Bosch Dishwasher Error Codes: Six Are Yours, the Rest Are Not

Bosch publishes a long list of dishwasher codes and only about six of them have anything for you to do. The rest end in one of two sentences: reset the breaker and call, or just call.

Knowing which group you are in saves an evening.

The group you can fix

E22 — the filter is blocked. Bosch’s instruction:

Remove and wash the filter under running water with mild soap and a soft brush to remove debris then reinstall.

This is the most ordinary code on the list and the one most likely to be yours.

E24 — not draining, because the drain filter is blocked. Three checks, and the third catches installations:

1. The inlet hose is not kinked or damaged.
2. The pump cover may be loose. It sits at the bottom of the machine underneath the filter — take the filter out to reveal it.
3. “If the dishwasher drain hose is connected to a garbage disposal’s dishwasher drain connection, ensure that the plug is removed from the disposer’s dishwasher drain connection.”

That third one is the knockout plug, and it is the single most common cause of a dishwasher that has never drained since installation. Whirlpool calls leaving it in a common misdiagnosis; the full picture is in a dishwasher that is not draining.

E25 — the drain pump is blocked, or its cover is loose or missing. Bosch gives a genuinely detailed procedure, including the tool:

Pry off the pump cover with a spoon until it clicks. Grip the cover and pull upward until you feel resistance. Then pull forward to remove the cover completely. Check the pump and remove any debris and standing water with a sponge. Use caution as some debris may be sharp.

Take that last sentence seriously. Broken glass migrates to the sump and is invisible in dirty water. Sponge, not fingers.

E16, E17 and E18 — water is not getting in. Check the inlet hose for kinks and damage, and confirm the supply is on. For E18 Bosch adds a specification most people have never checked: the water flow rate should be 10 l/min.

E12 — limescale. Descaling is needed, and Bosch notes that machines with a water softener function should be using softening salt. This is maintenance rather than a fault, and it is more common in hard water areas.

The group that ends in a phone call

Almost everything else in Bosch’s list resolves to the same instruction:

Reset power to breaker for 30 seconds. If not resolved, call Bosch Customer Support.

That covers the control-board family — heat pump motor circuit (E01), main control board relay (E02, E03), wash arm diverter circuit (E05), door sensor circuit (E06), detergent dispenser solenoid (E19), heat pump internal heater (E09, E20), and a blocked heat pump (E21).

Two skip the reset entirely and go straight to support: E14, a flow meter failure, and E04, faulty heater electronics detected in the machine’s own self-test.

And E23 — “an issue with the drain pump… blocked, clogged, or faulty” — which is E25’s problem after you have already cleared what you can reach.

E15 is its own thing and should not be treated as part of this list. It is a leak detection code, Bosch’s instruction is to shut off the water inflow rather than troubleshoot, and there is a reason not to clear it. See the Bosch E15 error.

The numbering discovery

Worth knowing if your code has more digits than the ones you find written about.

Bosch publishes identical definitions for pairs of codes:

Our reading — and it is a reading rather than a Bosch statement — is that these are two numbering schemes for the same faults across model generations.

The practical value is immediate: if you cannot find anything written about E0103, look up E02. It is the same fault, and there is far more published about the short form.

Note also that E09 and E20 share a definition — heat pump internal heater fault — despite both being short codes.

E27, which is not an appliance fault

The house power supply to the unit is too low. Reset power to breaker for 30 seconds. If the error occurs again, contact an electrician to check incoming voltage to the appliance.

Bosch sending you to an electrician rather than to themselves is unusual and worth following literally. A dishwasher reporting low supply voltage repeatedly is describing your wiring, and an appliance technician will tell you the same thing after charging for the visit.

The same pattern exists on laundry — Whirlpool’s dryers have a dedicated L2 code for exactly this.

E07 and drying

The Zeolite (Crystal Dry) fan motor is defective.

Zeolite is the mineral Bosch’s CrystalDry system uses to release heat during the drying phase. So this code affects drying specifically, not washing — dishes come out clean and wet.

Worth knowing before assuming a drying complaint is a fault at all, because on a Bosch it usually is not: these machines have no heating element and dry by condensation, which means plastics never dry well by design. That whole distinction is in a dishwasher that is not drying.

Which codes are worth your time

E22 or E24. The filter, and it is a ten-minute job with a brush.

E24 on a machine that never drained properly. The garbage disposal plug.

E25. The drain pump, opened with a spoon, cleared with a sponge, carefully.

E16, E17, E18. The inlet side — hose, valve, supply.

Any control-board code. Reset at the breaker for 30 seconds once. If it returns, Bosch’s own instruction is to call, and continuing to reset is not troubleshooting.

E27. An electrician, not a technician.

E15. Shut off the water. Different article, different rules.

If the code you are looking at is not on Bosch’s list at all, or you cannot read it clearly, start at how to find your dishwasher’s error code — transcribing a code wrongly is the most common way to end up on the wrong page.