Happy Monday! First off, thank you guys so much for all your kind words about our newly installed kitchen floor! It still feels like a bit of a luxury to be walking on actual flooring rather than rough subfloor, although I admit that we did get used to spilling things without having to clean them up so there’s a bit of a transition back to actually taking care of our space.
As everyone knows, one of the first things you want to do when you get a new floor is have a major plumbing issue to really put things to the test. I was worried that we might not have that opportunity, but fortunately our dishwasher had our backs.
Saturday evening we had some friends over for a gathering we’d planned a few months ago as a deadline to finish our kitchen reno, and even though we’ve made way less progress than I’d originally hoped it was awesome motivation to get a lot of things done (more on that later this week).
Anyway after a long evening of good company, conversation, and then board games, we loaded up our dishwasher, watched a 30-minute tv show to unwind a little, and then dragged ourselves off to bed. My path took me through the kitchen to refill my water bottle, where unfortunately I found that I had dragged myself right into a sizable pool of water.
I knew immediately what it was, because about a month ago we had a similar issue, discovering the kitchen subfloor soaked in front of the dishwasher one afternoon. We’d pulled the dishwasher out and re-run it while monitoring it closely to pinpoint the source of the leak, but it didn’t leak again and we’d had no issues for the last month — so I was fervently hoping everything was fine and it was just a strange one-time fluke.
Unfortunately this midnight puddle was proof that something was in fact awry. I figured we might need to get someone out to take a look, since last month we eliminated some of the easy answers like a loose gasket seal. On a whim, I googled new dishwashers because I was curious how much a new one would cost us if our old one couldn’t be fixed. That’s when I discovered that Lowes was selling a highly rated Whirlpool dishwasher for 40% off, taking the price down to $299.
Not that our current dishwasher, isn’t a real looker, but…
Okay it’s not, and with our new stainless steel fridge and the stainless steel range hood I plan to install I think the bisque dishwasher will definitely stick out. I had zero intention of spending money to replace it, but since we were going to have to spend who knows how much money getting someone out to come fix it and we could get a nice not-broken stainless steel one for $299, I decided to make the splurge. I also went for an extended 3-year warranty for an additional $60. Even though I never buy the warranty for anything, I felt like it was a risk worth taking in this case since I didn’t want to find myself in the same boat a year from now. Lowes will delivery it for free this coming weekend, and I plan to do the installation myself. Of course I’ll tell you all about it!
So what do you think: did I make a hasty decision, or was this a good move given the circumstances?
I bought an earlier version of this dishwasher about 18 months ago for similar reasons. Totally worth it! Mine is so quiet we can run it during the day (we have an open floor plan) and, most importantly, it cleans the dishes without pre-rinsing them!
I installed ours pretty easily EXCEPT: it did not come with a major part required for installation. The instructions said we had to go buy this part and we were all WTF, it’s a $5 part they couldn’t include? So, be prepared in case you have the same issue. Good luck!
Awesome, I’m glad to hear you like it so much! What was the part it didn’t come with? Now I’m dying to know….
Heading off trouble AND saving money? Absolutely good move!
I’m in a somewhat similar spot, with new hardwood flooring being installed in a few weeks and a 15-year old washing machine that has never leaked or given me a moment’s worry, but … fifteen years old. I’m biting my lip whether to get a new machine or just … wait.
Well now that I talked myself into taking the plunge I’m clearly in the mindset to recommend the same to you 🙂
I would say you are making the correct decision . Better safe than sorry is a motto that applies here . Your new kitchen is looking so good .
Thanks so much Lynn!
That’s what we always do when we are going to have to call an appliance repairman! My hubby can figure out and fix most issues, so if he can’t figure it out and we have to call someone out, it’s likely a $$$ issue. And, yes, we started getting warranties too because things don’t last very long anymore. We do take our old units to the recycling place, or there’s a older man who will take old units and get parts to use at his used appliance shop so we aren’t just filling up the landfill. Btw, we’re a family of 8 so have lots of history with replacing/repairing appliances :-O. Your kitchen is looking lovelier by the day!
Thank you, Lea! Glad to hear the reinforcement for getting the warranty!
It was totally a good idea. It’s probably not worth repairing as the bill is likely to be quite high. And for $299 it’s a great price.
I was shocked when I saw $299 — even with warranty and tax it felt super reasonable for an appliance. I’m glad we caught a sale!
Hasty AND a good move! It’s a bummer you have to spend the money but it sounds like a good deal!
Thanks Jess!
“sizable pool of water”?! What about the new flooring?
Did the water seep under the flooring? Make it swell up? Or did the new floor come through the crisis nicely?
Aha, reasonable question 🙂 The flooring seems to be okay, fortunately! We caught it very quickly though, I’m not sure how it would have fared if we left it overnight.
Ha ha, our dishwasher also leaked the day after we installed our new laminate flooring. Fortunately it appears the salesguy was right and this flooring is fairly impervious to water.
Fortunately (or sadly, depending on how you look at it) the leak was totally due to human error when putting the machine back after the flooring installing so now I need to convince the other half that “it’s white and not stainless steel like the other appliances” is a good enough reason to replace it.
Oh no! Glad to hear your flooring held up well, though! I really considered laminate, but it just wouldn’t have worked next to the rest of our hardwood floors.
Keep your eye open for deals, apparently there are some good ones out there! 🙂
That was a nudge from the universe, not a hasty decision.
Excellent, I like the way you think.
Hi Sage
I have had a few dishwashers installed but I am sure you can do this yourself. There is some kind of plug to the water line that must be removed before operating or the dishwasher will not get water. It is some kind of factory safety thing. I had one installer who did not remove this and it was a disaster. I hope this helps you on your install.
Good luck!
Thanks for this tip! I will keep you guys posted on how it goes!