What Does an Airgap Actually Do?

It looks kinda odd. Not too many people understand what that little silver cylinder (called an airgap) next to the kitchen faucet does. Except that on occasion it may spit water all over your countertop! I mean, is it even necessary? Wouldn’t an under-the-counter soap dispenser go better there?

Well, if you have a dishwasher this little gadget is a pretty handy device to have!

An airgap provides a pocket of air that prevents the dirty waste water that the dishwasher is draining out from backflowing into the unit. You either have this gadget near the faucet, or some dishwashers have a built-in airgap. Sink faucets also have airgaps (the space between the bottom of the faucet and the basin), outside hose bibs should have them (an attached device called an antisiphon), and even your washing machine has one (the drain line brings waste water up to a level (the bend in the hose) that creates an air pocket which inhibits backflow into your machine).

It’s important to always keep the slats in the cylindrical cover turned toward the sink, in case it needs to discharge water. A number of reasons would cause water discharge, such as a blockage in the drain piping or excess material in the disposer that is inhibiting the proper flow of waste water through the drain piping.

When we inspect your dishwasher, we look for things like whether the unit is affixed to the underside of the countertop, does it run a full cycle, does the soap dispenser open like it should during a cycle, does the water drain completely from the inside of the tub, is there any rust inside the unit, are there missing or broken components inside, does the door seal leak, does it leak under the unit or under the sink (where the plumbing is), is the airgap or a high loop (I’ll cover that in a separate article) present and effective in design, etc.

When we inspect your home we treat it as if we were purchasing it—with care.

Until next time,

Sherry 😊