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A Bosch WGB washer that leaks only on some programmes is telling you which part of the cycle is at fault. Leaks on fill are inlet-side, leaks on wash are seal or tub, and leaks on drain are pump or hose.
What owners of these models report
- Wet wall or skirting behind the machine — That is the inlet side: a tap, a fitting or the hose union rather than anything inside the machine.
- NEAR MISS - condensation under a machine in a cold room — A cold cabinet in a warm humid room makes its own water and no plumbing is involved.
- A puddle under the middle of the cabinet — Hoses, clips and the pump live there, and water travels along the base before appearing, so the exact spot is only a hint.
- NEAR MISS - a few drops from the seal when the door opens — Normal on a front-loading machine: the seal holds a little water by design and it runs out when the door swings.
- Foam and water at the detergent drawer during fill — Overdosing or a blocked drawer housing rather than a machine fault, and it is the easiest of these to fix.
What it usually turns out to be
- Drain hose out of the standpipe or clipped badly — Ranks high because a hose that has worked loose empties a full tub onto the floor rather than dripping, which is why it is so dramatic.
- Detergent overdose foaming back through the drawer — Second and the cheapest to fix: the drawer sits above the tub, so foam that backs up has an open route to the floor.
- Tub or bellows split — Last, and rare. It is the only cause on this list that needs the machine opened, and everything above it produces the same wet floor.
- Door seal torn, folded or holding debris — First on this family: the fold at the bottom of the seal collects grit and hair, and that is exactly where the rubber wears through.
Working the fault in order
- Note which step of the cycle the water appears on — Fill, wash and drain implicate different components, so the timing is worth more than the location.
- Feel the inlet hose unions at the taps with a dry tissue — A weep under mains pressure shows on tissue before it shows on the floor.
- Watch a fill with the drawer open — Foam backing up is visible instantly, and it separates a dosing problem from a machine problem in one cycle.
- Open the filter and re-seat the cap properly — Worth doing after any filter clean, because a cross-threaded cap leaks on every drain from then on.
Before you open anything
Safety
Switch the breaker off before a panel comes off. Mains, water and a heavy rotating drum share a small cabinet here, and the order of operations - power, water, then panel - is what keeps them apart.
Models in the WGB family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| WGB24600UC | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB24609AU | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB246AXUC | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB25600AU | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB25601AU | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB256A1AU | bosch:washer:wgb |
| WGB256A2AU | bosch:washer:wgb |
When to call a technician
The line here is the drum. The filter, the hoses, the taps and the load are yours; anything that needs the drum out, the tub split or a board read belongs to a technician with the bench space to do it.
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Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
