sink leaking when dishwasher is run

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Topic: sink leaking when dishwasher is run

pgamez

Wed, 11/08/2006 - 11:14am

sink leaking when dishwasher is run

When ever my dishwasher is running I get a leak that comes from a thing above the sink. it is to the right of the cold water knob. Don't know how to describe it.

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Might be from your disposal

Heidi writes:

Thu, 11/16/2006 - 3:30pm

It sounds like you have a disposal on your sink and it's through this that the dishwasher drains. There is a small step that needs to be taken to make sure this doesn't happen that you can do yourself. For an animated tutorial on how to fix this, click on the link below. (Even though it is to install a disposal, it talks about how to tap out the dishwasher plug.) Animated Tutorial: How to Install a Garbage Disposal

THANKS SOOOooo much HEIDI!

lahleepop writes:

Sat, 10/13/2007 - 11:16am

THANKS SOOOooo much HEIDI! This same thing happened to me after I replaced my twenty-year-old disposal, all-by-myself-thank-you-very-much! It was such an EASY fix! This did the trick for me! YOU ROCK!

WOOooops! I put my pic in

lahleepop writes:

Sat, 10/13/2007 - 11:30am

WOOooops! I put my pic in the wrong place! Didn't mean to put it there twice!

The "thing above the sink"

jeffe_verde writes:

Thu, 11/23/2006 - 6:43am

The "thing above the sink" is an "air-gap". It's there to prevent a clogged sink from backing up into the dishwasher (and onto your floor). Sometimes a piece of food/bone/glass/etc can become lodged in the air-gap, causing it to overflow through the vent and into your sink. To check it-

1) Twist/pull the metal cover off the air-gap. The plastic component inside will be topped off with a cap that either unscrews or unclips (look for release tabs in the vent slots on either side).

2) Remove the inner cap. Notice there's a tube within the tube? The inner tube is the discharge from the dishwashwer. It literally shoots up into the air-gap, bounces off the cap and drains out the outer tube to a line that leads to either the garbage disposal or a "T" in the sink drain.

3) Check the cap and tubes for any foreign objects. Use a skewer or stiff wire (a cut and straightened wire shirt hanger works well) to poke in the large tube to be sure it's clear

4) Use a funnel to pour a glass of water into the outer tube. It should drain freely. If not-

-remove the hose that runs from the air-gap to the disposal (at the disposal). Stick the free end of the hose into a pot and repeat the funnel test. Does it drain freely? If not, run a stiff wire through it to clear any blockage.
-Unplug the disposal and poke a screwdriver into the inlet (where you removed the hose) to be sure it's clear.
-reconnect the hose to the disposal, and plug the disposal in. Repeat the funnel test (note: a kink or significant dip in the hose from the air-gap to the disposal could cause it to drain slowly. The hose should run downhill, and as directly as possible, from the air-gap to the disposal)

5) Put the inner cap and outer cover back on the air-gap, and run the dishwasher.

The dishwasher should now drain without overflowing through the air-gap.