Washing Machine Leaking? What to Do First and When to Call a Plumber

If your washing machine is leaking, the most common culprits are a split or bulging inlet hose, a loose connector on the cold-water valve behind the machine, or a worn rubber washer inside the hose end, and the first job is always to stop the water safely before anything else gets wet. Whether you’re in Clare, Sudbury, Glemsford, Long Melford or a nearby Suffolk or Essex village, here’s what to do in the first few minutes and when it’s time to call a plumber.

Washing machine leaking? Work out where the water is coming from

• A puddle at the back or side of the machine, especially while it’s filling, usually means the inlet hose or its connection to the supply valve. Hoses can split, bulge or perish with age, and the small rubber washer in each hose end can harden and let water past.
• Water that appears only when the machine empties points to the waste hose or where it joins the pipework behind the machine. A waste hose that has slipped out of position can spill a whole wash cycle onto the floor.
• Water dripping from the supply valve itself, even with the machine switched off, is a plumbing fault on the pipework rather than the appliance, and it won’t stop on its own.
• Water coming from under the door or from inside the drum area is usually an appliance fault, such as a door seal or detergent drawer. Check the manufacturer’s user manual and contact the manufacturer or an appliance repairer for anything inside the machine.

Safe steps to take now

1. Keep yourself away from water and electrics. If the floor around the plug or socket is wet, don’t touch the plug or the machine. If you can reach your consumer unit (fuse box) from a completely dry spot, switch off the circuit for that area. Never stand in water to do it, and don’t pull a live appliance out through a puddle.
2. If everything around the socket is dry, switch the machine off at the wall. Then stop the programme if it’s still running.
3. Turn off the appliance isolation valve. Behind or beside most washing machines there’s a small valve on the cold supply, often with a blue lever or a screwdriver slot. A quarter turn so the lever or slot sits across the pipe usually closes it. Turn it gently; if it’s stiff, don’t force it.
4. No valve, or it won’t shut? Use your inside stopcock. Turn it gently clockwise to stop the cold mains coming into the house. It’s often under the kitchen sink, in a utility room, garage or under the stairs. Our guide to finding and turning off your stopcock shows where to look, and if it won’t move, read about a seized stopcock rather than reaching for grips.
5. Mop up and protect the floor. Use towels to soak up water and check under kitchen units and any flooring next to the machine, because water can track a long way under laminate and cabinets. If you’re on an upper floor, check the ceiling below too.
6. Take a quick look, with the power off and the water isolated. Note whether the inlet hose is split, bulging or kinked, and whether the waste hose has come loose. A photo of the back of the machine helps us bring the right parts.
7. Leave the machine off until it’s been checked. Don’t run another wash to “see where it’s leaking from”. If any electrics got wet, have them checked before using the machine or socket again.

Things not to do

• Don’t reset a tripped RCD or circuit breaker more than once. If it trips again, leave it off and call a registered (Part P) electrician.
• Don’t wrap a split hose in tape and carry on. Inlet hoses run at full mains pressure and a temporary patch can fail suddenly, often when nobody is home.
• Don’t force a seized isolation valve or stopcock with pliers or grips. You can snap the spindle and make the leak far worse.
• Don’t fit hoses, valves or connectors that aren’t suitable for drinking-water supplies. Under the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, fittings connected to your supply must be of a suitable quality, installed properly and protected against backflow, so it’s worth using a plumber who knows the rules.
• Don’t take the casing off the washing machine. Internal repairs are for the manufacturer or a qualified appliance engineer.

When to stop and call us

• The isolation valve won’t turn, won’t fully shut, or is dripping itself.
• The leak is coming from the pipework behind the machine rather than the appliance.
• You’d like a new isolation valve, new hoses or a properly fitted washing machine connection.
• Water has gone under units, through a ceiling or near electrics. Our leak detection service can trace where hidden water has gone.
• Your dishwasher leaking as well? Its supply often comes from a separate valve under the kitchen sink, so check that too.
• You can’t stop the water at all. Treat it as urgent: see what to do in a flood or burst pipe and use our emergency plumbing service.
• Your water meter keeps turning with everything off. Try our water meter leak check, and contact your water company (Anglian Water or Essex & Suffolk Water) if the leak looks to be on their side of the outside stop tap.

Smell gas or suspect carbon monoxide? Leave the property, open doors and windows if it’s safe, don’t use light switches or naked flames, turn the gas off at the meter only if it’s safe to do so, and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999. Seek medical advice if anyone has CO symptoms such as headaches, dizziness or nausea. Only a Gas Safe registered engineer may work on gas appliances; you can check one on the Gas Safe Register.

Further reading

• Leak detection in Sudbury, if water is turning up somewhere you cannot trace it
• Anglian Water: leakage leaflet
• Electrical Safety First: electrical safety after a flood
• Anglian Water: installing internal fixtures and fittings
• Your washing machine manufacturer’s user manual, for anything inside the appliance.
• Our domestic plumbing services

This is general safety guidance. If you’re unsure, stop and call a qualified engineer.