Last Updated on October 5, 2026 by Umar Farooq
A washer dryer combo not drying is usually an installation complaint, not a fault. These machines need the cold tap open during the dry phase and a drain hose that lies flat, because they shed moisture through the drain rather than a vent. Close the tap or let the hose hold water and drying stops while washing carries on perfectly. The third cause is load size, and it catches everyone.
A combo sheds water through the drain, not a duct
There is no vent on an all-in-one ventless machine, so moisture leaves another way, and vented-dryer troubleshooting does not transfer. LG describes its own method plainly: “This water-free drying system involves discharging steam through the drain hose and into the sewer system” (LG, washer dryer combo — troubleshooting poor drying performance).
Follow the consequence: “If some amount of water remains in the drain hose due to incomplete water drainage, steam cannot be expelled.” LG lists the giveaway in the same breath — “This may result in tapping or grinding noises as well as poor drying performance.” Odd noises and no drying is one fault, not two.
Washer dryer combo not drying? The hose and the tap come first
Lay the drain hose flat so it descends with no dip holding water. LG gives a figure for the unavoidable case: “If the formation of a U-trap is unavoidable, make sure it does not exceed a height of 6cm/2.36in.” Taller and the hose keeps a plug of water in it — see washing machine standpipe.
Then the tap. “Water is necessary for condensing the steam generated when drying takes place,” and LG asks owners to “leave the faucet open” even on the water-free system. Check which hose is on which inlet while you are there: “If hot water is supplied, the efficiency of the condensation duct may drop.”
Half a wash load is a full dry load
This cause is not a fault, and it is printed inside the door. LG asks you to find “the sticker that reads ‘Fill up to this line’,” then gives the line that explains most complaints: “The drying capacity is smaller than the washing capacity.” The result — “If you load too much laundry, it may not fully dry or drying may take too long.”
A combo filled to its washing capacity is overloaded for its drying capacity by design, and it has no way to say so except by handing back damp laundry. Thick items compound it — “folded parts may not dry well.” The fix is free: take half out before the dry phase. That ceiling is also the thing to weigh before buying rather than after — a combo against separate machines sets out what the single drum costs you.
What a finished combo load is supposed to feel like
Combos run cooler and in a sealed drum, so “dry” feels different. GE, on its own machine: “Because the UltraFast Combo dries clothes at a consistent temperature in a sealed drum, they may not feel as dry or as warm as you may be used to with past dryers” (GE Appliances, UltraFast Combo — clothes not dry). Checking costs you, too: GE puts each door opening at “5-10 minutes” of restart.
They are also genuinely slow. Samsung’s ventless Bespoke AI Laundry Combo table runs from 57–66 minutes under 4.4 lb to 270–330 minutes above 26.6 lb (Samsung, Bespoke AI Combo is not drying clothes). Four and a half hours for a very large load is published behaviour, not a breakdown — RV washer dryer compares the formats.
FAQ
Do you have to leave the water on for a combo to dry?
On condensing designs, yes. LG: “Water is necessary for condensing the steam generated when drying takes place.” A closed tap is the commonest reason a combo washes well and dries badly.
Why is my washer dryer combo taking 4 hours to dry?
Possibly because that is the specification. Samsung’s ventless table gives 270–330 minutes above 26.6 lb. Halve the load and it falls to about ninety.
Can a blocked drain stop a combo from drying?
Yes. GE: “If the appliance can’t drain well, clothes are going to stay wet even after the dry cycle.” If laundry is dripping rather than damp, extraction failed too — clothes soaking wet after wash covers that.
Is a small load safer in a combo?
Not necessarily. Samsung warns that “Very small items may not dry thoroughly. Additionally, if the load is too small, it may not tumble properly.”
Most of these are the plumbing, not the appliance
An open cold tap, a flat drain hose, hoses on the right inlets, half the laundry you washed. Those four cover most combos that dry badly.
A combo is not a dryer with a washer bolted on. It is a washer that sends moisture down the drain — and the drain is where it goes wrong.
