In short
On a l2 dishwasher, water on the floor is most often supply fitting dripping behind the machine. Run a cycle with paper under the machine and watch where it wets first — that single observation halves the list below before any tool comes out.
What you are seeing
- Water only when the machine drains — A hose or waste connection under pressure at that moment, rather than a tub or door fault.
- Foam escaping around the door — Suds rather than a leak: too much detergent, or something in the load that foamed.
- A trickle down the inside of the door — A door seal or a mis-aligned door — visible while the machine is running if you look at the right moment.
- NEAR MISS — the water is coming from the sink waste, not the machine — Check the trap and the waste connection under the sink first: a leak there wets the same floor and has nothing to do with the dishwasher.
The causes in order of likelihood
- Supply fitting dripping behind the machine — There is mains water at the inlet and dirty water at the drain, and every joint in between is a candidate. A clamp that has relaxed or a fitting disturbed when the machine was last moved will weep steadily under pressure and dry between cycles. It ranks first here: it is both the most common and the cheapest to eliminate, which is the only order worth working in. This is a smaller badge rather than a platform of its own, so service documentation and parts are harder to come by — which pushes supply, installation and the consumables above component failure in the order below.
- A door that no longer closes square on its seal — The door seal is a rubber strip that has to hold back a tub of water being thrown at it by the arms. It hardens with age, it collects grease and debris, and it can be pulled out of its channel during cleaning — all three let water past in exactly the same way. Next in order: it explains a smaller share of these faults but is quick to confirm once the first is clean.
- A load that foamed and pushed water out — It also happens with a genuinely greasy load or a plastic item that had soap residue on it, which is why the leak appears once and then not again, and drives owners to replace a perfectly good seal. Third, because the evidence for it only means something once the two above are ruled out.
- Water escaping below the tub floor — It is last because it is the least common and the only one that needs the machine out and partly dismantled, which is where an owner check ends. It ranks last here: real, but the least common of the four by a clear margin.
Where to look, and in what order
- Close the supply valve and see whether any dripping continues — Water that keeps arriving with the valve shut is not coming from the supply side. Start at this check: it is the one most likely to end the job on its own.
- Run a fingertip along the gasket and look for damage, hardening or debris — Then look at the wet patch: a leak at one corner points at the door rather than at anything below. Second, and still no tools beyond a torch.
- Think back over what went in: any washing-up liquid, any greasy residue — One dish rinsed with hand soap is enough to foam an entire cycle. Leave this one until the cheap checks are done; it is the slowest of the three.
What an owner can safely check
- Ease the machine out, dry every connection, then run a cycle and watch — Take the weight carefully and watch the hoses as it moves, so you do not create a new leak.
Tools: torch, towelsAbout 35 min
- Reseat any part of the seal that has come out of its channel — Press it home by hand along its whole length rather than only where it looks loose.
About 15 min
- Run a rinse cycle with no detergent to clear the foam — Repeat it if suds remain; do not run another wash until the tub is clear.
About 30 min
- STOP as soon as the fault is narrowed to a part rather than a condition — Naming the part is the useful outcome of an owner check. Fitting it is the other half, and it is not the same job.
The part that is not optional
Safety
Isolate the machine at its socket or switch before working on it, and close the water supply valve under the sink before opening any fitting. Water arriving under pressure into a cupboard does more damage in an hour than the repair costs.
Where the owner fix ends
Stop at the point where the machine has to come out and be tipped. Before that, the checks are free and reversible; after it, the floor, the hoses and the worktop fixings are all in play.
Related l2 pages
What this page leaves out
This is the general page for the class rather than the page for your model. Where a family- or model-specific l2 page exists, it is linked here and it is the one to read first. Absent by design: part numbers, torque figures, wiring detail and anything else that differs between families.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
