You need a panel and filler againt a wall or one the end of the run. It will take up at least 1 1/2". Walls are out of square, and the countertop needs spport. The panel and filler provide that.

Ah, thank you, hollysprings. So, "out of square" means that the wall may not be perfectly straight? and as far as the countertop needing support, does that mean that dishwashers are not strong enough to support most countertops?

Dishwashers WILL NOT support a countertop.

You build the enclosure then you slide the DW into it, and the top does not touch the countertop.

The easy way to do it is to nail a ledger (a 2x4) to the wall behind and to the side of the DW. In my picture, the conrtractor added a ledger where "B" is. You notice that the DW has supports across the front and sides from the cabinets.

But you will need a skinny filler too - 3 inches or so will do.

Counters do not ever sit on DW's. They sit on cabinets, and the DW slides in between. When you have a DW at the end f the run with no cabinet to support it, you've got to have at least a 3/4" panel to give support. A ledgerboard at the rear is also a good idea, and you've got to engineer a panel for the entire back of a peninsula as well, especially if there will be an overhang that will need brackets attached to the rear of cabinets. The rear of cabinets is pretty thin and not up to the task. The filler is scribed to the wonkiess of the wall, and then the panel atached to create an L shaped piece that stabilizes it. Fill the cavity thus created with foam insulation board.

Double post

This post was edited by hollysprings on Sat, Feb 15, 14 at 19:24

Multi post

This post was edited by hollysprings on Sat, Feb 15, 14 at 19:22

Ah, thank you! Now, if I could only figure out how to use IKEA's planner to get that filler space in where I want it!

Hi Carrieb!

I've used the Ikea planner quite a bit, and the snapping to a wall can be VERY annoying! If you rotate the dishwasher the way you want it to be, slide it in place, and hold it there until the outlining box turns green (just ignore the green shape snapping to be backing to the wall and wait for the yellow outline around the actual dishwasher to turn green, then release your mouse button, the dishwasher will stay where you want it to.

Hope this helps!
Michele

carrieb:

"Out of square" means an "L" shape is not at 90 degrees. It could be 87 or 93 or whatever. An out-of-plane (wavy) wall can throw a layout out of square if you let it.

Place a tape measure in the corner of the "L", measure 3' and mark the wall. Measure the opposite direction on the "L" and mark the wall at 4'. Measure between the marks. If your walls (or wall and peninsula) are square, you will have measured 5'. Anything greater or lesser is how much you are out of square.

If you want the dishwasher against a wall, so that it's kind of like, in a corner, you could probably skip the cover panel and use a ledger board or cleat the side which would probably save you, like $50, and then use a filler strip to hide the cleat. But you'll need countertop support along the back (of course, you'll need a panel to hide the back of the dishwasher!) and the filler piece along the side is necessary.

Just a caution that many people don't recommend squishing the dishwasher into a corner as they prefer having space on both sides of the dishwasher to stand and unload. I know this because I DID put my DW in a corner and wanted to read the cautions around it. So if you can avoid it it might be nice to push the DW farther away from the wall. The theory is that if there is room on both sides, two people can unload the dishwasher at once. In my house it's almost impossible to get even one person to do it.

Michele's advice is spot on about the planner! You'll have better success with the planner in my experience if you put in a filler piece first and then place your dishwasher and cabinets. Key in all cases is to hang on to that piece when it's where you want it until it turns green.

Lots of great advice on using the planner on IKEAFANS and if you post your layout there the very kind people will probably help you make sure you plan for all the needed fillers, cover panels, and things like the deco rail (light rail) and crown molding.

{{!gwi}}

This post was edited by robotropolis on Sun, Feb 16, 14 at 10:45

Carrie, if you're going with the layout in your last tread, maybe you should also mention that door you'll have on the wall very close the DW.