Cuisinart Coffee Maker Not Draining Water (Something’s Wrong? Here’s the FIX!)
We all love our coffee, and we all love our coffee makers. But what happens when something goes wrong with our favorite appliance? It’s not always the most fun thing to deal with, but it happens to all of us.
In this article, we’ll go over what happens when your Cuisinart water pump is not functioning properly and the water isn’t draining into the machine.
Why is my Cuisinart coffee maker not draining water?
There’s a clog due to scale, debris, and buildup
The most common reason that your coffee maker is not pumping water is because of mineral buildup.
There are a few possible causes of clogging if your Cuisinart coffee maker is not draining water.
Scale can build up inside the tubing system and in the water reservoir.
If you have hard water, scale buildup will occur more often than if you use soft water.
Scale can also occur when too many coffee grounds are used or if you’re using the wrong kind of coffee grounds.
Ultimately, prevent your water from draining from your reservoir into your coffee maker.
It’s important to make sure that your coffee maker is regularly cleaned and unclogged. This is what is known as descaling.
You’re using hard water which may cause clogging
You’ve got hard water, which can build up in your Cuisinart coffee maker.
Hard water is caused by minerals like calcium and magnesium, and it can clog the drain tube of your appliance as well as affect how well other appliances clean themselves.
To avoid this problem, you should use distilled or filtered water whenever possible.
Cuisinart recommends that you use filtered or bottled water to avoid this problem.
If you don’t have either of those options available to you, try using a softener or filter system for your faucet or sink.
These are generally inexpensive and easy to install yourself!
It’s best not to use unsoftened tap water in this case because it could cause serious damage (not just to your Cuisinart).
Faulty heating element
If your Cuisinart coffee maker is not draining, it could be due to a faulty heating element. The heating element is the part of the coffee maker that heats water and turns it into steam to make coffee.
It’s located on the bottom, inside the machine, and looks like a container with wires inside that heat up the water. It also determines when the pump should activate and send water to heat up.
The heating element may be burned out.
This can occur due to the age of the coffee maker or how well it is taken care of.
It can also happen if your coffee maker is not cleaned properly on a regular basis. Calcium buildup can damage the internal parts of your machine.
If you’re not regularly descaling your Cuisinart coffeemaker, then I would suggest doing so.
If you feel that it may be a faulty heating element, then replacing it may be quite difficult. Unfortunately, Cuisinart doesn’t sell heating element parts for you to repair your coffee maker. You may need to get it replaced completely.
I would reach out to customer service and see what they can do for me. Hopefully, if you have a warranty, you’ll be able to use that to get yourself a brand-new one.
Faulty water pump
The water pump is a common culprit when it comes to coffee makers not draining.
If you’ve checked all of the other parts of your coffee maker and are still seeing no movement, try unplugging it and giving the water pump an extra hard whack.
There may be some clogging or debris that is causing it to malfunction.
You’ll want to check this part if your coffee maker has been used for a long time before experiencing trouble draining water.
If this doesn’t solve your problem, then unfortunately there could be something else wrong with the actual pump itself, which would require replacing the entire appliance instead of just buying replacement parts like gaskets or switches.
The water reservoir is not secured in
The water reservoir is not properly seated.
Make sure the reservoir has been properly attached to its base by checking that it’s locked in place with a click.
If it doesn’t lock into place and makes a rattling sound when you shake your coffee maker, check for any obstructions or debris that might be preventing it from locking into place and remove those first before trying again.
Sometimes, this may also be due to scale buildup blocking the connection.
You can also try gently pulling on the reservoir until you hear or feel some resistance. Just remember to wiggle it around a little until you hear that click.
If it still doesn’t lock into place after doing this, contact Cuisinart customer service for assistance.
When the water reservoir is not turned on properly, it can prevent the proper detection of water inside your Cuisinart.
If your Cuisinart is unable to detect whether or not there’s water in the reservoir, then it will not likely turn on the pump to drain the water.
The coffee lid is not fully closed
Your coffee maker may not be draining water because the lid is not fully closed. If your coffee maker’s lid is still open, it won’t start pumping water.
Make sure that your lid gasket is in place, and check that there are no cracks or debris on the top of your coffee maker’s lid.
Power issues
Sometimes, the problem with your Cuisinart’s pump not turning on is due to power issues.
Plug the coffee maker into a different outlet.
The problem can be as simple as using an outlet that isn’t working properly. If you have more than one available, try using another one to see if it works better.
Check the fuse box and circuit breaker.
If you’re still having issues after switching outlets and trying other options, check the fuse box and circuit breaker in your home or apartment building for any signs of damage or wear and tear.
You’ll also want to make sure there aren’t any loose wires around where they shouldn’t be.
This can result in sparks, which might lead to damage elsewhere down the line!
Air bubbles blocking the tubes
So, one of the main reasons why your Cuisinart coffee maker might not be draining water is because air bubbles are blocking the tubes.
Checking for this might be a little bit more difficult than usual. It’s going to require you to disassemble the coffee maker.
Before diving into your tools and opening up your coffee maker, I recommend running your Cuisinart coffee maker a few times without any coffee.
Hopefully, the pump will push out the air bubbles.
However, if that doesn’t work, you can still try opening it all up.
Open up your coffee machine and look at the tube that connects to your reservoir. If you see any small bubbles there, then it’s likely that these are preventing water from draining out.
Simply run some hot water through the coffee maker a few times until they’ve been pushed out.
You can also try using a turkey baster, filling it with water, and pushing it through the opening where the water reservoir drains.
This will force the water through and push out the bubbles.
The coffee filter is dirty
If your Cuisinart coffee maker is not draining water, it may be because the filter is dirty.
To clean the permanent filter in your Cuisinart coffee maker (if you have one), simply pull it out of its housing and place it under warm running water for about five minutes.
I would suggest taking it out and cleaning it every 2-3 months.
How to fix a Cuisinart coffee maker that is not draining water
Remove any clogs from the water reservoir
When your coffee maker is not draining, you do need to try to remove any clogs that are in the reservoir or that are in the machine at all.
To do this, you want to encourage the coffee maker to drain on its own if you can.
If it will not drain at all on its own, you can partially fill the reservoir up and then shake the machine to see if you can dislodge the clog.
Clean the coffee filter if it’s dirty and blocked up
If that does not work, you can clean the coffee filter. If the coffee filter is very dirty or clogged up, it can cause the coffee maker to struggle to drain the water.
This can go for both the filter in the reservoir tank and the filter that the coffee goes through. Try cleaning the filter or changing it entirely to see if that is the issue.
Remove any clogs or debris that might be stuck in the opening of the pump
Still another issue that you might be dealing with is a clog in the pump opening.
You can clean the pump opening to see if you can dislodge anything that might be there in the opening that might be preventing the water from draining out of the reservoir and out of the machine.
If there is any sort of clog in the pump opening, this can prevent the water from ever leaving the reservoir to enter the machine or brew the coffee.
Close the Cuisinart coffee maker lid
In some models, the coffee maker is not going to work unless the lid is snapped shut.
This is a safety feature that is designed to keep the user from getting burned by the hot water when the machine starts brewing.
So, as silly as it might seem, make sure that the lid is shut well and that it snaps shut when you do close it.
If you notice that there is any issue or that there is any way that the machine is not closing well, this might be enough to indicate that the machine is not going to work.
Check the water line
Still another thing that you might be dealing with is that the water lines are clogged.
Unless you take the machine apart, you are not going to be able to see the water lines inside the machine.
You can check the water lines that are in the water tank and that are just outside of the machine. You can look at the water lines that are there to see if you are dealing with a clog or not.
Check the power cord
You can also check to see if there is a problem with the power cord. If you see that there is an issue with the power cord itself, you might need to replace it.
If there is not a problem with the cord itself, you might be dealing with an issue with the socket that you are plugging your machine into.
You need to make sure that the outlet that you are using is delivering enough power to run the machine.
Clean the opening where the water drains into the coffee maker’s body
If that does not work, you can also clean the opening where the water drains into the brew basket.
This will allow you to check to see if there is a clog clogging the drain opening.
You need to look to see if there is any clogging and take the time to wash the opening to prevent any future clogging.
If you notice that there are any clogs in the drain opening, it can cause the machine to not pull the water in and not be able to push the water out either.
Use a turkey baster
If you are dealing with more issues, you do need to take the time to try and get rid of those clogs.
You can use a turkey baster to blast any clogs out of the connection between the water tank and the rest of the coffee maker.
This is going to be a really easy way to blast a bunch of stuff out of your machine and help remove the clog so that you can try to use your machine again.
You can also try the slap method
If that does not work, you can resort to the spank or slapping method. This is just what it sounds like.
You need to remove all liquid from the machine and remove the water tank. You should then pick up your machine and slap it on the floor to see if anything has become dislodged.
This is an easy way to help dislodge big clogs.
If you use this method, you can often dislodge really big clogs that are going to keep the machine from working and from being able to drain the water completely.
Descale your coffee maker every 3 to 4 months
Descaling your Cuisine Art coffee maker will remove any mineral buildups that happen over time.
This is always necessary with automatic coffee makers such as some Cuisinart models. I want to allow it to brew fresh and good-tasting coffee.
How do I descale my Cuisinart coffee maker?
To reset your Cuisinart coffee maker:
- You first need to turn it off and unplug it
- Fill the water reservoir with half white vinegar and half water
- Continue brewing with this mixture until the chamber is empty
- Now pour fresh water into your water reservoir
- Brew this water until this next batch chamber is empty to get rid of the vinegar lingering around
How do you reset a Cuisinart coffee maker?
If you’re looking to reset your Cuisinart coffee maker oh, you can do so by unplugging the machine for about 30 seconds and plugging it back in.
On some models, your Cuisine Art coffee maker might have a hot water button. If that’s the case, go ahead and press that button for at least 6 seconds.
Another option is to press the hot water button and the rinse button at the same time until you see the display panel go blank.
What is the warranty on a Cuisinart coffee maker?
The Cuisinart coffee maker has a 3-year warranty. If something fails inside the coffee maker, it may take a professional to fix it.
You’ll have to register your product online when you purchase it here.
How do I contact Cuisinart customer service?
If you are having trouble with your Cuisinart coffee machine, please contact Cuisinart customer service at 1-800-726-0919.
Other interesting articles:
