I hear you on the overkill part. I’ve seen a lot of older houses running just the high loop, and they’re still chugging along after decades—no horror stories. In my last place, I did the same thing, kept the hose up high, zip-tied it to a pipe under the sink, and never had a single issue with backflow or smells. Honestly, sometimes it feels like the air gap is just another thing to drill through your countertop for.
- High loop’s worked for me too, but I get why code wants that extra layer of protection. If someone’s got a garbage disposal that backs up or a sink that clogs regularly, maybe then it matters more.
- Air gaps can be ugly and get in the way if you’re short on counter space. Not to mention, they can gurgle and spit water if something goes wrong.
- I’ve actually had more trouble with air gaps getting clogged than with high loops failing. Go figure.
Curious—has anyone actually seen a dishwasher back up through the drain hose in real life? Or is this one of those “it could happen” things that never actually does? Just trying to figure out if I’m rolling the dice or if it’s mostly just code paranoia.
I’ve actually had more trouble with air gaps getting clogged than with high loops failing. Go figure.
Same here. I had an air gap in a rental once, and it was always spitting water onto the counter if the sink got even a little backed up. Ended up pulling it apart every few months just to clear out gunk. Never actually seen a dishwasher back up through the high loop, though—honestly feels like one of those “worst case” scenarios that rarely happens unless you’ve got some gnarly plumbing issues already. I get why code requires it, but for most folks, the high loop does the trick just fine.
Funny you mention that—
I’ve only seen it once, and it was because someone had a garbage disposal jammed full of potato peels. Otherwise, high loops seem to hold up fine. Air gaps, though... always seem to get gross way faster than anyone expects.Never actually seen a dishwasher back up through the high loop, though—honestly feels like one of those “worst case” scenarios that rarely happens unless you’ve got some gnarly plumbing issues already.
- Gotta agree, high loops almost never fail unless something else is seriously wrong.
- Potato peels in the disposal? Classic. People underestimate how much that can clog things up—seen it more than once, sadly.
- Air gaps, though... yeah, those get nasty quick. I always tell folks to pop the cap off and clean it every couple months. Not glamorous, but it beats a kitchen flood.
- If you’re seeing backup, double-check the disposal and the hose before blaming the dishwasher itself. Most times, it’s a plumbing issue upstream.
- Quick tip: never trust that “it’ll just wash down.” That’s how you end up elbow-deep in potato sludge.
Yeah, the potato peel thing got me my first week here—thought it’d be fine, but nope, instant clog. I’m still not totally sure about the air gap, though. Is it normal for it to smell a bit funky even after cleaning? Maybe I’m missing something.
