The short answer
A drum still full at the end of a cycle on a MAV model means the machine could not move the water in the time it allows. That is a restriction far more often than it is a dead pump, which is why the filter comes first here rather than the motor.
What you observe
- The standpipe or sink backs up while the machine empties — The restriction is in the house drain rather than in the machine, which is a distinction worth making before any part is bought.
- The cycle ends with water still in the drum — The clearest form of the fault. The machine has finished its timed attempt and given up.
- You can hear the pump running but nothing leaves — The pump has power and is turning against a blockage, or its impeller is fouled.
- Water comes back into the drum after it has drained — Siphoning from a drain hose set too low or pushed too far into the standpipe.
Causes, most likely first
- A blocked pump filter — First on this family and by some distance. The filter is the last thing before the pump, the drum lets everything through to it, and on a compact machine it fills quickly.
- A blocked standpipe or house drain — The machine is healthy and the restriction is downstream. The give-away is another fixture backing up at the same time, and the repair is not an appliance repair at all.
- A kinked, trapped or badly routed drain hose — Second. A portable machine gets moved, and the hose behind it gets pushed against a wall or folded over itself.
- Debris wrapped around the pump impeller — A hair pin, a wire or a fragment of a garment past the filter will lock or foul the impeller. The tell is a pump you can hear running with nothing leaving.
Check in this order
- Retry with a small load and the normal detergent dose — Removes overload and suds from the list without any tool at all.
- Pull the machine out and follow the drain hose end to end — Look for a fold, a crush point behind a foot, and how far the end sits inside the standpipe.
- With the filter open and the machine isolated, turn the impeller by hand — Last of the owner checks.
- Check the height the drain hose discharges at — Too low and the machine siphons; too high and the pump cannot lift the water within the time the cycle allows.
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. A machine stalled full is much heavier than an empty one - drain it through the filter before moving it rather than tilting it to empty the drum.
Models in the MAV family — The models this page covers, as the product spine lists them. This family is a single model, so there is no variant to rule out before you start.
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| MAV180-A2404PS/01FM-US | black-decker:washer:mav |
When to call
The line on this family is the pump itself. Opening the filter, clearing the impeller by hand, rerouting the hose and correcting the discharge height are all owner work.
Other faults on this family
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
