How to Hook Up a Portable Dishwasher

Learning how to hook up a portable dishwasher isn't that difficult and the benefits are worth the effort. A portable dishwasher is perfect if your kitchen is "counter challenged" and you don't have room for an under-counter dishwasher. Besides, anything beats doing dishes by hand.

How To Hook Up A Portable Dishwasher Correctly

A small kitchen shouldn't condemn you to a lifetime of hand washing your dishes! Portable dishwashers connect easily to your existing kitchen plumbing fixtures and wheel out of place when not in use. As an added benefit, most portable dishwashers provide an additional work surface for those with CDD (counter deficit disorder). The following tips will teach you how to hook up a portable dishwasher:

• Assume the position. First, place your portable dishwasher in a location that is near the kitchen sink and an available outlet. Make sure that there is room to open the loading door and to place dishes inside.
• A bit of plumbing? Some portable dishwasher models require you to remove the screen from the faucet. The screen is at the business end of the faucet and is held in place with a small metal ring. With pliers or a wrench, gently turn the ring counterclockwise until it comes loose. Remove the ring and filter and set them aside where they'll be easy to find.
• Adapting to the situation. At the back of your portable dishwasher is a retractable hose with a faucet adapter at the end. Pull the hose out of the dishwasher until it reaches the faucet. Pull down on the adapter's plastic ring and slide the adapter over the end of the faucet. With the adapter firmly in place, release the plastic ring until it clicks into place. Give the adapter a test tug to make sure its locked into position and then plug the power cord into the outlet.
• And they're off! If you haven't already loaded the dishwasher with dirty dishes, now's the time. Once the dishwasher is loaded, turn the sink's hot water on to full. Add detergent to the dishwasher, close the door and set the cycle settings as desired Turn the dishwasher on and let it run until it finishes a complete cycle.
• Packing up. When the dishwasher is finished, turn off the water, unplug the dishwasher and unload the clean dishes. To remove the faucet adapter, pull down on the ring to release the adapter. Many portable dishwashers have a button on the side of the adapter to help release water accumulated in the hose. Press the button and drain water from the hose and then return the hose into the back of the dishwasher. You can now return the dishwasher to its normal location until you're ready to use it again.