We just had a new kitchen floor put in. In the process, which I won’t bore you with, we gained over an inch of height on the floor, and the 34" dishwasher no longer fits in the space allotted, which is 33-1/2". I have been looking at dishwashers and most require 34", although I’ve found a couple of Maytag models that will fit in 33-1/2". The latest Consumer Reports doesn’t rate Maytags very highly, though. There are also a line of ADA compliant dishwashers that will fit, but they lose height by eliminating the autofiltering mechanism underneath and so have an interior filter that needs to be cleaned by hand.
Have you had experience in trying to fit a dishwasher into a similar-sized space? Do you know of any brands/models that would fit?
(Raising the countertop is probably out of the question; it’s a wraparound granite top with a backsplash and would be a huge amount of work to unglue and shim up.)
Since I am not asking for subjective measures of quality, just sizing, I put this in GQ.
Not a stupid question at all. The new floor was laid down so that it extended slightly into the dishwasher space, so that when there’s a dishwasher there the tile goes right up to the dishwasher. Unfortunately that means that the limiting factor is the space from the bottom of the countertop to the top of the tile. The only such solution would be to remove the tile from in front of the opening, install the dishwasher, and then retile.
Chip out the two tiles, install the dishwasher, and re-tile. That’s what I’d do. It’s inconvenient, but would only cost, what $20 - $50 depending upon who does the labour.
Fisher Paykel double dish drawers can fit into an opening as short as 32 and 3/8ths. If you don’t require a high capacity wash, you could even go for a single drawer to get some cabinet space back.
I have had one now for about 4 years.
So quiet I can’t hear it run when I am standing next to it. No pre-washing dishes. Adjustable height racks, and dish holders that really make sense. Uses very little water or detergent.
You can have my Miele when you pry it out of my cold dead hands.
I’d first get a tape measure and ask to pull out a floor model, and see if the adjustable feet could be removed to give you enough room without touching the tiles at all. You might need to shim the frame up to level the machine, or you might not.
What you want to look for is a dishwasher that is ADA compatible or is listed as a “Euro” Tub. Those will go down to as low as 31-13/16" but more commonly 32-1/4".
This is pretty much what my in-laws had to do during their kitchen remodel, although in their case the issue wasn’t a dishwasher but a “wine fridge”, a tiny refrigerator with a clear glass door and racks for wine bottles. They slipped the fridge into the tight space and tiled it in. So, if it ever breaks, they’ll either need to rip out the tile to remove it, or they’ll just have a dead appliance to stare at forever.
Anyway, it’s been done before, and if you get a reasonably reliable dishwasher, it shouldn’t be a problem.
Well, just wanted to let you know that we got a Miele and just fired it up for the first time today. We appreciate the advice. We looked at a Maytag that was ADA compliant but CU rated it pretty far down the list. We weren’t that crazy about the last dishwasher we bought so we decided to go upscale this time. The Miele was expensive but fit in our budget and has great performance, great features, and also looks great (we fitted it with a cabinet front to match our cabinets, so it blends right in; controls are hidden, too). Installed it myself but needed a plumber to switch out the fitting from our previous dishwasher to one the Miele could use. We got an Excella.
What you saw was the hole left when the old dishwasher was pulled out. I am not positive but the old one may have been hardwired. This was a temporary situation until the new one went in. The line side comes out of the floor and the spliced to the load line which connects to an outlet box inside the cabinet under the sink, where an instant hot water tap is plugged in. I undid the splice and sent the line right into the outlet box. The new dishwasher uses a 3-prong 120V plug so it just plugs into the outlet. (I knew the hanging splice was not to code because it’s not in a box.)
I have a friend who also has a high-end dishwasher. Although I don’t think it’s a Miele dishwasher, it also has hidden controls. How does that work? On mine, the dial in on the front, so I can glance at it and see which stage it’s at. How do you do this on one of those units?
On mine there is a red light on the control panel that is on when it’s running. You can tell the light is on when the door is closed. You don’t really need to know what stage it’s in, just if it’s still running or done. I think if you really, really need to know what part of the cycle it’s in you have to open the door and look at the display, but I haven’t actually done that.
