Bosch Dishwasher E15 Error: Water in the Base, What to Do

E15 on a Bosch dishwasher means a safety switch has found water in the base of the dishwasher and the leakage protection system has switched on. Bosch’s US step is short: turn off the water supply to the dishwasher and contact Bosch customer support. Bosch gives no home fix for E15, and does not advise tilting the dishwasher.

That makes E15 different from Bosch’s drain codes, where Bosch walks you through the filters and pump cover. Water in the base means water got somewhere it should not, and Bosch wants that found before the dishwasher runs again.

What to do now

1. Turn off the water inflow, as Bosch says.
2. Switch off the power at the plug or the breaker.
3. Wipe up any water you can see on the floor and note where it was.
4. Note the code and your model number. Bosch puts the rating plate inside the door (how to read it).
5. Contact Bosch customer support or a technician who services Bosch dishwashers.

Why tilting is not on this page

You will find advice online to tip the dishwasher back so the water in the base runs out and the switch resets. That advice comes from third-party repair sites, not from Bosch. Bosch’s US page says to turn off the water and call. Bosch’s manual also says to always move the dishwasher upright, so that leftover water cannot get into the controls and damage the appliance. A built-in dishwasher is also screwed in and plumbed, so tipping it means disconnecting the water, the drain and the power.

What a technician will look at

Bosch’s code page does not list causes for E15, so let the technician find where the water came from; it is not worth guessing at parts.

There are two things you can tell them that help:

• Detergent. Hand dish soap, or too much detergent, makes foam. Say if anyone used dish soap in the dishwasher.
• When it happened. Mid-cycle, at the end, or right after the dishwasher was moved or installed.

Bosch’s water protection

AquaStop is Bosch’s name for its water protection system. The owner’s manual for the SPE53B55UC includes the AquaStop Pledge: Bosch says it will compensate reasonable, verifiable water damage caused by a defect in the AquaStop system, if the dishwasher was installed correctly. If E15 came with damage to your floor or cabinets, ask Bosch about it when you call, and keep photos.

E15 and newer Bosch models

On newer models the water protection fault appears as E:30-00 or E:31-00, and E:34-00 means water is running into the appliance continuously. The manual’s step for all three is the same as for E15: turn off the water faucet and call customer service.

E15 or a drain code?

People sometimes mix E15 up with Bosch’s drain codes, because both can follow a cycle that left water behind. They are different faults:

If you only see standing water in the tub and no E15, the E24 page has the home checks.

Other brands with the same kind of code

Other makers use a leak sensor in the base too. Samsung’s dishwashers show LC or LE, and Samsung says the dishwasher then turns itself on and will not turn off: see Samsung dishwasher LC. LG dishwashers show AE when a leak is detected: see LG dishwasher codes.

Other Bosch codes

E24 and E25 are drain faults with home checks: the filter, the pump cover and the drain hose. See Bosch E24. The full table is on the Bosch dishwasher code list.