CDA [F2] fault codewhat it means and how to fix it

CDA give F2 as an inability to discharge water, and their published remedy is more specific than most: the water discharge hose and filters may be clogged, remove foreign bodies such as food residue or glass shards, cancel the programme, and if the error continues contact CDA customer care. The CDI6242 manual prints the same row without the glass shards line. The phrase worth stopping on is glass shards. CDA are not being dramatic. When a glass breaks in a dishwasher the fragments do not stay where they fell — they get washed down into the base of the tub and into the filter housing, and some of them are small enough to pass through into the pump.

So a drain fault on a machine where something got broken weeks ago is not a coincidence, and reaching blindly into a filter housing full of standing water is how people cut themselves. Bail the water out first so you can see, use a torch, and look before you touch.

Beyond that, the causes are the usual ones and most of them cost nothing. The filter assembly in the base of the tub is designed to come out by hand — CDA’s sequence is to lift out the lower basket, turn the micro-filter anti-clockwise and lift it out, take the coarse filter out of it and the base filter out of the tub, rinse everything and refit in reverse order until the micro-filter locks into place. The drain hose gets crushed when the machine is pushed back into its housing; CDA’s installation figures are a drain connection between 600 mm and 1100 mm from the floor and a hose no longer than 4 m. And where the machine shares a waste with the kitchen sink, a greasy trap stops the dishwasher while the appliance itself is perfectly healthy.

1. 1

   Try CDA’s cancel first, because it runs the drain pump for about thirty seconds: open the door slightly, press and hold the Programme selection button for about three seconds until the display shows 1, then close the door. If the water goes, the blockage was small; if it stays, carry on.

2. 2

   Switch the machine off at the wall and turn off the water supply before putting a hand inside the cabinet, as CDA ask before any cleaning or maintenance.

3. 3

   Bail out the standing water with a jug and finish with a sponge until the base of the tub is clearly visible.

   Do not skip this to save time. CDA warn about glass shards for good reason, and reaching into water you cannot see the bottom of is how people cut themselves.
4. 4

   Shine a torch into the filter housing and look before you touch anything. If a glass has broken in the machine at any point, expect fragments.

5. 5

   Remove the lower basket, turn the micro-filter anti-clockwise and lift it out, take the coarse filter out of the micro-filter, then lift the base filter out of the tub. Clean each piece under a running tap, using a brush rather than fingers on anything with debris trapped in it, and refit in reverse order until the micro-filter locks into place. CDA say never to run a programme without the filters fitted.

6. 6

   Pull the machine forward and check the discharge hose along its length for kinks and blockages. CDA’s installation figures are a drain connection between 600 mm and 1100 mm from the floor and a hose no longer than 4 m.

7. 7

   Restore the water and power, cancel the programme again as CDA instruct, and run a short cycle to confirm it empties. If F2 continues, CDA’s instruction is to contact customer care.