The short answer
A Caf CDD dishwasher that leaks is worth stopping immediately: the water runs under the cabinet floor where nobody sees it until the flooring lifts. The matrix below lists two model tags that differ only in their trailing revision characters, so a part that suits one usually suits its neighbours, and the tag still decides. Detergent is the cause people never suspect — the wrong product foams over the door seal on a perfectly sound machine.
What you can observe on these models
- A puddle at the front, under the door — The door gasket, the door alignment or foam escaping over the seal. All three leak at the same place and are separated by when it happens.
- Foam on the floor rather than clear water — Over-sudsing from hand dish soap or too much detergent. The machine is sound; the chemistry is not.
- Water only on heavy or long cycles — A leak that needs heat and pressure to appear is usually a sump seal or a hose clamp rather than the door.
- Damp cabinet sides or a swollen kick panel — Water is leaving the machine low down and running along the floor under the cabinet, which hides the source.
- NEAR MISS — standing water inside the tub with a dry floor — That is a drainage fault, not a leak, and the drainage page covers it.
Causes, most likely first on this family
- Door gasket hardened, displaced or dirty — Ranked first because the door seal is the only part of the water boundary that moves every day, and it is checked by hand in seconds.
- Over-sudsing from the wrong detergent — Second because the evidence is unmistakable once you look — foam rather than water on the floor.
- Door alignment, hinges or springs — Third: an unevenly loaded door leaks at one corner and passes a hand check on the gasket itself.
- Inlet valve, fill hose or supply fitting — Fourth because it needs the toe kick off, but it is the most urgent of the group if found.
- Sump, pump seal or a drain hose clamp — Last: these produce under-cabinet water rather than front-of-door water, and they need the machine pulled to diagnose.
Check in this order, and why
- Close the hot water shutoff under the sink — If the leak stops or slows immediately, it is supply-side and the machine can stay where it is until it is fixed.
- Check the door alignment against the cabinet front — A door proud at one corner loads the gasket unevenly and leaks there and nowhere else.
- Watch a short cycle with the toe kick removed — With the power on this is a look-only step: find the drip path before anything is dismantled.
- Level the machine in both directions — Do this last. It will not fix a real leak, but it stops a small one from being routed onto the floor.
Before you open anything
Safety
Switch the dishwasher off at its breaker and close the hot water shutoff before pulling it out or removing the toe kick — a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Water under the machine may already have reached the junction box at its base, so dry everything before restoring power and leave the breaker off if it has tripped even once.
Models in the CDD family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| CDD220**W*** | caf:dishwasher:cdd |
| CDD42***T*** | caf:dishwasher:cdd |
When to call a technician
Correcting the detergent, cleaning and reseating a gasket, levelling and checking the door alignment are owner jobs on the Caf CDD family. Call the moment the leak is on the supply side — a weeping inlet valve or fill fitting is mains pressure behind a cabinet, and it does not wait. Call also when the water comes from under the tub rather than the door, because that means the machine has to come out.
Other faults covered for 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.
