bought portable dishwasher, trouble removing sink sprayer hose
July 19, 2015 1:19 PM   Subscribe

I bought a portable dishwasher and the instructions recommend removing the sink sprayer and capping it off. I cannot budge the hex bolt. I have tried liquid wrench and I am using a basin wrench (pliers won't fit in that space). 1. Any other suggestions? 2. If I've turned off the water to the sprayer, do I really have to remove the hose?

The center hose in the top picture is the one I am trying to remove.

But do I really have to remove it? I turned off the valve on the right side of this picture (which apparently goes to the sprayer? I can't test it because the sprayer handle itself has been broken since I moved in). Will that be enough to prevent the dishwasher backflow pressure from harming anything? I'm in an apartment so obviously I do not want to flood the place. I am less worried about breaking the faucet. I will only use the dishwasher when I am home and awake.

This is the dishwasher, if it is relevant (Whirlpool WDP350PAAW).
posted by desjardins to Home & Garden (8 answers total)
 
I don't understand why you are turning the water off, or removing anything? The dw has an attachment that screws directly onto your main faucet (you do have to take off the small ring on its end, to expose the threads so you can screw it on). Then to use the dw, you'll turn on the water at the sink, and it flows straight into the dw. So you should not be turning the sink water off at the shutoff valve.

I don't think you should be messing with anything under the sink. Where does your water come from, if the sprayer is broken?
posted by Dashy at 1:50 PM on July 19, 2015


I think the valve you closed is your cold water line, judging by the pictures. The sprayer hose runs behind it, but there is no connection there.

Personally, I would feel OK running the dishwasher with the sprayer hose attached as you plan (only supervised). I don't think it is anything to do with back pressure from the dishwasher itself, but merely the risk of long term pressure on the spray hose and sprayer, which may not be designed to be held under pressure for hours and hours, day after day. If you are concerned, check the hose from time to time (and of course, check carefully when you first turn it on).

I can't see how you could disconnect the sprayer hose other than loosening that nut, if you decide you must. Have you tried soaking it with penetrating oil for a few hours? There does not seem to be significant corrosion, so you should be able to get it off. Perhaps if you removed one of the water supply lines, you could get a open-ended wrench in there for greater torque (or perhaps you can fit one in as-is, just to get the nut loosened).
posted by ssg at 2:20 PM on July 19, 2015


Plumbing fixtures are notorious for using left-handed threads in unexpected places; sometimes there's a rationale, but often it seems intended to keep consumers from doing their own work -- so try turning it in the opposite direction firmly but not too forcefully.

The reason they ask you to remove the sprayer is that the dishwasher uses a solenoid to turn the water on and off, and that generates very abrupt jolts of pressure in the lines instead of the relatively gentle rises and falls produced by faucets, and over time, those jolts will blow out a plastic line.
posted by jamjam at 2:50 PM on July 19, 2015


Which part are you trying to turn? You don't need to turn the hex nut closest to the valve body, but the hex connector that's attached to the hose itself.
posted by ob1quixote at 3:00 PM on July 19, 2015


Response by poster: I started out trying to turn the wrong one (the one closest to the top). It loosened up and would not re-tighten. The one that is attached to the hose won't budge in either direction.
posted by desjardins at 3:09 PM on July 19, 2015


Damn. You'll definitely want to try to re-tighten the faucet stem.
posted by ob1quixote at 3:33 PM on July 19, 2015


Response by poster: Sure, do you have any suggestions on how, besides what I have already tried? It's very difficult to keep the basin wrench in place so that it is just tightening/loosening one nut (since they are now right on top of each other). At this point I'm ready to be done with this stupid nonsense, so if this is something I should call a plumber for, then let me know.
posted by desjardins at 3:42 PM on July 19, 2015


I wish I did. :(

I guess it's time to just call someone. I think the only other option might be to spend $30 on a cheap new faucet and replace the whole thing.
posted by ob1quixote at 3:51 PM on July 19, 2015


« Older How to do B-12 (Vitneurin) injections?   |   Snowbird/Salt Lake City what to do? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.