The short answer
The Crosley CDBW family is a single machine, so a drainage fault can be diagnosed by observation rather than by elimination: start a cycle, wait for the drain stage, and listen. A pump that runs and shifts nothing is blocked; a pump that never runs is being refused or has failed; water that leaves and comes back is a plumbing arrangement problem under the sink.
What you observe
- Water in the sump at the end of every cycle — Something between the sump and the standpipe.
- A pump note with no water moving — A blockage: filter, hose or impeller.
- Silence at the drain stage — The pump is not running at all.
- Water leaves and then returns — Siphoning from the sink: the hose has no high loop.
- NEAR MISS — a little clean water always in the sump — Normal, and there to keep the pump seal wet.
Causes, most likely first on this family
- Filter and sump debris — First: the filter is designed to catch what would otherwise reach the pump, so it is designed to fill up.
- Drain hose kinked or without a high loop — Second, and visible from the cupboard under the sink.
- Disposer knockout plug never removed — Third, and the answer whenever the machine has never drained since it was installed.
- Air gap blocked — Fourth, where one is fitted on the worktop.
- Pump impeller jammed or motor failed — Last, and identified by the listening test rather than assumed.
Check in this order, and why
- Run a cycle and listen at the drain stage — On a single-model family the sound tells you which half of the list to work.
- Lift out the filter and clean the sump — The commonest owner-fixable cause, and easier once you know the pump runs.
- Check the hose loop and any kink behind the machine — Free, and the cause of every siphoning case.
- Test the sink drain with the hose disconnected — Left until last, and it separates the house plumbing from the appliance.
Before you open anything
Safety
Switch off the dishwasher at its breaker before removing the kick panel or the pump access; a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and the junction box under these machines shares its space with the water. Shut the supply valve under the sink first, expect standing water in the sump, and never bypass the door latch switch to run the machine open.
Models in the CDBW family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| CDBW4400S** | crosley:dishwasher:cdbw |
When to call a technician
Filter cleaning, hose routing and air gap clearing are owner work. Call a technician when the pump is silent at the drain stage or runs without moving water. Call an installer for a disposer knockout plug and a plumber for a sink drain that backs up into the machine.
Nearest pages of this class
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