Kitchen Appliance Installation

Kitchen appliance installation in Denver: dishwashers, electric and gas ranges, cooktops, wall ovens, over-the-range microwaves, refrigerators and garbage disposals. The Appliance Team installs new kitchen appliances across Denver and about 30 surrounding cities, connects them to your existing water, drain, electrical and gas hookups, and hauls the old units away. You get a written quote before any work begins, and our installation work carries a 90-day warranty on parts and labor. Same-day or next-day scheduling is often possible. Because our technicians repair these appliances every day, they install to the manufacturer’s instructions, not to habit.

Kitchen appliances we install

We install all major brands, including Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag, GE, GE Profile, Café, Monogram, Frigidaire, Electrolux, LG, Samsung, Bosch, Thermador, Wolf, Sub-Zero, Miele, JennAir and ZLINE.

Before installation day: a short checklist

• Measure the opening, then measure again. Check width, height and depth against the new unit’s installation guide, not the brochure. Built-in ovens, cooktops and dishwashers each have a specific cutout size.
• Measure the path. Doorways, hallways and turns matter for refrigerators and ranges. Note if handles or doors must come off to fit.
• Confirm the power. Ranges and wall ovens usually need a 240-volt circuit; check whether your range outlet has 3 or 4 slots. Dishwashers, gas ranges, microwaves and refrigerators need 120-volt power. Over-the-range microwaves need an outlet in the cabinet above.
• Find the shutoffs. Make sure the dishwasher water valve, the refrigerator water valve and the gas range shutoff are accessible and turn freely.
• Know your gas. Tell us whether you have natural gas or propane, and whether a gas shutoff already exists where the range or cooktop will go.
• Clear counters and cabinets above and around the work area, especially for over-the-range microwaves.

Dishwasher installation

A dishwasher install has four parts: hot water supply, a drain with an air gap or high loop, a 120-volt electrical connection, and brackets that lock the unit to the cabinets or countertop.

Water supply

Whirlpool’s instructions call for hot water at 20–120 psi and 120°F at the dishwasher, through 3/8 in OD copper tubing with a compression fitting or a braided supply line, with a manual shutoff valve. The same manual says 1/2 in plastic tubing is not recommended and that braided hoses should be replaced after 5 years.

Drain: air gap or high loop

The drain must not let dirty sink water flow back into the dishwasher. Under the International Plumbing Code (section 802.1.6, as interpreted by the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal), a dishwasher may drain into the sink tailpiece or disposer if it goes through a deck-mounted air gap or if the drain line rises and is fastened to the underside of the counter. Colorado has adopted the 2021 International Plumbing Code, but local amendments can require an air gap, so we follow your city’s rule. Whirlpool also says the connection must be at least 20 in above the floor or an air gap must be used. If the dishwasher drains into a new disposer, the disposer’s knockout plug has to be removed first; forgetting it is a classic no-drain call.

Electrical and mounting

Most dishwashers need a 120-volt, 15- or 20-amp circuit, either hardwired with a strain relief or with a listed cord kit and an outlet in the next cabinet. The unit must be secured with its brackets, to the underside of a wood or laminate countertop or to the side cabinets under granite and stone, so it does not tip forward when the door is loaded.

Range installation and anti-tip brackets

Every freestanding and slide-in range must have its anti-tip bracket installed and engaged. An open oven door can act as a step for a child or a lever for an adult, and an unsecured range can tip forward, spilling hot pots and pinning the person underneath.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says anti-tip brackets have been required under the voluntary standard since 1991. CPSC staff counted 38 deaths from range tip-overs from 1980 through 2008, 53 percent of them children aged one to five, and 84 injuries from 1980 through 2006, mostly burns from spilled hot liquid. A 2007 CPSC staff review noted that in the reports involving ranges made or bought after 1991, the ranges had not been secured with brackets. The UL standard for electric ranges added more warning markings in 2012 for the same reason. We anchor the bracket to the floor or wall as the manual specifies, slide the range so the rear foot locks under it, and test it. If you move a range to clean, reconnect the bracket.

Electric ranges

Electric ranges use a 240-volt cord matched to the outlet. The same NEC 250.140 rule that applies to dryers applies to ranges: new circuits are 4-wire with a separate ground, and an existing 3-wire circuit can remain only under specific conditions. We wire the cord to the range’s diagram for your outlet type.

Gas ranges and cooktops

We connect gas ranges and cooktops to an existing gas stub and shutoff with a new certified flexible connector, then leak test. We do not run new gas piping. A new gas line requires a licensed plumber or gas fitter and a permit; for permit questions about your project, check with Denver Community Planning and Development or your city’s building department. A typical Whirlpool gas range manual calls for a new AGA or CSA design-certified connector, a manual shutoff valve in the same room that is easy to reach, the pressure regulator supplied with the range, and a leak test with a non-corrosive leak detection solution. Gas ranges also need a grounded 120-volt outlet with correct polarity, or the electronic ignition will not work.

Denver altitude and gas ranges

Denver sits at about 5,280 ft, and gas burner ratings are altitude-dependent, so we check your model’s manual for a high-altitude requirement. One Whirlpool range manual says its rating-plate inputs apply up to 2,000 ft and tells owners at higher elevations to contact a local service company. Manufacturers then set their own thresholds for orifice kits:

For most homes in Denver itself, those kits are not needed, but foothill and mountain homes can cross a threshold. We read your model’s instructions, check that flames are soft blue rather than tall and yellow, and tell you if a kit is required. See range repair if burners already run poorly.

Wall ovens and cooktops

Built-in ovens and cooktops depend on exact cabinet cutouts. We check the cutout against the installation guide, confirm the cabinet can carry the oven’s weight, connect to the junction box or gas stub, and secure the unit so it cannot slide out when the door is pulled. Double wall ovens are heavy and usually need two people. If the cutout is wrong, a cabinet maker fixes the cabinet before we set the oven. Brand pages: Wolf, Thermador, KitchenAid.

Over-the-range microwave installation

An over-the-range microwave must hang from both a wall plate and the upper cabinet, never from the cabinet alone. Frigidaire’s instructions, for example, require at least one wall stud behind the mounting plate, a 30 in wide opening, the cabinet bottom at least 30 in above the cooking surface, and the top of the microwave 66 in or more above the floor. The microwave needs a dedicated 15–20 amp circuit with an outlet in the cabinet above. It can vent outside through the top or back, using a 3¼ x 10 in rectangular duct or a round duct of at least 6 in, or recirculate through a charcoal filter. We set the blower direction before mounting. Island installs are not allowed for these units. See microwave repair and range hood repair.

Refrigerator installation and door swaps

Refrigerators need breathing room. One GE installation guide lists 1/8 in on the sides, 1 in on top and 1/2 in behind, and says not to install where the room drops below 60°F or rises above 100°F, which matters in garages. We level the unit so doors close on their own, connect the water line, flush the system and check for leaks. Many models allow a door swing reversal; we follow the brand’s procedure when the model supports it. For ice makers and dispensers, see our refrigerator water line installation page, and refrigerator repair or Sub-Zero if a unit is not cooling.

Garbage disposal installation

InSinkErator’s instructions cover the steps we follow: set the sink flange in plumber’s putty, align the discharge tube with the trap, knock out the dishwasher plug if a dishwasher connects, wire a hardwired unit with a cable connector or add a cord kit, and test for leaks at the flange, dishwasher connection, tailpipe and mount. We run water and the disposer before we leave.

Installation problems we fix

How an installation visit works

• Written quote first, after we see the opening and hookups.
• Install to the manual, then test water, drain, power, gas and controls.
• Haul away the old appliance.
• 90-day warranty on parts and labor for our installation work. The appliance keeps its manufacturer’s warranty, and we repair in or out of the manufacturer’s warranty later.

Kitchen appliance installation near you

We install kitchen appliances in Denver, Cherry Creek, Greenwood Village, Boulder, Golden, Lone Tree, Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Louisville, Englewood and Wheat Ridge. Related services: dishwasher repair, oven repair, range repair, plus our Bosch, GE and Whirlpool pages.