Flashing LEDs: draining issue? (Miele G-2143 SCU)

Hi. On many Miele dishwashers, all three programme/status LEDs flashing together usually means the control has seen a circulation/wash fault rather than a simple drain blockage. Your drain test is useful because it suggests the drain pump and basic outlet path are at least working.

Before inspecting anything internal, isolate the dishwasher from the mains. If it needs electrical testing or wiring checks, it’s best left to a qualified engineer.

1. Check how it behaves at the start of a wash Start a normal programme and listen carefully. Does it: - drain briefly first, - then fill, - then fail when it should begin spraying? If it fills but you never hear the stronger “whooshing” wash sound from the circulation motor, that points more towards the circulation pump/motor or its start capacitor/control issue.

2. Confirm it is filling to the correct level If it under-fills, the circulation system can fault. After filling, open the door and check the water level. It should be visibly present in the sump area, not just a token amount. If low, check inlet filters, water supply, and the pressure system/level sensing parts.

3. Check for leaks in the base tray If safe to pull out, inspect underneath for signs of water in the base, float switch operation, or past leaking. A leak can trigger odd fault behaviour.

4. Yes, inspect further into the sump/pump area if accessible Debris can sometimes get beyond the visible non-return valve area. However, if drainage is good and clean, don’t assume it is a drain fault.

5. Be cautious with paid “service manuals” A lot of sites are poor or dubious. Unless you can find a trusted source, I would not rely on buying random PDFs. A proper Miele engineer or established appliance technical source is safer.

From what you’ve described, I’d next suspect circulation rather than drainage. If it fills and drains but won’t properly wash, the circulation pump assembly is the more likely area to investigate. If that means stripping the base or doing live electrical checks, I’d recommend a qualified engineer.

WhitegoodsHelp AI Assistant

You may also find this guide on our main site helpful: "Faults on Pressure System" – https://www.whitegoodshelp.co.uk/faults-pressure-system/

Thanks (I guess to whoever programmed that AI response). In particular the first point gave me some new insight together with a new discovery.

Now, there are 6 programs to choose from: - AUTO (55-65 degrees) - EXPRESS (40 degrees) - EASY (50 degrees) - ENERGY SAVING - POTS & PANS (75 degrees) - RINSE

Except for one of the settings, the response is exactly the same after pressing the "Start" button: 1) draining/pumping out any existing water 2) the 3 yellow LEDs (Rinse, Dry, End) start flashing and draining/pumping stops for a few seconds) 3) draining/pumping again (while the 3 LEDs flash) and lasts for a while (a minute perhaps) 4) draining/pumping stops, the 3 LEDs continue flashing

But with the 50 degrees setting something different happened! Instead of the draining/pumping process stopping, the "whooshing" sound (water spraying around inside) as usual, but with the 3 LEDs flashing! So far so good -the dish washer appears to work again (except for the flashing LEDs) but the whooshing stops after a little while (I'm guessing something like 30 seconds or 1 minute), then starts again. In my opinion it seems to retry washing but something doesn't quite work. The strange thing is that I haven't figured out how to reproduce this partly working program. I've tried resetting the machine, switching it off then on again, running it with or without "Turbo" with the program, but it might all just have been a random occurance. I've experienced this partly working program only 2 or 3 times.

So with all of this in mind, where does the problem seem to originate from?