Title: Under Sink Hookup vs. Dedicated Drain Line: Which Is Better for Dishwashers?
I hear you on the “best practice” thing—sometimes it feels like code is just a fancy way to make us spend more money. I’ve seen high loops work just fine too, and honestly, if it ain’t broke, why fix it? But here’s something I keep wondering: has anyone actually had a high loop fail on them? Like, real-world gunk backing up into the dishwasher or some kind of catastrophic under-sink flood? Or is this one of those things that only happens in plumbing horror stories?
I get the appeal of a dedicated drain line, especially if you’re already gutting the kitchen. But I’ve been called out to more emergencies for leaky supply lines or garbage disposals than for dishwasher drains gone rogue. Maybe I’m just lucky—or unlucky, depending on how you look at it.
One time, I did see a high loop setup where someone used duct tape to hold the hose up. That was... creative, but not exactly what I’d call “to code.” Still, even that didn’t cause any actual problems until the tape gave out and the hose sagged down. Quick fix, no drama.
Is there a scenario where a dedicated drain line really saves your bacon? Or is it mostly peace of mind for folks who like to sleep easy knowing they’ve got every possible safeguard in place? Just curious if anyone’s actually seen a disaster that could’ve been avoided by going the extra mile—or if we’re all just chasing plumbing unicorns here.
I’ve wondered the same thing, honestly. I’ve never seen a high loop actually fail in a way that caused a big mess—usually the issues I’ve run into are more about loose connections or hoses getting knocked loose under the sink (usually after someone’s been rooting around for cleaning supplies). The closest I came to a “disaster” was when a friend’s high loop slipped because it was just zip-tied to a pipe, and the hose dipped low enough that some funky water from the sink backed up into the dishwasher. It smelled pretty gnarly but didn’t flood anything.
I get why some folks want that dedicated drain line, though. It feels like one less thing to worry about, especially if you’re already tearing up the kitchen. But for most setups, high loop seems to work fine as long as it’s secured well and not held up by, like, a random shoelace or something. Honestly, I think half the time we’re all just trying to avoid being the next “plumbing fail” story on YouTube.
I had a similar thing happen at my old place—my high loop was just clipped to the back wall, and after a year or so it slipped loose. Didn’t notice until I started getting that weird swampy smell from the dishwasher. No actual leaks, but it was gross enough that I ended up redoing the whole setup with a proper bracket. I get the appeal of a dedicated drain line, but honestly, unless you’re already gutting the kitchen, high loop seems fine if you actually secure it well. Just gotta keep an eye on it if you’re the type to stash a ton of stuff under the sink...
Yeah, I hear you. High loop’s what I’ve always done too—cheaper and way less hassle if you’re not tearing everything out. Only thing is, I’ve had to fish out a couple of dropped sponges that knocked the hose loose. If you’re not careful with what you cram under there, it’s easy to mess it up. Dedicated drain line sounds nice, but honestly, not worth the extra cash unless you’re already remodeling.