# Question about installing a dishwasher without having it in the counter



## Satori (Jan 30, 2003)

I like my apt but it has one serious flaw, no dishwasher! Because of our diet it means I cook everything from scratch and we create a lot of dishes and I'm going batty! I got the drinking cups under control by issuing 1 color coded glass per person and they are responsible for keeping it clean. Its the plates and the bowls (I tried the same with the bowls but I haven't gotten the glass ones packed up yet so there easy to grab) and the pots and the pans and the silverware... you get the picture. It sucks spending up to 2 hours a day just washing dishes and my poor nails are a mess! (I have yet to see latex free gloves).

I considered a portable dishwasher but there small and it would mean doing multiple loads a day and losing the use of my sink while its doing it.

So, I wondered, I have the space next to the sink that I would gladly sacrifice to put in a regular dishwasher. I figure remove one of the cupboard doors and run the plumbing through there and down into the sink plumbing so it would be installed without actually altering the apt and messing with my rental agreement. Is that doable or does it really have to be enclosed inside the counter like normal?

Update in post #15!


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## eclipse (Mar 13, 2003)

I have no idea about what you're asking, but I did want to let you know that I have a portable washer that is full sized. It does take up space in the kitchen and at the sink, though.


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## elsie (Apr 5, 2005)

A dishwasher is connected to the water supply, drain pipe and electricity. These are all things that can be reversed when you move, however I would not do it without talking to the landlord.


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## lifeguard (May 12, 2008)

My friends had a portable dishwasher (basically on wheels with a piece of counter attached to the top). It was full-sized & they just had to plug it in & connect to the sink when it was time to run it. So full-sized portables are available.


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## Satori (Jan 30, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *lifeguard* 
My friends had a portable dishwasher (basically on wheels with a piece of counter attached to the top). It was full-sized & they just had to plug it in & connect to the sink when it was time to run it. So full-sized portables are available.

Yes but you lose the use of your sink for an hour or 2. I used to have a portable washer and it drove me nuts.


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## GuavaGirl (May 6, 2008)

I have a portable dishwasher and it's great. Sounds a lot easier than the other idea. They definitely make full sized ones. You might be able to find a nice used in the paper or on craigslist, etc.


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## cristeen (Jan 20, 2007)

Two things. I only buy non-latex gloves. Not sure where you are, but I can get them at just about any drug store with a good sized cleaning aisle.

And the portable dishwasher is worth it's weight IMO. Yes, I lose the use of my sink for an hour, but if that hour is being spent in the living room watching TV or in the office surfing the internet, then it doesn't really matter to me. I actually plan it out so that I can do it that way. I never run the machine while planning to be in the kitchen, that would be a pain. The full wash cycle on my machine takes 65 minutes. At that point I can wheel it away from the sink and plug it into the wall to finish the dry cycle and get the sink back.


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## limette (Feb 25, 2008)

we have a built in dishwasher that isn't quiite built in.

it is installed to the rest of the plumbing and we put a 3 sided frame around it (made of mdf) because you can't really leave it exposed.

when we reno the kitcen it will be built in permanently.


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## Purple*Lotus (Nov 1, 2007)

My Landlord would not have allowed us to install a dishwasher, especially not one you want to take with you when you leave, so you will have to check on that.

I have a portable one and I love it. I am the like other poster, I plan not to be in the kitchen for the hour-ish that it runs. Mine is small, as it is just DH and myself, but my friend has a full sized one and she loves it.

I have a small dishpan that I keep on the counter to collect any dirty dishes I don't want to deal with right away. That works well for me. So even if I am eating while running the washer, I have some place to put the dirty dishes that is not the sink.


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## claras_mom (Apr 25, 2006)

We also have a full-sized portable. I know what you mean about the time it takes to run the cycle, but I can get a lot of dishes done at once. My main logistical hesitation with what you suggest is that then you'd be stuck with the dishwasher in the middle of the kitchen (which is actually my biggest annoyance; the fact that in my kitchen there's not a good place to stash it when it's not in use).

Is your landlord a nice person? Could you ask about the possibility of him installing a dishwasher; maybe work out some kind of cost sharing? I'm thinking something along the lines of you'd assume all or part of the cost of the dishwasher and installation and he wouldn't raise your rent.


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## CallMeMommy (Jun 15, 2005)

I have a built-in dishwasher that isn't built in - it's still sitting in the middle of our kitchen, waiting for DH to build it in







: But it's hooked up to the water and drain and we use it a lot!


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## Satori (Jan 30, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *claras_mom* 
We also have a full-sized portable. I know what you mean about the time it takes to run the cycle, but I can get a lot of dishes done at once. My main logistical hesitation with what you suggest is that then you'd be stuck with the dishwasher in the middle of the kitchen (which is actually my biggest annoyance; the fact that in my kitchen there's not a good place to stash it when it's not in use).

Is your landlord a nice person? Could you ask about the possibility of him installing a dishwasher; maybe work out some kind of cost sharing? I'm thinking something along the lines of you'd assume all or part of the cost of the dishwasher and installation and he wouldn't raise your rent.

I thought about that but I wouldn't trust him not to raise the rent. I've only had to deal with him once, we were sure there was a dead mouse or something in the wall behind my fridge. The guys checked and they agreed that based on the smell that yes something was dead in there and they cut a hole in the wall. Turns out the smell was coming from my fridge drip pan. I had been living with this god awful smell of death for over 2 weeks and he wouldn't do anything until I called code enforcement and asked if it was a violation and they said yes. I called the rental agency and and told them and right away they had someone out there. Well, after the fact, I get told I am going to have to pay for the guys that put the hole in the wall and pay for its repair because I called the health dept on him! yeah, straight retaliation! I don't even if know if were going to be here next month when my lease is up becasue the agency is well known for raising the rent and we can not afford any raise.


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## tbone (Dec 17, 2006)

We used to have a full sized portable dishwasher. We sold it before moving into our new place which already has a built-in, but honestly my portable was bigger than this one and it cleaned the dishes better too!

I would turn it on at night right before going to bed, if there were so many that I had to run it in the day too, I would turn it on right before going to run and errand.

They are expensive but worth every penny! I got a high end unit for half the price because it was a floor model.


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## MamaJenese (Aug 14, 2006)

I have a full sized portable and love it! The losing your sink for an hour is no big deal. I just clean the whole kitchen first and leave that to last. Plus ours has a butcher block top so we got extra great counter space!


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## Satori (Jan 30, 2003)

WHOO HOO!!! I got one heck of a deal! I got a portable dishwasher! I got this one for $150 and its brand new! Its running its first load right now and it easily took 2 sink fulls without overlapping stuff! My kitchen looks so much better without all the dirty dishes, I didn't realize how much there was!

I'm already looking forward to using that 2 hours of hand washing to work on other parts of the house







I swear hand washing exhausts me, decluttering I can do for a couple hours no problem it seems but dishes just drain me and kill my back.

Well, 1st load is done! Need to invest in some jetdry but I'm







:


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## TEAK's Mom (Apr 25, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *lifeguard* 
My friends had a portable dishwasher (basically on wheels with a piece of counter attached to the top). It was full-sized & they just had to plug it in & connect to the sink when it was time to run it. So full-sized portables are available.

Glad you found one.

I have one of these things that lifeguard mentioned. It kind of works. Things have to be really well rinsed to get them clean. Well, it worked until DP replaced the faucet and not it doesn't connect any more. We keep it around for the counter space on top.

I have serious real dishwasher fantasies, but my 110 year old counters are too short and too shallow for a dishwasher to fit underneath. I am so tired of washing everything by hand.


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## lovesdaffodils (Jul 11, 2007)

Congrats on that awesome deal, Satori!

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TEAK's Mom* 
Glad you found one.

I have one of these things that lifeguard mentioned. It kind of works. Things have to be really well rinsed to get them clean. Well, it worked until DP replaced the faucet and not it doesn't connect any more. We keep it around for the counter space on top.

You might not want to bother if you don't like your particular machine (my portable dishwasher works great without any rinsing at all, thankfully), but you might be able to use it with your faucet. At Home Depot/Lowe's/whatever, you can buy a new end for your faucet made to fit with portable dishwashers. We had to get one of those when we got a "decorative" faucet with a fat rounded end. Just screw off the existing faucet end, screw on the new one (very tight!), and the dishwasher now clicks onto it just like it should.


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## Satori (Jan 30, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *lovesdaffodils* 
Congrats on that awesome deal, Satori!

You might not want to bother if you don't like your particular machine (my portable dishwasher works great without any rinsing at all, thankfully), but you might be able to use it with your faucet. At Home Depot/Lowe's/whatever, you can buy a new end for your faucet made to fit with portable dishwashers. We had to get one of those when we got a "decorative" faucet with a fat rounded end. Just screw off the existing faucet end, screw on the new one (very tight!), and the dishwasher now clicks onto it just like it should.

yep, I had to do the same thing at my old place for the portable washer and today again for the dishwasher (got a real washer when we moved here so the sink didn't need the adapter piece until today)


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## Purple*Lotus (Nov 1, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TEAK's Mom* 
Glad you found one.

I have one of these things that lifeguard mentioned. It kind of works. Things have to be really well rinsed to get them clean. Well, it worked until DP replaced the faucet and not it doesn't connect any more. We keep it around for the counter space on top.

I have serious real dishwasher fantasies, but my 110 year old counters are too short and too shallow for a dishwasher to fit underneath. I am so tired of washing everything by hand.

We have a totally funky new facet the landlord installed and it does not work with our portable dishwasher. So we use it now in the bathroom at that sink







: I don't know yet if I find that gross or not







I mean, the bathroom sink isn't any dirtier than the kitchen sink and besides the sink is only to drain the water anyhow, but it just seems unusual to me to hook the dishwasher up in the bathroom. We just wheel it back in to the kitchen when it is done


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