A dishwasher that stops after 2 minutes (or after a few minutes) is enough cause for concern. Afterall, these expensive appliances are supposed to make work easier – not turn you into a cash machine for repair technicians.
Fortunately, the below steps will help you to easily troubleshoot and fix most causes of this problem.
And, these steps are universal – you can use them on most dishwasher models.
Dishwasher stops after 2 minutes (dishwasher stops after a few minutes) – things you can try
Start by…
Making sure that water is entering the dishwasher
Here, start by checking if the water faucet is fully open – if it is closed, be sure to open it.
Next, straighten out any kinks that might be along the inlet hose.
And, if during this process, you note that the hose is torn/leaking, be sure to patch it up.
If patching is not viable, your best bet would be to replace the inlet hose. Fortunately, water inlet hoses are mostly universal – see current prices of a replacement water inlet hose on Amazon.
The water inlet valve might be bad – so, test it
If water is flowing freely into the dishwasher, there could be a slight possibility that it is not entering inside the appliance hence the cause of your dishwasher stopping after a few minutes.
Here, the most likely culprit is a bad dishwasher water inlet valve.
To test it, test for continuity between the valve’s terminals – no continuity means that the valve is bad.
And, if your dishwasher’s inlet valve is bad, replacing it will be the best route to go.
That being so, we have compiled a table of the most common dishwasher models to make shopping for a replacement valve much easier:
| Dishwasher model | Replacement water inlet valve |
| Samsung | Shop it on Amazon |
| LG | Shop it on Amazon |
| Whirlpool | Shop it on Amazon |
| Maytag | Shop it on Amazon |
| Frigidaire | Shop it on Amazon |
| GE | Shop it on Amazon |
| KitchenAid | Shop it on Amazon |
Check if the door is latching fully
If you note that your dishwasher’s door is slightly ajar when it stops running, chances are that the door latch is not holding properly.
And, the door is being knocked open by the water jets from the spray arms as the unit begins a wash cycle.
To fix this, start by cleaning any gunk that might be in the latch assembly – it might be preventing the door from latching fully.
You might also want to try closing the door with some more force – this could latch it fully into place.
Remove any clogs that might be in the sump assembly
Here’s the thing: When a dishwasher finishes a wash cycle, some water remains in the tub to prevent the seals from drying and cracking.
Once you start a new wash cycle, the dishwasher starts by running the drain pump and draining this water.
Once it’s done draining, it can start filling with water to start the new wash cycle.
Now, if the drain pump is bad, it will be unable to drain this water and as a result, shut off after a few minutes to prevent further damage to the sump assembly.
And for the most part, this will be after one or two minutes of the unit running.
For instance, a GE dishwasher might display the codes C1, C2, C3, FTD, or F56 to indicate a drainage problem.
How to troubleshoot and fix this problem
Start by confirming if the sump assembly is to blame.
To do so, pour around two to three liters of water and then run a test cycle. If the water does not drain, it means that the drainage system is to blame.
So, start by straightening out the drain hose (if it is kinked) and also remove any clogs that might be in there.
If your model has a drain filter, be sure to discard any debris that might be trapped in there.
Finally, remove any clogs that might be in the drain pump.
And while at it, also measure the resistance between the drain pump terminals… A good drain pump should have a resistance that is between 160 and 260 ohms.
So, if your reading is out of this range, chances are that the drain pump assembly is bad.
Again, here is a list to point you in the right direction when ordering a replacement pump for some of the most common dishwasher models:
| Dishwasher model | Replacement drain pump assembly |
| Samsung | Order it on Amazon |
| LG | Order it on Amazon |
| Whirlpool | Order it on Amazon |
| Maytag | Order it on Amazon |
| Frigidaire | Order it on Amazon |
| GE | Order it on Amazon |
| KitchenAid | Order it on Amazon |
Dishwasher stops midcycle – more troubleshooting steps you can try
Inspect and confirm that the wire connections are good
Start by removing and reconnecting any wire connections that might be loose.
And if you come across any broken wires, be sure to patch them up.
The final thing you should be on the lookout for are corroded connectors – these will need to be replaced.
Confirm that the circulation motor is good
When the circulation motor is to blame, your dishwasher will drain, and fill with water only for it to stop around the two-minute mark.
This might be due to the circulation pump motor being bad hence it won’t pump water around the unit.
So, start by removing any clogs that might be in the circulation pump assembly.
Next, test the power at the motor’s terminals… It should be getting around 120v AC when the dishwasher is running.
If the voltage is not within this range, be sure to first inspect its wire connectors and the control board.
If they are both fine, proceed to get a replacement motor for your model and swap out the faulty motor.
Again, here’s a list to point you in the right direction depending on your dishwasher model:
| Dishwasher model | Replacement circulation pump motor |
| Samsung | Get it on Amazon |
| LG | Get it on Amazon |
| Whirlpool | Get it on Amazon |
| Maytag | Get it on Amazon |
| Frigidaire | Get it on Amazon |
| GE | Get it on Amazon |
| KitchenAid | Get it on Amazon |
The control board could be acting up
And this could be making it misinterpret the signals from the other components. Or it could be sending the wrong signals thereby stopping the dishwasher midcycle.
In this case, your dishwasher might display an error code (though not always).
For instance, a GE dishwasher might display PF (power failure) or PrS (invalid signal from pressure sensor) error codes… A Samsung dishwasher might display a CE (communication error) code.
Troubleshooting steps you can try
The best remedy for an acting up dishwasher control board is to start by power cycling (resetting) the unit.
To do so, disconnect the dishwasher from the power outlet (or trip the circuit breaker) and let the unit sit for at least five minutes without power.
If this does not fix your unit, chances are that the control board is gone in which case your best bet is to replace it.
And to point you in the right direction, here’s a list of where you can order a replacement board for some of the most common dishwasher models in the market:
| Dishwasher model | Replacement control board |
| Samsung | Buy it on Amazon |
| LG | Buy it on Amazon |
| Whirlpool | Buy it on Amazon |
| Maytag | Buy it on Amazon |
| Frigidaire | Buy it on Amazon |
| GE | Buy it on Amazon |
| KitchenAid | Buy it on Amazon |
Dishwasher stops after 2 minutes – parting words
If time is not on your side, you might opt to skip testing each of the components above on their own.
In this case, you might instead consider running a diagnostic test – it will help you pinpoint the faulty part faster.
Something else: If you do not understand the meaning of the error code you are seeing (or the blinking lights combinations), be sure to refer to your dishwasher’s service manual.