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Wildcatb t1_iy9fpp8 wrote

Appliance guy here.

What you're describing isn't right, but is very common.

The fix is fairly straightforward.

Reroute the wire feeding the dishwasher to the space under the sink. Install a surface-mount junction box, and run that wire, and the wire feeding the disposal into that box, then run a new length of wire to feed the dishwasher.

All the wiring for your disposal essentially remains the same, you're just no longer using the tiny jBox on the dishwasher as your splice point.

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TonyFugginMontana OP t1_iy9hicu wrote

Thanks! That is indeed a very elegant and straightforward fix. Just keep them hardwired but do the splice in an actual junction box. Don't know why I didn't think of that. lol

The only real advantage I see personally to adding outlets and converting the appliances to plugs is that Home Depot's installers expected that. As long as the only real code compliance thing with the original setup is the point of the splice being in the dishwasher, this could be the way to go.

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TJNel t1_iy9oeo0 wrote

>converting the appliances to plugs is that Home Depot's installers expected that.

I've never seen a dishwasher or garbage disposal that came with physical plugs, they are all direct wire.

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Wildcatb t1_iy9p5pi wrote

Appliance guy again.

Most indeed ship from the factory set up for direct wire, but as modern building codes increasingly require outlets, more and more are being made with plugs.

It will be a long time before a full changeover, and may not happen at all because there are still tens of millions of homes with hardwired units, so it's easier for the manufacturers to keep making them hardwired and sell plugs as an accessory.

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