What is actually happening
A washer dryer dries by condensing moisture against a flow of cold water rather than venting it, so drying depends on both the heater and the cold water supply working. Lint has nowhere to go in a machine that has no filter you can reach, so it collects internally — and on some makes that shows up as a specific fault code rather than simply poor drying.
The Ariston fault codes that point at this
A Ariston washer dryer will usually tell you what it thinks is wrong before anyone opens it up. These are the codes we hold for this make that relate to not drying:
- F01 — The control board has detected a short circuit in the switch that feeds power to the motor, so it shuts the machine down rather than risk running the drum out of control.
- F03 — The machine can't get a sensible reading from the sensor that measures water temperature, so it stops rather than heat blindly.
- F04 — The machine has tried to drain and the water hasn't gone away quickly enough, so it has stopped with a drum full of water.
- F06 — The machine has decided it cannot trust the door lock (or, on some control boards, the programme selector) and has stopped the cycle before it can go anywhere.
- F07 — The control board has spotted a problem with the relay that switches the heater on and off — the machine has stopped heating and halted the cycle.
- F08 — The machine has found a problem in the heating circuit — either the relay that switches the heater on the control board, or the heater itself — and it halts rather than carrying on.
- F09 — The machine's control board has lost or rejected its own configuration settings, so it doesn't know what model it's fitted to and refuses to run a programme.
- F11 — The machine can't get the water out — it has flagged a problem with the drain pump or its circuit and stopped rather than carry on.
If yours is showing one of those, that is a much shorter conversation than a general fault — tell us the code when you book and the engineer can often carry the part.
The usual causes on a Ariston washer dryer
- Internal lint build-up restricting airflow, which no accessible filter catches
- A failed drying element or heat pump, depending on the model
- A failed NTC sensor in the drying circuit, often reported as a code
- A restricted cold water feed, so the condenser cannot condense
- Loading past the drying capacity, which is always well below the wash capacity
What you can safely check yourself
- Check the drying load size against the manual — it is usually about half the wash load, and overloading is the most common cause of all
- Note any code shown during the dry cycle, which identifies it precisely
- Check the cold tap is fully open
Still not drying?
Most of these need an engineer once the checks above are done. £66 including VAT for an engineer to come out and diagnose it, or £84 in total including VAT if it is put right on the visit and no parts are needed. Any parts needed are quoted on site before we fit them — you decide. Every repair carries a 90-day workmanship guarantee.
Our engineers work on Ariston machines week in, week out, so they arrive knowing the machine rather than reading the back of it. Local engineers across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire.
Call 0115 648 0929 Book online — postcode and number is all we need
Common questions
Why is my Ariston washer dryer not drying?
The wash is fine but the drying part of the cycle leaves everything damp. A washer dryer dries by condensing moisture against a flow of cold water rather than venting it, so drying depends on both the heater and the cold water supply working. Lint has nowhere to go in a machine that has no filter you can reach, so it collects internally — and on some makes that shows up as a specific fault code rather than simply poor drying.
Can I fix a Ariston washer dryer not drying myself?
Check the drying load size against the manual — it is usually about half the wash load, and overloading is the most common cause of all. Note any code shown during the dry cycle, which identifies it precisely. Check the cold tap is fully open. Beyond those checks this one normally needs an engineer.
What Ariston error codes mean not drying?
Ariston washer dryers report this through their own fault codes. The ones that point at not drying are F01, F03, F04, F06, F07, F08. If your machine is showing one of those, that narrows it down considerably — each has its own guide on this site.
How much does a Ariston washer dryer repair cost?
£66 including VAT for an engineer to come out and diagnose it, or £84 in total including VAT if it is put right on the visit and no parts are needed. Any parts needed are quoted on site before we fit them — you decide. Every repair carries a 90-day workmanship guarantee.