E15 and E24 are two of the most common codes a Bosch dishwasher throws — and they are almost opposites. One means water is sitting where it shouldn’t be; the other means water won’t leave when it should. A quick tell: on most Bosch models the far-right indicator flashes for E15 and stays steady for E24. Here is what each one actually means, straight from Bosch’s service documentation — and why the popular “quick fix” for E15 usually doesn’t hold.
What you’ll notice
With E15, the cycle stops and the dishwasher often keeps its drain pump running on its own — and it will not start a new wash no matter what you press. With E24, the cycle ends early or stalls with dirty water still standing in the tub, and dishes come out wet and unwashed. Both lock the machine out of normal operation until the underlying fault is cleared.
What E15 actually means — from Bosch’s service documentation
E15 is Bosch’s anti-flood code. Water has collected in the base of the machine and lifted a float, which trips a switch and puts the dishwasher into permanent drain mode to protect your floor. In other words, E15 isn’t the disease — it’s the smoke alarm. Something upstream let water into the base: a small leak from a hose, seal or pump; an improperly made water-supply connection (Bosch specifically flags the wrong inlet fittings as a leak source); or a float that has stuck in the raised position. The machine is doing exactly what it should — the real job is finding why the base got wet.
What E24 actually means
E24 is a drainage fault: the dishwasher can’t push its water out the way it should. In Bosch’s documentation E24 points to a drain check valve that’s leaking or not closing, a drain-pump cover that isn’t seated, or a drain-installation problem — a kinked or clogged drain hose, a blocked filter, or a high-loop/air-gap issue where the water has nowhere to go. It sometimes appears alongside E22, E23 or E25, which is why guessing at a single part rarely ends the problem.
Why the “tip it back to drain it” trick doesn’t fix E15
The most-shared advice online for E15 is to tilt the machine back so the base water drains and the float drops. That does clear the code — for a cycle or two. But it treats the symptom, not the leak that filled the base in the first place. If E15 returns, water is still getting into the base, and every forced cycle moves that water closer to the control board and the motor. E24 has its own trap: “just clean the filter” only helps if the filter was the whole problem — when the real fault is the check valve, the pump cover or the installation, the code comes right back. Both are worth a proper diagnosis before they turn into a bigger bill.
Repair or replace?
Bosch dishwashers are built to be serviced, and both faults sit firmly on the repair side of the line for anything but the oldest machines. A float switch, a check valve, a drain pump or a corrected water connection is a small fraction of the cost of a new dishwasher — and on Bosch’s mid- and upper-tier models, replacing the whole unit over a drainage part rarely makes financial sense. The one time we’ll tell you to walk away is a very old machine with a second major fault already stacking up — and we’ll say so plainly rather than sell you a part.
Bosch dishwasher repair across the Denver Metro
FiXiFY repairs Bosch dishwashers — 100, 300, 500, 800 and Benchmark series — with same- or next-day scheduling across Denver, Aurora, Lakewood, Westminster, Arvada, Thornton, Centennial, Englewood, Littleton, Broomfield, Northglenn, Wheat Ridge and Highlands Ranch. See also our Bosch appliance repair page, dishwasher repair for all brands, and commercial dishwasher repair for restaurants.
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Bosch E15 & E24 — FAQ
Is it safe to keep running the dishwasher with an E15 or E24?
No — both codes exist to stop water damage. Forcing cycles pushes standing or leaking water toward the electronics and pump, which turns a small repair into a large one. It’s the one situation where waiting genuinely costs more.
Does an E15 always mean a broken part?
Not always — sometimes it’s a loose or wrongly-fitted water connection or a stuck float rather than a failed component. That’s exactly why it’s worth diagnosing: the fix can be small, but only once the real source is found.
How soon can you come out?
Same- or next-day scheduling in most of the Denver Metro, seven days a week.
Do you carry Bosch parts, or is it a second trip?
Our technicians stock the common Bosch drain and flood-protection parts on the van, and we use genuine OEM parts with a 6-month labor warranty on the repair.
FiXiFY Appliance Repair · 7030 E 46th Ave Dr, Unit A, Denver, CO 80216 · (303) 214-1240 · 4.9–5.0★ on Google