Residential Dishwasher

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nietzj

Senior Member
Location
St. Paul, Minnesota
Occupation
Electrician
Is it OK to connect a residential dishwasher by using a cord-n-plug tail, passing it through the adjoining cabinet and plugging into a receptacle installed in the cabinet under the sink? If so does that receptacle need to be GFCI? Not sure how else to do it, my concern is I'm passing a cord through a wall which isn't allowed. On the other hand if I place the receptacle behind the dishwasher I don't have access and couldn't disconnect to service the unit.
 
Most inspectors will not have an issue with that as many Bosch dishwashers come with a cord and plug. We generally just run a piece of nm cable into the dishwasher and add a switch in the cabinet beneath the sink.
 
In addition to what the others have said take a look at 422.16

422.16 Flexible Cords.(B) Specific Appliances.
(2) Built-in Dishwashers and Trash Compactors. Built-in dishwashers
and trash compactors shall be permitted to be cord and-
plug-connected with a flexible cord identified as suitable
for the purpose in the installation instructions of the appliance
manufacturer where all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The flexible cord shall be terminated with a grounding type
attachment plug.
Exception: A listed dishwasher or trash compactor distinctly marked to
identify it as protected by a system of double insulation shall not be
required to be terminated with a grounding-type attachment plug.
(2) For a trash compactor, the length of the cord shall be
0.9 m to 1.2 m (3 ft to 4 ft) measured from the face of the
attachment plug to the plane of the rear of the appliance.
(3) For a built-in dishwasher, the length of the cord shall be
0.9 m to 2.0 m (3 ft to 6.5 ft) measured from the face of
the attachment plug to the plane of the rear of the appliance.
(4) Receptacles shall be located to protect against physical
damage to the flexible cord.
(5) The receptacle for a trash compactor shall be located in
the space occupied by the appliance or adjacent thereto.
(6) The receptacle for a built-in dishwasher shall be located
in the space adjacent to the space occupied by the dishwasher.
(7) The receptacle shall be accessible.
Click to expand...

The section requiring the receptacle to be adjacent to the dishwasher is new in the 2017 NEC.

Chris
 
raider1 said:
In addition to what the others have said take a look at 422.16



The section requiring the receptacle to be adjacent to the dishwasher is new in the 2017 NEC.

Chris
Click to expand...
To further clarify here is 2014 wording:The receptacle shall be located in the space occupied by the appliance or adjacent thereto.

Before it could be either in the adjacent space or in the space occupied by the appliance - now they are saying it must be in the adjacent space. Sort of makes sense as someone else mentioned - the cord and plug is the local disconnecting means and is sort of useless if behind an appliance that is fastened in place.
 
kwired said:
To further clarify here is 2014 wording:The receptacle shall be located in the space occupied by the appliance or adjacent thereto.

Before it could be either in the adjacent space or in the space occupied by the appliance - now they are saying it must be in the adjacent space. Sort of makes sense as someone else mentioned - the cord and plug is the local disconnecting means and is sort of useless if behind an appliance that is fastened in place.
Click to expand...

Correct, that is the reasoning behind the 2017 change.

Chris
 
nietzj said:
Is it OK to connect a residential dishwasher by using a cord-n-plug tail, passing it through the adjoining cabinet and plugging into a receptacle installed in the cabinet under the sink? If so does that receptacle need to be GFCI? Not sure how else to do it, my concern is I'm passing a cord through a wall which isn't allowed. On the other hand if I place the receptacle behind the dishwasher I don't have access and couldn't disconnect to service the unit.
Click to expand...

The side of a cabinet is not a wall.
 
Sorry to jump into this thread so late. I did a search and this thread came up and is pertinent to the question I have. One of my customers had her kitchen remodeled and the kitchen contractor used his own electrician (I happen to know him and he is a very good EC). The kitchen was gutted down to the studs and I'm guessing the wiring to the DW was existing. Not sure if it was "in-wall" or through the floor. In any event the EI made this EC GFCI protect the DW. It should be noted that in NJ if you file for an electrical permit you MUST specify on the permit that you are filing under the NJ Rehab Code. That Code is based on the 2011 NEC and doesn't require GFCI protection for a DW. If the EC did not specify "Rehab Code" then the EI must inspect to the current adopted Code which (in NJ) is the 2014 NEC. In this case the EC did not specify "Rehab Code" on the permit app.

Now, here's my question - In all of the 2011, 2014 and 2017 NEC issues section 422.16(B)(2) indicates that a receptacle in the adjacent cabinet to the DW be accessible. It does not state readily accessible. Some EI's are now requiring that the receptacle or dead front GFCI's be brought to the front of the cabinet. I believe this to be incorrect and un-enforcable. If I were to rewire a kitchen in NJ based on the info I've presented would I be correct in challenging the EI on this issue ? Thanks.
 
kwired said:
the cord and plug is the local disconnecting means and is sort of useless if behind an appliance that is fastened in place.
Click to expand...

It wasn't all that bad.

Fastened in place only consists of a couple of screws in the front that hold the dishwasher to the cabinet, and back in the day, a good electricians had enough common sense to leave slack and all you had to do was take the 2 or 3 mounting screws out of the front of the cabinet, roll the the dishwasher out of the hole, unplug it, and reverse the process to put it back in place. :)


JAP>
 
jap said:
It wasn't all that bad.

Fastened in place only consists of a couple of screws in the front that hold the dishwasher to the cabinet, and back in the day, a good electricians had enough common sense to leave slack and all you had to do was take the 2 or 3 mounting screws out of the front of the cabinet, roll the the dishwasher out of the hole, unplug it, and reverse the process to put it back in place. :)


JAP>
Click to expand...
How many repair guys will pull the appliance out just so they can unplug it when it is not necessary to pull it out to perform the repair? If plug is in adjacent cabinet I think there is a greater chance of unplugging it.
 
goldstar said:
Sorry to jump into this thread so late. I did a search and this thread came up and is pertinent to the question I have. One of my customers had her kitchen remodeled and the kitchen contractor used his own electrician (I happen to know him and he is a very good EC). The kitchen was gutted down to the studs and I'm guessing the wiring to the DW was existing. Not sure if it was "in-wall" or through the floor. In any event the EI made this EC GFCI protect the DW. It should be noted that in NJ if you file for an electrical permit you MUST specify on the permit that you are filing under the NJ Rehab Code. That Code is based on the 2011 NEC and doesn't require GFCI protection for a DW. If the EC did not specify "Rehab Code" then the EI must inspect to the current adopted Code which (in NJ) is the 2014 NEC. In this case the EC did not specify "Rehab Code" on the permit app.

Now, here's my question - In all of the 2011, 2014 and 2017 NEC issues section 422.16(B)(2) indicates that a receptacle in the adjacent cabinet to the DW be accessible. It does not state readily accessible. Some EI's are now requiring that the receptacle or dead front GFCI's be brought to the front of the cabinet. I believe this to be incorrect and un-enforcable. If I were to rewire a kitchen in NJ based on the info I've presented would I be correct in challenging the EI on this issue ? Thanks.
Click to expand...

A GFCI Receptacle or dead front GFCI would have to be located in a readily accessible location (See 210.8). This was a change in the 2011 NEC so it would apply to the NJ Rehab code unless they amended it out.

A Standard receptacle would not have to be readily accessible just accessible.

Chris
 
kwired said:
How many repair guys will pull the appliance out just so they can unplug it when it is not necessary to pull it out to perform the repair? If plug is in adjacent cabinet I think there is a greater chance of unplugging it.
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, I agree and also think having the disconnect adjacent to the dishwasher is a good idea, but,

Is it up to us to have to worry about a repair guy opening a disconnect to an appliance before he works on it? or is our job only to provide one?

Just saying that for many years, the receptacle was mounted down low behind the dishwasher and you could get to it by opening the lower front cover and reaching back to the back and unplugging it. Convenient, no, accessible yes, readily accessible, not so much.

Usually the plug and cord was installed on the dishwasher and pushed into the hole by the electrician anyway so he wouldn't place it anywhere he couldn't easily get to it himself.

JAP>
 
raider1 said:
A GFCI Receptacle or dead front GFCI would have to be located in a readily accessible location (See 210.8). This was a change in the 2011 NEC so it would apply to the NJ Rehab code unless they amended it out.

A Standard receptacle would not have to be readily accessible just accessible.

Chris
Click to expand...

That's the ticket right there.

The GFI requirement of being readily accessible seems to have made life easier for everybody by requiring it to be installed in a place where it's easier to get to.

JAP>
 
raider1 said:
A GFCI Receptacle or dead front GFCI would have to be located in a readily accessible location (See 210.8). This was a change in the 2011 NEC so it would apply to the NJ Rehab code unless they amended it out.

A Standard receptacle would not have to be readily accessible just accessible.

Chris
Click to expand...
Thanks for that Chris. I think, in the case I specified, the EC was required to install this "after the fact" and as such ended up installing it inside the sink cabinet. If it were my choice (had I known in advance) I would have installed a dead front unit above the kitchen counter before the sheet-rock was installed.

BTW, dishwashers were not required to be GFCI protected under the 2011 NEC and that's what the NJ Rehab Code is based on.
 
goldstar said:
Thanks for that Chris. I think, in the case I specified, the EC was required to install this "after the fact" and as such ended up installing it inside the sink cabinet. If it were my choice (had I known in advance) I would have installed a dead front unit above the kitchen counter before the sheet-rock was installed.

BTW, dishwashers were not required to be GFCI protected under the 2011 NEC and that's what the NJ Rehab Code is based on.
Click to expand...
Unless you are exempt for some reason from most recent AFCI rules, many of us just use a dual function GFCI/AFCI breaker on diswashers anymore. They cost less then a AFCI breaker plus GFCI at the unit.
 
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