Raam - Stupid question... how do you block an I-Joist? Blocking solid lumber is pretty straightforward.. but an I Joist? Do you block just the top flange? The webs? Brickeye - Hey! Don't know if you remember, but I used to post here as "Saltbox-NH" a few years back.. I owner built a reproduction Saltbox colonial. Sold that, now I'm building again. The washer and dryer will be sitting on a pan connected to a dedicated drain. It's a high efficiency washer so the total water it would ever have at one point is like 13 gallons... I think it also has some sort of overflow sensor but I'm not sure.. I'll have to RTFM. There will also be easy access shutoffs for hot and cold water supply in the laundry room itself and we are doing Pex/manifold so there's an additional shutoff in the basement. Worthy- No rubber membrane, curb or tiles... seems a bit overkill vs. what a pan w/drain can provide in the rare occurance of an issue.

First, I recommend a deep breath. It's only laundry, after all. (I can say this, because a few months back, I was where you are, hyperventilating about all the choices!) You can find my ongoing saga by searching for Bosch 500 and platform and second floor. I need to go update that thread with some pictures and if I have time later tonight, I will. They do make different sized trays. I used one called Floodsaver, from floodsaver.com and had to choose their larger pan to fit the front loaders. I opted for their entire surround. No tray will allow the drawer to open. The Bosch set has crappy little drawers that don't store much, so I opted for platform to get the height, and the tray because I'm paranoid about leaks. But many people have correctly pointed out that you're not talking 20 or 30 gallons of water in the machine at a time. And I know the Duet has really NICE drawers, so you do have to make a choice. Another option you have... search for Luna Laundry System in the forum and build THAT sort of storage with a tray on top! Then you can bail out on the Duet drawers but still have height and storage and the tray! I do have a vibration problem, but I'm going to put some ShakeAway pads under the machine (when I can get someone to come help me with the logistics of doing it). The vibration is only at certain stages of the spin cycle - maybe 5 solid minutes of things around the house jiggling. It's no worse than what we used to experience in older homes near railroad tracks when a train came through, however. Here is a link that might be useful: Floodsaver laundry pans and surrounds

We are trying to think like the installer. We realized that our machines will have to be connected, leveled, and then pushed into a very tight space. So, we decided to: 1) max on insulation in floor and adjacent walls to try reduce vibration noise. 2) plumb the back and side walls according to where the machine outlets are (water, electricity, dryer vent). (Got a diagram of the back of the machines from the owner's manual) 3) install a Watts IntelliFlow (about $200) for leak detection 4) stub out the waste pipe already there for a pan because a delivery guy we consulted told us that they may not be willing to lift heavy machines over a lip, so we abandoned a built in, tiled pan. We would have liked to have a real floor drain but code requirements made this another $2000 worth of plumbing. 5) bought braided, steel hoses for extra measure. Here is a link that might be useful: Watts Intelliflow

>>>"Can't believe they don't ALL offer this feature..... Does anyone have personal experience with the 800 series and this feature??"<<< There are several brands that offer an enclosing tub and leak protection/detection systems. From shopping for a new DW last year, I recall that, besides Bosch's "AquaStop" and the system on musicgalnd's Asko, all of the Miele DWs have a similar system, and I think that GE models have something called "floor protection." There may be others. It will be buried in features lists somewhere if they have it. My personal experience is with Bosch dishwashers, and specifically with older 500 models and on the new 300 series models. However, the AquaStop is the same as on the current 800 series. It works very well. A friend's 500 series model --- which was about ten years old, IIRC --- stopped running and flashed an error code. I pulled the DW and found something less than 1/8th" of water had collected in the tub that formed the outside base of the unit. That water triggered the protection system. The water protecting tub/base looked like it could hold up to 3 inches of water, Sopped up the water with a towel and the unit would run for several cycles before enough leaked to trigger the protection system. (Running it was how I found the leak which was in a cracked pump housing.) Occasional mopping the containment tub bought time for shopping for repairs or replacement. All leakage was contained and there was none on the floors. My own experience was with a new 300 series model which I bought for my house in early 2017. My unit (from the first production run, I think) had a leaky water inlet solenoid or housing. Might have been shipping and handling damage or possibly a defective part. (That can happen with all products from all manufacturers.) Again, the AquaStop shut off the water supply and the tub totally contained the dribbling leakage. I live in a rural area, so it took some doing for Bosch customer service to find a warranty servicer for my area --- turned out to be somebody nearby who was their factory rep. (Apparently, the customer service database was a bit goofy for my area.) Anyway, the actual repair took maybe 5 minutes with a $9 part. (I could have done it myself, but Bosch was paying for everything and i wanted to keep the warranty in force.) No damage to my kitchen's wood floors One thing to keep in mind with leak protection systems: they protect against leaks from the dishwasher itself. They will not help if you have a leak in the supply hose or the plumbing to which the hose connects. Best to install a new, good-quality supply hose when you replace the dishwasher. You probably will need a new supply hose, anyway. That's because current dishwashers use a 3/4" hose-thread fitting on the inlet instead of the 3/8" brass compression fitting that was used with older dishwashers. In theory, you could buy a 3/8 to 3/4 adapter and re-use the old supply hose, but I strongly recommend just getting a new hose for peace of mind. With your 25-year old set-up, I also would watch the supply-line valve for the take-off at the hot water line and make sure leaks don't develop there after disconnecting the old hose and installing the new one. This is from experience. I originally installed my valve about 20 years ago when I installed my first Bosch DW. Sure enough, that little side valve started leaking out the handle when I turned it back on after connecting the new supply hose for the new DW. >>>"The tines on the [Bosch & Asko?] racks are really close together though. It works great for Corelle because you can really pack in the dishes. Not sure how the narrow tines would work with stoneware dishes (ie Fiesta)."<<< There is a lot of loading flexibility in the current Bosch models including options for narrow and not so-narrow tine spacing. My china is old restaurant supply Buffalo China dishware. The pieces are as large, thick and heavy as a lot of stoneware. I have had no problems loading them in my current or previous Bosch DW. However, YMMV. Best to take a box of your stuff down to your appliance seller to be sure that things will fit to your satisfaction.