Dishwasher Stuck or Stopped Mid-Cycle

A dishwasher that starts normally, runs for a while, and then just stops — pump not running, no more sound, dishes and water still sitting inside — has hit a fault the control board decided was serious enough to halt the whole cycle rather than push through it.

What this looks like

The timer or progress light freezes partway through, the tub goes quiet, and the display either shows a fault code or just sits idle with the door still logically "mid-cycle." Sometimes an audible alarm sounds a few times before going silent. Reopening the door usually reveals water still in the tub, dishes still dirty or half-rinsed, and no indication the machine intends to resume on its own. This is different from a dishwasher that never starts at all, and different from one that runs a full cycle but drains poorly at the end — this is specifically a stop somewhere in the middle of active operation.

Most likely causes, ranked

1. A leak or standing water detected in the base pan. Leak-safety shutdowns are one of the most common reasons a cycle halts mid-run rather than continuing — see the leak detected page for the full breakdown of causes.
2. A drain problem that surfaces during the wash or drain phase itself, rather than only showing up as standing water at the end — see the not draining page.
3. A jammed or overloaded wash motor / circulation pump. An object like glass, a bone fragment, or plastic debris lodged in the pump impeller in the sump can stall the motor mid-cycle.
4. Oversudsing. Excess foam from the wrong detergent can trigger a deliberate pause so suds can settle before the machine continues.
5. A genuine low-voltage condition on the circuit feeding the dishwasher, which some control boards treat as a reason to shut down mid-run to protect the heater and motor.

Which error codes this can show as

• LG: LE — the wash motor (circulation pump) isn't performing as expected, often from wiring, a jammed impeller, or a locked rotor; and bE, the oversuds error that pauses a cycle to let foam settle
• KitchenAid: F7E2 — a wash motor error from a jammed pump, a locked motor, or bad wiring
• Bosch: E27 — supply voltage below the control board's minimum operating threshold, which shuts the machine down mid-run to protect the heater and motor

Leak-detection and drain-fault codes from other brands also commonly show up as a mid-cycle stop rather than only at the end of a cycle — see the leak detected and not draining pages for the full code lists across Bosch, Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, and KitchenAid.

What you can check yourself

1. Power-cycle the dishwasher at the breaker for about 10 seconds, then restart a cycle and watch where it stops again
2. Remove the bottom filter and check the sump area for glass, bones, seeds, or plastic pieces jamming the wash pump impeller
3. Check the base pan and toe-kick area underneath the unit for standing water pointing to a leak shutdown
4. Confirm you're using dishwasher-specific detergent, not dish soap, and the correct amount, since oversudsing can pause a cycle on its own
5. Note whether the stop happens at the same point in every cycle (which points to a specific phase's component) or at random points (which points more toward wiring, voltage, or a control board issue)

Related

• Dishwasher leak detected / water under the unit
• Dishwasher not draining
• LG codes · KitchenAid codes · Bosch codes · Samsung codes · Whirlpool codes