Washing machine in the kitchen under the countertop

It is most logical to install washing machines in the bathroom, where there is a basket with dirty linen, a cabinet with detergents and other necessary accessories. But what if there’s absolutely no space in the bathroom and the washing machine isn’t included, and you need to put it somewhere? You can build a “home helper” under the countertop into the kitchen, but for this you will have to redo or change furniture, and generally think through the design of the kitchen again. How to do this better, and what difficulties it will be connected with, let's discuss.

We make measurements

Thinking about how to integrate a washing machine under the countertop into the kitchen, it is necessary to carefully plan the space in this kitchen, because the washing machine will require a place, and given the size of the kitchens of Khrushchev’s houses, there’s a lot of space. To start, let's dot the “and”. If you plan to equip a place, make a countertop in the kitchen with old furniture, be sure that it will not work out beautifully. It is much better to start repairs in the kitchen, change furniture, and at the same time prepare a place for the washing machine.

In this article, we will consider the situation when it is planned to replace furniture in the kitchen and the owners wanted to build an existing washing machine in the future countertop in the kitchen. Where do you start preparing for this job? And you need to start with the plan.

• Take a piece of paper, a pencil and an eraser. Draw a rectangle and mark the dimensions of the room in your kitchen. If there are any niches, protrusions and other features, mark them.
• Think and display on the plan the location of the most large-sized items of equipment: refrigerator, freezer, dishwasher, electric stove. Arrange them according to size, calculate how much usable space is already taken.
• At the stage of allocating seats for equipment, think about where you would put the washing machine, so that it would be convenient to use it.
• Having distributed large equipment, try to equip the remaining space with the necessary furniture and display ideas on the plan. It is necessary to calculate the size and location of each cabinet and cabinet, sink, etc.

Important! When calculating the dimensions of cabinets and other furniture, do not forget to consider the thickness of the material.

• Carefully calculate the dimensions of future corner cabinets, because even an error of 1 cm can become fatal and will result in additional costs.

The niche for the washing machine must also be calculated very carefully. Measure the exact dimensions of your washing machine. Do not rely on the dimensions indicated in the passport, one unaccounted ledge on the body and the machine may not stand in a future niche. What else needs to be considered when calculating the niche of the washing machine in the kitchen under the countertop?

1. The depth of the niche under the countertop must be calculated with a decent margin: at least 10 cm from the rear wall of the machine to the wall will need to be left for hoses and filters, the front panel must be completely recessed into the niche at least 2-3 cm.
2. The height of the washing machine is regulated by the legs, but the height of the legs themselves must be taken into account when calculating the height of the niche for the washing machine in the kitchen. It may happen that you have to completely unscrew the legs, so that the car stands in a niche in height - it should not be so.
3. The width of the niche should be at least 2 cm greater than the width of the housing of the washing machine, in order to be able to leave centimeter gaps on the sides. The fact is that during the spin cycle at high speeds, the washing machine vibrates and swings. If you want the whole countertop and the whole kitchen set to swing along with it, you can not do a gap.
4. The configuration of the niche itself should not block unhindered access to the front panel of the washing machine. Should open well: sunroof, powder cuvette, trash filter hatch, emergency water drain hatch.No decorative strips should interfere with the use of the washer.

Note! The countertop can be not only straight, but also angular. This doesn’t hurt to build a washing machine under it, the main thing is to calculate everything correctly.

Preparing a place and a tool

To build a washing machine in the future under the countertop in the kitchen, it is not enough to make calculations and draw a plan. You also need to know the technical features of the washing machine and the features of connecting it to communications.

When preparing a place for a washing machine, you need to take care of its access to water, sewage and electricity. It is necessary to bring a separate outlet, correctly calculating the load that the machine will create on the mains. Read how to do this in the article. How to connect a washing machine to electricity. It is also necessary to organize the inlet from the pipe with cold water, as well as the outlet in the sewer pipe or siphon to drain the waste water.

In order to connect the washing machine to water in the future, you need to install a tee on a pipe with cold water and make sure that the length of the inlet hose will be enough to reach this tap. Well, to organize the drain, you need to put a special siphon under the sink, which has an outlet on the side to connect the drain hose. If your siphon already has a tap, then nothing needs to be done. Make sure that the drain hose of the washing machine is long enough.

Now prepare the tool. Open the pantry and take it out of the toolbox:

• small adjustable wrench;
• 12 mm open-end wrench;
• building level;
• FUMku;
• automotive sealant;
• roulette wheel;
• pliers.

Depending on the features of the washing machine, some other tool may be required, but in any case, nothing supernatural, everything you need is in a standard tool box.

Working process

We agreed that we are describing the installation under the countertop of an old washing machine that was already connected, for example, in the bathroom, but it was decided to transfer it to the kitchen and build it under the countertop. So, how does the washing machine fit under the countertop.

1. Before you bring new furniture to the kitchen, prepare all communications for its connection, especially electric ones. Level and fix the floor in the place where the washing machine will stand.
2. After installing a new kitchen set, even before the masters left, check that all the elements of this set are the same in size and in accordance with the plan and sketch.
3. Make sure that the dimensions of the niche under the countertop are sufficient for mounting the washing machine.
4. Release the furniture installers and proceed with the installation of the washing machine in a niche under the kitchen worktop.
5. Remove the washing machine from the old place and drag it into the kitchen.
6. Make sure that a drain and water inlet hose is connected to it, and that the power cord is working.
7. Carefully slide the washing machine into a niche under the countertop.

Be careful! The washing machine must not clamp the power cord or hose with its body or legs.

8. Connect the drain hose to the siphon outlet.
9. Connect the water inlet hose to the tee, insulate the connection and clamp it with a hose clamp.
10. Make sure that the front panel of the machine is hidden in a niche for at least 2-3 cm, and there are 1 cm gaps on the sides.
11. The washing machine should be level. To achieve this, lay the building level on the top cover of the machine, and then start twisting the legs alternately until the machine is level.
12. We connect the washing machine to the outlet and start the trial washing program - its installation under the countertop in the kitchen is completed.

Which cars are suitable?

There is another issue that needs discussion. It often happens that people start repairs in the kitchen and just plan to buy a washing machine, but they already believe that the only option for installing it is to install it in the kitchen under the countertop. In this case, they have much more freedom in terms of planning the manufacture of kitchen furniture and in relation to the purchase of equipment.

If it is possible to buy a new car, it is better to choose the one that is more suitable for embedding. In general, washing machines are:

• freestanding;
• recessed;
• compact.

A freestanding washing machine for embedding under the countertop is the least suitable, so we sweep them right away. Compact washing machines, of course, are good and they need less space, but they only load 3-4 kg. It is best to take a washing machine with the ability to be embedded, it is more suitable for our purposes. Well, of course, when buying a specific model of a washing machine, measure its actual dimensions, do not look at the technical documentation, the dimensions of the machine may be indicated inaccurately in it.

In conclusion, we note that it is not difficult to integrate a washing machine under the countertop if you have calculated and prepared everything in advance. It is necessary to take care in advance of preparing communications, making measurements, drawing up a plan, preparing tools, if all this is done efficiently - there is nothing to worry about, installing the washing machine under the countertop will be successful. Good luck