A washer that loses water while filling may be siphoning through an incorrectly positioned drain hose. Check the exact model's required hose height, insertion depth and open drain connection before assuming the pump has failed. Keep the hose secured without sealing the standpipe airtight. A drain overflowing onto the floor is a different plumbing symptom.
Check when the water leaves
Notice whether the washer struggles to reach a water level while it is filling, or instead empties normally and the house drain spills. GE Appliances defines siphoning as filling and draining at the same time and identifies a low drain arrangement or a hose pushed too far into the pipe as possible causes.
If water rises out of the drain opening, use washing machine drain overflow. If water escapes from a fill hose, door or dispenser, why a washing machine leaks follows those separate paths. One symptom does not prove every component is working, but the timing prevents chasing the wrong repair first.
Liquid fabric softener emptying from its compartment before the cycle starts is another observation. Use the premature fabric-softener release guide. That dispenser observation does not establish a drain-hose siphon or justify changing the standpipe.
Compare the hose with the washer manual
Look up the installation requirements using the model number. Hose-outlet height and allowable insertion depth differ among top-load, front-load and compact machines. GE's guidance gives different figures for its product types and says to consult the installation instructions. Do not copy a height from another brand or confuse the appliance's hose requirement with a plumbing code dimension measured above the trap.
The hose must stay securely positioned without making the standpipe airtight. GE says the drain is open to the atmosphere and provides hose-securing guidance. Taping or caulking the hose into the pipe changes that connection. Adding a check valve is also not a generic cure; GE does not recommend one for its washers because it can restrict flow.
What if the hose layout is correct?
Pause the washer and follow its instructions before moving hoses. Do not work around wet electrical connections, climb behind a running machine or pull the appliance against connected supply hoses. A wrong standpipe layout may need a plumber; an internal pump, valve or control fault needs appliance service.
If the model-compliant hose arrangement does not stop the symptom, give the technician the model, cycle stage and recent installation changes. For the building-side requirements, see laundry room plumbing code rules. The machine instructions and adopted local plumbing rules both matter.
Water that stays in the drum after the cycle is a different timing pattern. The front-loader pump-filter guide separates permitted owner access from internal service and from a backed-up house drain.