste water lines.
A drain pump can only be fixed by a qualified professional, and typically it can be swapped out for a new one. Therefore, I’ve put this reason last, as it’s something you can’t fix yourself unless you have extensive appliance repair experience.
GE Washer Won’t Drain Because There’s a Blockage in the Drain Pump
Water runs through the drain pump. But, a drain pump has a reasonably narrow opening. Typically clothing should not be over soiled such as caked on mud, or a lot of loose grass.
Otherwise, when the water drains through the drain pump it can cause a blockage. In other cases very small garments like a childs sock, or face mask are so small that they can get accidentally sucked down the drain pump, and cause a blockage. If you have a bit of DIY experience you can locate the drain pump, and inspect it to see if there is any stuck in it.
Just be very careful to make sure your GE washer is unplugged at the wall. Otherwise, you will need to have a repair technician inspect and fix it, if this is what the issue is.
Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on September 5, 2022.
Overall, the drain pump has a clog in it, the drain pump has failed, the onboard computer needs to be restarted by unplugging your GE washer and the wall and plugging it back in again, or the drain hose is kinked or is not installed into the stand pipe correctly.
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ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on September 5, 2022.