I'm dealing with a tricky situation with my dishwasher. It leaked into the basement when it drained, so I had to remove it, which involved cutting off the feet because there was hardly any clearance under the countertop. It took us about four hours to get it out! Now, I'm super anxious about getting it back in or even replacing it with a new model.
My current dishwasher measures around 33 1/4 inches tall without the feet (which we chopped off), while the product spec says it should be about 34 inches. Between the kitchen floor and the bottom of the counter, there's only 33.5 inches, plus an additional 1 1/8 inches of room from the subfloor, but I wouldn't rely on that extra space. Most standard dishwashers are around 33.5 inches tall.
I'm thinking about cutting out this 1-inch wide piece of flooring to help fit the dishwasher under the counter, but I'm still worried about clearance issues. Are there standard width dishwashers that are shorter, or do I need to consider removing the countertops? Any help would be great!
2 Answers
I've been in your shoes! After we tiled our floor without tiling under the dishwasher, I discovered a neat trick. If you have a melamine countertop, you can actually lift it a bit to jam the dishwasher in after lowering the feet. I did that, and while I dented mine slightly, it worked out in the end. I would suggest trying that method first before cutting too much flooring. It's not the best feeling, but trust me, having a functioning dishwasher again is worth it!
What material are your countertops? If they're granite or quartz, you'll have to focus on the flooring. But if you have a solid surface like Corian, check how the countertops are secured under the cabinets. Some fabricators leave a particle board runner and screw the top down. If that’s the case, unscrew it and raise the countertop a bit—like half an inch to an inch—so the dishwasher can fit. For laminate tops, you can unscrew and shim them up too. Just be careful not to mess with the sink plumbing!
Unfortunately, my counters are granite, and it feels like whoever installed everything thought it would never need to be removed!
Totally understand! Once you get used to having a dishwasher, going back is tough.