The IPC and IRC call for a trap at least 2" under the standpipe and the standpipe’s top 18" to 42" above it; your local code decides. Your washer’s maker sets a second limit, measured from the floor or the washer’s base: Whirlpool, LG and Samsung put the top at 96", and the minimums Whirlpool and Samsung give differ from page to page.
Where does the washer’s drain hose go?
What it needs
A standpipe
The open pipe the hose hangs in. Check its height and size against the code and washer maker tables. To measure its width, see how to tell pipe size.
On the package: Drain hose guide or elbow bracket, if yours is missing
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Start overWhat it needs
A standpipe adapter
For a 1" standpipe, Whirlpool lists a 2" to 1" standpipe adapter (part 3363920) used with connector kit 285835.
On the package: Standpipe adapter, 2 in. to 1 in.
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Start overWhat it needs
Over the side of the tub
Whirlpool asks for a tub that holds at least 20 gallons, with its top at least 39" above the floor.
On the package: Drain hose clip or elbow bracket
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A siphon break kit
Whirlpool’s floor drain setup uses a siphon break kit (285834), two connector kits (285835) and an extension drain hose (285863), with the siphon break at least 28" above the bottom of the washer.
On the package: Siphon break kit
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An extension hose, if your washer allows one
Whirlpool sells an extension drain hose (285863), joined with connector kit 285835. Samsung’s checklist for a washer that won’t drain says the hose shouldn’t be on an extension kit.
On the package: Drain hose extension and connector
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The hose hangs loose in the standpipe, a few inches deep, never taped in.
What the code says
| Rule | IPC | IRC |
|---|---|---|
| Standpipe height | 18" to 42" above the trap weir (802.4.3) | 18" to 42" above the trap weir (P2706.1.2) |
| Trap size | At least 2", and the drain after it too (406.2) | At least 2" (Table P3201.7) |
| Hose into the standpipe | Through an air break (406.2) | Through an air break (P2718.1) |
| A laundry tub draining into the standpipe | Standpipe at least 30" above its trap weir and above the tub’s rim; tub outlet within 30" of the standpipe (802.4.3.1) | Standpipe at least 30" above its trap weir and above the tub’s rim; tub outlet within 30" horizontally from the standpipe trap (P2706.1.2.1) |
The trap weir is the top of the trap’s outlet bend, where water spills on into the drain, so the code’s 18" to 42" starts there, not at the floor. An air break means the hose drains into the standpipe below its rim with open air around it, not sealed to it. The IPC also wants each standpipe to have its own trap, access for clearing the drain with a rod, and a 3" or larger pipe for the washer’s drain to join.
Areas on the Uniform Plumbing Code treat the washer standpipe as a receptor with limits of its own, in UPC section 804.1. Your city or county adopts one of these codes, sometimes with changes, and its building department decides what applies to your house.
What washer makers say
Whirlpool, LG and Samsung give the height of the hose end or the standpipe’s top from the floor or the bottom of the washer. All three cap it at 96"; LG’s page gives no minimum, and Whirlpool’s and Samsung’s minimums differ even between their own pages. The higher minimums are in installation instructions and the lower ones in troubleshooting pages. Follow your own washer’s installation instructions.
| Maker and page | Height | Hose inside the standpipe |
|---|---|---|
| Whirlpool, top-load installation instructions | Standpipe top at least 39" high; no higher than 96" from the bottom of the washer | No more than 4.5" |
| Whirlpool, help page for a washer that keeps filling | Drain top at least 30" from the floor | No more than 4.5" |
| LG, top-load drain hose help page | Hose end no higher than 96" above the bottom of the washer | Elbow bracket within 4" of the hose end |
| Samsung, washer installation page | Standpipe or tub 39" to 96" from the floor | 6" to 8" |
| Samsung, washer won’t drain page | At least 18", no higher than 96" | 6" to 8" |
For the standpipe itself, Whirlpool asks for at least 2" across and a drain that carries away at least 17 gallons a minute. Above 96", Whirlpool’s instructions call for a sump pump system.
Fitting the drain hose
- Unplug the washer and turn off both water valves before you pull it away from the wall.
- Fit the end of the drain hose into the U-shaped form or elbow bracket that came with the washer. Whirlpool’s drain hose form must be used.
- Lower the end into the standpipe only as far as your washer’s instructions allow, and leave a gap around it. Too deep, or taped in, the hose can siphon water out of the washer while it fills.
- Tie the hose to the standpipe with a cable tie. When the standpipe is built into the wall, Whirlpool and LG have you tie the hose to one of the water inlet hoses instead.
Signs something is off
- Water drains out while the washer fills. The hose may be too far down the standpipe or sealed in, or the drain may be too low. Samsung links a hose installed below 39" to siphoning and a 4C error code.
- Slow draining or a smell, with the hose up near 96". Samsung notes that draining can slow at that height and water left in the drain system can cause odors.
- Mold inside an LG washer. LG warns that hose sticking out more than 4" past its elbow bracket could let mold spread into the machine.
Moving a standpipe or changing the trap under it is plumbing work covered by the plumbing code. Ask the building department or a plumber before you cut into the drain, and keep the washer unplugged while you work behind it.
Fitting the water hoses too?
Washing machine hose size