# Forum Home Renovation Plumbing  Installing a new Laundry basin (trough) with both a dishwasher and washing machine

## DaleBlack

Hi  
as per the title 
I am wanting to put a new laundry basin that whilst we are at this house the baby can be washed in 
Please see images. 
Current Dimensions 
885mm High x  600mm wide x 450mm Depth (_ i can come out to 520mm max depth before i cover up the drain hole)_   
As we will only be there for the medium term I am thinking of one of these from Bunnings  45L Laundry Trough and Cabinet - Bunnings Warehouse   
or  NuGleam 
or even the 75 L   NuGleam 
My main question is how to plumb underneath (currently they discharge into the tub which my wife hates and refuses to bathe the baby in) 
I found this here on another thread   
Q1
Do i need a P trap like this   
and how in that tight space btw the cabinet and the basin do I ensure that the 2 pipes from the dishwasher and washing machine are high enough to prevent the siphoning back into the machines and damaging them? 
Q2
I assume I will have to drill another hole in the cabinet side to fit the second pipe?  
Q3
Plastic vs Steel tub 
any opinions on what is best, a baby will be bathed in it and I am concerned it may be too cold the steel?

----------


## SilentButDeadly

When tiny you just wash the baby in a fit for purpose plastic tub -  we used to use it on the kitchen bench and when the splashing got a bit mad...the bathroom floor.   
When too big for that and can sit up on its own then one of those flexible horse or garden tubs  make an excellent bath.  Otherwise go the big bath! 
As for the laundry tub....pick the one that has drain points on either side of the top and comes in stainless steel.

----------


## DaleBlack

> When tiny you just wash the baby in a fit for purpose plastic tub -  we used to use it on the kitchen bench and when the splashing got a bit mad...the bathroom floor.   
> When too big for that and can sit up on its own then one of those flexible horse or garden tubs  make an excellent bath.  Otherwise go the big bath! 
> As for the laundry tub....pick the one that has drain points on either side of the top and comes in stainless steel.

  Hi thanks for this 
I believe at least in the image above of the white plastic tub there are 2 drain points but you prefer stainless steel? can you say why? longer lasting easier to clean? 
do you have any ideas on my quesions 1 and 2? 
thanks

----------


## SilentButDeadly

The plastic sinks get scratched and stained like the inside of any plastic bucket...so they end up looking like an old plastic bucket. 
If you get a sink unit with the double drains then you don't need the fancy trap as the washing machine will use one of the top drains...and any normal trap for a kitchen sink will come with a nozzle for dishwasher drain and it'll fit on the sink unit no worries.  You'll definitely have to cut a hole in the side of the unit to get the diswasher outlet in there. 
While I realise you may be price sensitive in your current situation I'd still go with a Clark tub & cabinet.  This is the narrow 45 litre version that retails for $440 but there is a more normal 42 litre unit for $350.

----------


## DaleBlack

Hi 
I am not sure how you got such nice large images into your post, my images are large too but insert small like below - click them and theyre nice and large. 
you have sold me on keeping with stainless steel then, thats just the type of observation I was after re the  "old plastic bucket"   
As to my concern that with a steel cabinet unit like your image below, see the above images. This is a ceramic bowl in a custom wooden cabinet at a friends house, 
Observations 
1)
In the 3rd shot along you can see how much space there is btw the side of the cabinet and the bowl. This was my concern with the tight fitting steel cabinet, see my current setup below  
The 2nd image shows how tight it is, it appears even those small grey waste pipes couldnt squeeze down the side, so the hole I will have to drill could only be about halfway down the cabinet unlike in the images above where the plumber clearly drilled the hole for the wastepipe right at the top(2nd image in first bank of photos) -- is this an issue for my machines? the mid height hole, will water siphon back into them? 
2)
I have since been to a shop and seen the example like yours below whereby the holes at the back of the unit are called bypass? so at least one waste outlet can go there and they make it so its not a tight squeeze.
3)
that leaves though, my 2nd machines waste pipe - which is pretty much question 1 re height
4) the 1st bank of photos above, I note they didnt use the waste 'nozzle'? that came on the p trap they plumbed it off and up using std bigger diamter pipe, also that grey waste hose is just shoved down into the pipe not fastened - but it all seems to work.      

> The plastic sinks get scratched and stained like the inside of any plastic bucket...so they end up looking like an old plastic bucket. 
> If you get a sink unit with the double drains then you don't need the fancy trap as the washing machine will use one of the top drains...and any normal trap for a kitchen sink will come with a nozzle for dishwasher drain and it'll fit on the sink unit no worries.  You'll definitely have to cut a hole in the side of the unit to get the diswasher outlet in there. 
> While I realise you may be price sensitive in your current situation I'd still go with a Clark tub & cabinet.  This is the narrow 45 litre version that retails for $440 but there is a more normal 42 litre unit for $350.

----------


## plum

Time for my 2 bobs worth, your mates installation is the way to go. He has cut the by-pass under rim height so the w/m hose is out of sight, that is fine. As far as connecting a dishwasher aswell, that I'm fairly sure is a no-no as you will be over loading the 50mm pipe.

----------


## chrisp

> This is a ceramic bowl in a custom wooden cabinet at a friends house, 
> Observations 
> 1)
> In the 3rd shot along you can see how much space there is btw the side of the cabinet and the bowl.

  Just out of interest, does your friend's cabinet get water in it when the plug is pulled on a full sink of water? 
The reason I ask is that the PVC pipe to the washing machine (or dishwasher, or whatever) doesn't go very high up the side of the sink.  I'm guessing that draining a full sink might cause water to run up the side pipe and out in to the cabinet. 
BTW, there is a forum 'feature' (or bug) that causes the pictures to go big when a post is edited or quoted.   :Smilie:

----------


## DaleBlack

> Just out of interest, does your friend's cabinet get water in it when the plug is pulled on a full sink of water? 
> The reason I ask is that the PVC pipe to the washing machine (or dishwasher, or whatever) doesn't go very high up the side of the sink.  I'm guessing that draining a full sink might cause water to run up the side pipe and out in to the cabinet. 
> BTW, there is a forum 'feature' (or bug) that causes the pictures to go big when a post is edited or quoted.

  hi, i dont think so as he washes his baby in it and fills it up to the brim without a proble, but pondering your comment and my picture I can see what you are saying. That the water might not drain out quickly enough and therefore backup out of that extension pipe.

----------


## DaleBlack

hi all 
I installed a 70L tub and have just completed some testing. It has both the Dishwasher and Washing Machine connected to it. The Dishwasher is connected to the standard bypass pipe and the Washing Machine via a a neat hole cut in the side and plumbing up the side. 
See the pictures   
Other than posting back here to help finish off the thread, I have run into a problem. 
The Dishwasher seems to put out the lowest amount of water and there is no backing up or overflowing. Also no shallots, carrots or other foodscraps pour into the tub anymore =   WIN 
However I just tested the Washing Machine and gee does it pump out the water on its rinse cycles. With the plug in the basin it ends up backing up the delivery pipe (see pictures) and out the top flooding inside the cabinet.  If I leave the plug out the huge 70L tub fills up maybe 10cm and then passes back out. However my goal was zero intrustion into the baby washing tub. Whilst Washing machine output is better than food scraps, I noticed it still leaves a film I have to then sponge off prior to baby washing. -- All a waste of time. 
My issue is how do I prevent this backfilling into the tub? I could modify my delivery tube and have it go from 50mm to 25mm tightened with zero gaps, but given the force of it, I am worried Id just place the pressure back into the washing machine and cause early failure. 
Note that this setup below,of a friends, works just fine without backing up into the laundry tub and as you can see it looks the same as mine, he even has a T piece whilst mine is a Ypiece (i thought it would make a difference by forcing the water downwards compared to a T piece)   
Any ideas?

----------


## SilentButDeadly

Easy fix...swap the pipes around.  Washing machine outflow goes where it is supposed to - the bypass hole in the tub.   
Dishwasher goes to your jerry rigged drain - personally I would put a PVC blanking cap on the end of the pipe and then fit a 16mm irrigation screwed nipple into a hole you drill into the cap...then attach your dishwasher hose to that.  Then it's all sealed up tight.

----------


## DaleBlack

> Easy fix...swap the pipes around.  Washing machine outflow goes where it is supposed to - the bypass hole in the tub.   
> Dishwasher goes to your jerry rigged drain - personally I would put a PVC blanking cap on the end of the pipe and then fit a 16mm irrigation screwed nipple into a hole you drill into the cap...then attach your dishwasher hose to that.  Then it's all sealed up tight.

  Hi 
I did just that tonight, though I would have thought my 50mm added on piping can carry more volume than that smaller piping associated with the factory bypass. Its looks like 40mm. 
Result: It still flows up into the tub, maybe slightly less but not by much plus i ran the machine on Large not Maxi for this test, so i changed the variables a little. 
Further Idea: It was suggested to me that the metal pipe outside that my new PVC connects to, is probably partly blocked as it finds its way 2m over to the sink output and main ceramic drain. I did replace the horizontal pipe through the wall from metal and it was 1/3 clogged. But at this stage I only angle grinded the metal pipe at ground level above the pavers. - I might dig down 20cm and replace the whole metal pipe for 2M with 65mm PVC pipe to the ceramic drain.   
I can only think that it is this area stopping me now.
PS. with your capping idea, i think it would back up into the machine and cause premature wear?

----------


## DaleBlack

see excavation of outside pipework 
i intend to replace it wt 65 or 50mm   
Also where can i get a 90 degree bend like this old metal one, that is fully removable vs just a inspection hole

----------

