Kenmore Washer ND Error Code: Meaning, Causes & Fix
No Drain — the Kenmore washer is not draining (Whirlpool-built Kenmore rendering).
ND on Kenmore top-loaders (Whirlpool-built, 110-prefix models) is the drain fault: pump ran, level stayed. Debris at the pump (top-loaders lack user filters), hose/standpipe blockage, or a failed pump. LG-built Kenmores show the same fault as OE — platform first, code second. ND is the plainest sentence a Whirlpool-built Kenmore speaks: the pump was run, the water stayed. Everything in ND diagnosis follows from noticing that the control knows the tub is still full not by looking at the water but by watching the level signal fail to fall — so the code certifies a mismatch between commanded draining and observed level, and the suspects arrange themselves along the water's actual escape route. That route, in the order water travels it, is: out of the tub through the tub-to-pump hose, into the pump, out through the drain hose, up and over into the standpipe, and away through the house drain. A stoppage at any station produces the identical ND, which is why the code alone cannot locate the fault and why this page insists on walking the route station by station instead of replacing the part in the middle of it. The platform fact that shapes the whole walk is the one at the top of the route: these top-load machines give the owner no debris filter to clean. On a front-loader, the first station is a filter designed to catch the tub's debris in an accessible place; here, everything the tub swallows — and years of laundry swallow coins, screws, collar stays, sock fragments and underwires — rides the water straight to the pump inlet and accumulates there. ND on an older top-loader that has never had its pump cleared is therefore a physical blockage until proven otherwise, and the electrical theories earn their turn only after the water's route has been proven open with your own hands.
What causes the ND code on a Kenmore washer?
Debris at the pump
Coins/buttons lodge at the pump inlet.
Hose/standpipe blockage
Kinks and lint plugs.
Pump failure
Open winding or stripped impeller.
A debris dam in the tub-to-pump hose, not the pump
The short hose between tub outlet and pump inlet is the route's first narrowing, and debris stacks there before it ever reaches the impeller. Owners who clear the pump, find little, and reassemble have sometimes left the actual dam untouched a few inches upstream — ND returning immediately after a pump clear is this cause's signature.
The pump impeller stripped rather than blocked
A pump can be electrically alive and mechanically useless: if the impeller has stripped from its shaft, the motor hums convincingly while moving almost no water. The hand test separates the two — a healthy impeller turned by fingertip steps around with magnetic resistance; a stripped one spins loosely and freely, and a debris-jammed one refuses or grinds.
Standpipe behaviour that only fails at full flow
A house drain that accepts a bucket poured slowly may still back up under a pump's full discharge, so the tub drains halfway, the level stalls, and ND posts on a machine whose entire route tests clear by hand. The bucket test at the standpipe must be done at something like pump pace, not at a trickle, to mean anything.
A drain hose installed into trouble at the last move
The platform manuals print the geometry plainly: the hose should extend no farther than about 4.5 inches (114 mm) into the standpipe, and the discharge should sit no higher than 96 inches (2.4 m) above the floor. A hose shoved deep can siphon and confuse the level story; a hose lifted too high asks the pump to push against a head of water it was not sized for, and ageing pumps fail that test first.
Checks to run before you replace anything
- Bail the tub; inspect hose run; pump listening test on Drain+Spin.
- Begin by emptying the tub as far as gravity and a jug allow — every later step involves opening the water's route, and the water you remove at the top is water that does not arrive on the floor when a hose comes off. Towels and a shallow tray are ND equipment, not precautions.
- Run a Drain and Spin on the emptied tub and get your ear to floor level: a pump that runs with a healthy churn, a pump that hums without churn, and total silence are three different diagnoses (route blockage, stripped or jammed impeller, electrical failure) obtainable in ten seconds before a single panel moves.
- Disconnect the drain hose at the standpipe and discharge one drain cycle into a large bucket. Strong flow into the bucket with ND still posting moves the fault into the house drain or the standpipe geometry; weak flow keeps it inside the machine. This single test halves the suspect list.
- With the machine unplugged and the remaining water bailed, work the route in travel order: tub-to-pump hose off and inspected (squeeze along its length — a debris dam announces itself as a firm section), pump inlet and impeller cavity opened and cleared, impeller turned by hand for the stepped magnetic feel, drain hose blown or flushed through.
How to fix the ND error code
- Clear the pump/hose path (access from below/rear, unplug first); replace a dead pump; confirm with an empty drain.
- Clear whatever the walk finds, station by station, and resist replacing the pump speculatively before the route is proven: a new pump installed behind a debris dam reproduces ND on its first cycle and converts a free repair into a bought one.
- Replace the pump when the evidence names it — silent on a drain command with power confirmed at its connector, humming with a stripped impeller, or churning weakly through a route you have personally proven clear. It mounts low with two hose clamps and a two-wire connector; access is from underneath or the rear depending on generation, always with the machine unplugged and drained.
- Correct installation geometry while you are there: hose reseated no deeper than about 4.5 inches into the standpipe, secured with its form so it cannot migrate, discharge height within the printed 96-inch ceiling.
- Prove the repair under load, not empty: run a normal fill-and-wash cycle and let the machine drain a full tub of water at its own pace. ND is a code about draining real water; an empty-drum drain test alone does not acquit a weak pump.
The part that usually fails: Drain pump
Continuity test; open = replace.
How to reset / clear the ND code
Power-cycle; clears on a normal drain.
Whirlpool-built washers clear most codes with a power reset: unplug for 1 minute (top-load models with a cycle-status display sometimes need the lid opened and closed 6 times within 12 seconds after power is restored — the well-known lid-sequence calibration/clear procedure on VMW top-loaders). Codes stored in the control's fault history remain readable in diagnostic mode even after they stop showing on the display, which is why a code that 'went away' can still be found by a technician.
Why does the ND code keep coming back?
Recurs with clear path = house line or dying pump. ND returning after a thorough route clear tells a short story with three endings. If the return is immediate and total, suspect what hands cannot easily reach: a house drain that restricts at full flow, proven or excluded by the bucket test at pump pace. If the return is partial — the machine drains, but slowly, and ND arrives only on the largest loads — the pump is weakening and living on margin; it will finish failing on a schedule measured in weeks. If the return travels with a level story that makes no sense (ND on a tub that is visibly empty), the disagreement has moved off the water route entirely and onto the level-sensing side, where the pump is innocent and the diagnosis belongs to the sensor path and the control. Keep the three endings separate and ND never becomes a parts lottery.
How to stop ND coming back
- Debris at the pump: Coins/buttons lodge at the pump inlet.
- Hose/standpipe blockage: Kinks and lint plugs.
- Pump failure: Open winding or stripped impeller.
Retrieving stored fault codes on Kenmore washers
Whirlpool platforms have a well-documented diagnostic mode. On front-load (Duet and later) models: with the machine in standby, press and hold any one button for 3 seconds, release for 3 seconds, repeat for a total of three holds — the display lights up and shows stored fault codes (F-codes with E-suffixes), which you step through with the same button. On top-load VMW models (most Maytag/Whirlpool/Kenmore top-loaders since ~2010): turn the cycle knob with a specific left/right sequence (commonly counterclockwise once, then clockwise three, counterclockwise one, clockwise one) until all status LEDs light, then use the knob to read fault codes as LED blink patterns. The tech sheet inside the cabinet lists the exact sequence and code chart for your model — use it rather than a generic chart, because code meanings shifted between Duet, Cabrio/Bravos and VMW generations.
Other Kenmore washer error codes
| Code | Meaning | First fix |
|---|---|---|
| 1E | 796-series: inlet error, the IE code shown as 1E on segmented displays. | Open both supply valves fully and clean the inlet filters. |
| CL | Child Lock status on Kenmore washers — panel locked, not an error. On LG-built Kenmores (796) it's LG's CL; the release is the marked button hold. | Hold the marked button(s) ~3 seconds until CL clears. |
| DC | Samsung-built front-load (402/592 series, shown dc): washer will not spin; load is unbalanced. | Redistribute the load, or add towels to small loads, and restart the cycle. |
| DE | 796-series (shown dE): door error; door is not secured or locked. | Close the door firmly until it latches; replace the door lock switch if faulty. |
| DE1 | 796-series (shown dE1): door switch error; door is not secured. | Close the door firmly; test and replace the door switch assembly. |
| DE2 | 796-series (shown dE2): lid or door is not locking correctly. | Check for obstructions at the lock; replace the lock switch assembly if it fails. |
| DU | 110-series top-load (shown dU): lid cannot unlock. | Remove items from the lid and wait for the basket to stop before retrying. |
| E1 | 796-series variant: drainage error, grouped with OE on some models. | Clear and straighten the drain hose; clean the drain filter if fitted. |
| E3 | 796-series top-load: drain motor error. | Check drain motor wiring; replace the drain motor if it does not run. |
| E21 | 417-series (Frigidaire-built): washer is not draining. | Clean the tub-to-pump hose and pump filter; test and replace the drain pump. |
| F20 | 110-series front-load: water inlet problem; washer is not filling or fills slowly. | Open both valves fully and clean the inlet screens. |
| F21 | 110-series front-load: drain problem; washer takes too long to drain. | Clean the pump and filter, straighten the hose, and clear the standpipe. |
| F22 | 110-series front-load: door lock error. | Close the door firmly; replace the door lock assembly if the error returns. |
| FE | 796-series: overfill error; water level is too high. | Turn off the water supply; test and replace the inlet valve if it leaks through. |
See the full list on the Kenmore Washer error codes hub.
Codes ND gets confused with
OE — Drain error on LG-built Kenmore washers — the machine was unable to drain the water. OE is LG's drain code, and LG-built Kenmores (796-prefix) wear it too: the pump ran, the level didn't fall in the time allowed.
LE — Locked motor error on Kenmore washers built by LG — the direct-drive motor cannot rotate. (On Whirlpool-built Kenmores LE-family topics route to the F-code system instead — check your model plate.) Kenmore is a badge, not a factory: Kenmore washers were built by LG and by Whirlpool, and LE is the LG-built machines' motor code — the rotor didn't turn as commanded.
UE — Unbalanced error on LG-built Kenmore washers (796) — the automatic rebalance was not successful and the cycle has paused for manual adjustment. Whirlpool-built (110) Kenmores do not display UE; their balance reports are uL (top-load letter displays) and F0E5/OFb (F/E platforms). UE is the second stage of a two-stage display on the LG-built machines.
CL — Child Lock status on Kenmore washers — panel locked, not an error. On LG-built Kenmores (796) it's LG's CL; the release is the marked button hold. CL = Child/Control Lock active.
Working from a symptom instead? Read our troubleshooting guide for this problem.
Frequently asked questions
My Kenmore shows OE instead — different problem?
Same drain fault on the LG-built platform (OE) vs Whirlpool-built (ND). The model prefix (796 vs 110) tells you which you own.
Where is the drain filter on my Kenmore top-loader that I should clean for ND?
There isn't one — and knowing that saves the most wasted hour in ND diagnosis. These top-load machines have no user-cleanable filter station; debris that a front-loader catches in an accessible filter travels onward in this design and collects at the pump inlet and the tub-to-pump hose. Those two places are your filter clean, reached with the machine unplugged and drained, panels off — not through any little door at the front.
The pump hums during ND but no water moves — blocked, or dead?
That sound pattern is the middle diagnosis: the pump has power and its motor is trying, so the electrical branch is largely acquitted. What remains is mechanical — either debris is jamming the impeller (it will feel locked or gritty to a fingertip) or the impeller has stripped from the shaft (it will spin loosely with no resistance). Both are found by opening the pump, and only the second one needs a new pump.
My Kenmore shows OE, not ND — is the repair different?
The plumbing walk is the same, because the fault is the same; what changed is the builder. OE is the drain report on LG-built Kenmores (model prefix 796), ND on Whirlpool-built ones (prefix 110). The one practical difference sits at the route's first station: LG-built front-loaders do have an accessible debris filter behind a lower-front flap, and on those machines it is checked first. On your ND machine that station is the pump inlet itself.
Related guides
Facts on this page were checked against manufacturer documentation: searspartsdirect.com · www.searspartsdirect.com · www.lg.com · www.lg.com