The short answer
Water on the floor around a plumbed built-in AGA is most often a weeping push-fit joint on the supply, hidden behind the cabinet. Water inside the cabinet is a different fault: a blocked defrost drain. A damp door frame in a tight aperture is condensation. A cracked liner or tray is last and is rare.
What you observe
- Water at the plinth, or a swollen cabinet base — A supply joint weeping behind the unit.
- It started after the unit was moved or serviced — A push-fit joint disturbed and not remade.
- Water pooling under the salad drawers — The defrost drain is blocked.
- Damp along the door frame in a tight aperture — Condensation from poor ventilation.
- NEAR MISS — beads inside after a door left open — Condensation. Wipe it and move on.
Causes, most likely first on this brand
- Push-fit supply joint weeping behind the cabinet — First because a plumbed built-in has several of them and all are out of sight. They weep rather than burst, so the joinery absorbs the evidence for months before anyone notices.
- Defrost drain blocked inside the cabinet — Second, and distinguished instantly by where the water is: meltwater that cannot reach its tray backs up and appears under the lowest drawers rather than on the floor.
- Condensation in a poorly ventilated aperture — Third, and not a leak at all: a tight opening with a blocked grille leaves damp air sitting against cold surfaces, and the door frame beads.
- Cracked liner or displaced drain tray — Last, and uncommon. A tray knocked out of line when the unit was moved puts water on the floor with no plumbing fault at all.
Check in this order, and why
- Decide whether the water is inside or on the floor — One observation that splits the causes cleanly.
- Ask whether anything was moved or serviced recently — That timing names a disturbed push-fit joint.
- Check the cabinet bases and the plinth for swelling — It shows how long the leak has been running.
- Flush the defrost drain inside the cabinet — Left until here because it only explains internal water.
What an owner can safely check
- Dry the floor and the plinth, then watch for a day — Note whether water returns inside the cabinet or outside it.
Tools: towelAbout 30 min
- Feel the cabinet bases either side for damp or swelling — Swollen board means the leak has been running for a while.
Tools: torchAbout 20 min
- Flush the internal drain opening with warm water — It should run away freely to the tray below.
Tools: jugAbout 20 min
- Turn off the water isolator and see whether it stops — A leak that stops with the supply off is a plumbing joint.
About 30 min
- STOP HERE before pulling the unit out to reach a joint — It is heavy, fixed and plumbed. That is a technician job.
Before you open anything
Safety
Isolate the unit at its spur or unplug it before removing a panel; a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and water under a fitted kitchen can reach cables you cannot see. Turn off the water isolator before disturbing any connection, and never try to tighten a push-fit joint — it is either remade properly or replaced. Keep a refrigerator at or below forty degrees Fahrenheit, which is four degrees Celsius.
When to call a technician
Call when the internal drain is clear and water still reaches the floor, or when turning off the isolator stops it — a supply joint behind the cabinet is then the answer and the unit has to come out. Mention any swollen joinery, because the damage often outruns the repair. Isolate the unit immediately if water is reaching its socket or spur.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
This page is written for the brand and the appliance class, not for one family or model line. Where a family- or model-specific page exists for your unit, that page is the more specific answer and you should start there. Deliberately absent: tube diameters, fitting and tray part identifiers, aperture dimensions and fault-code meanings, all of which differ between the built-in column, under-counter and integrated families.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
