Bosch dishwasher door will not close

What is actually happening

An integrated dishwasher door carries the weight of a cupboard door on its hinges and springs, and those take a lot of use. When a hinge spring or cable breaks the door drops slightly, stops meeting the catch square, and will not latch — which the machine reads as an open door and refuses to run.

The Bosch fault codes that point at this

A Bosch dishwasher 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 door will not close:

• E20 — The dishwasher has found an electrical fault in the main circulation pump — the motor that pushes water up to the spray arms — and has stopped rather than run without proper wash pressure.
• E21 — The pump that pushes water round the spray arms is jammed, so the machine can't circulate water and stops.
• E23 — The dishwasher has found an electrical fault in its drain pump and has stopped rather than carry on with a pump it can't rely on.
• E24 — The dishwasher can't get the dirty water out, and the most common reason is blocked filters.
• E25 — The dishwasher can't pump the dirty water out, so it has stopped mid-cycle and is holding water in the bottom.

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 Bosch dishwasher

• A broken door hinge spring or cable on an integrated machine
• A misaligned or dropped cupboard door front
• A worn or broken door catch
• Racks or a tall item fouling the door as it closes
• The machine not sitting level in the housing

What you can safely check yourself

1. Pull the racks out and check nothing is protruding to catch the door
2. Watch the door as it closes — a door that falls the last few inches rather than closing smoothly has a broken spring
3. Check the cupboard front is still square on its fixings

Common questions

Why is my Bosch dishwasher door will not close?

The door will not latch shut, so no cycle can be started. An integrated dishwasher door carries the weight of a cupboard door on its hinges and springs, and those take a lot of use. When a hinge spring or cable breaks the door drops slightly, stops meeting the catch square, and will not latch — which the machine reads as an open door and refuses to run.

Can I fix a Bosch dishwasher door will not close myself?

Pull the racks out and check nothing is protruding to catch the door. Watch the door as it closes — a door that falls the last few inches rather than closing smoothly has a broken spring. Check the cupboard front is still square on its fixings. Beyond those checks this one normally needs an engineer.

What Bosch error codes mean door will not close?

Bosch dishwashers report this through their own fault codes. The ones that point at door will not close are E20, E21, E23, E24, E25. 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 Bosch dishwasher 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.

Other Bosch dishwasher faults

• dishwasher not draining
• dishwasher will not switch on
• dishwasher not cleaning the dishes
• dishwasher not drying the dishes
• dishwasher leaking
• dishwasher not heating the water

Repairs we cover near you

• Dishwasher Repairs — what we charge and how it works
• Dishwasher Repairs in Nottingham
• Dishwasher Repairs in Arnold
• Dishwasher Repairs in Beeston
• Dishwasher Repairs in West Bridgford

Written by the engineers at ASAP Repairs from our own repair notes. See also our general guide to dishwashers door will not close and our Bosch repairs page.