"Alex" wrote in message
om...
Hi,

I've lived in my 'new' home for about 8 months now. The house is 20
years old, so I knew I'd find some flaws once I started doing some DIY
projects.

My first appliance to go out is the dishwasher, so I moved it and
found water along with lots of rotten wood behind the cabinets. I did
replace the dish washer because it was leaking, but this water damage
is rather old. If the dishwasher wasn't the cause of the water, I
still need to find where it's coming from.

Short of ripping out the cabinets, what are my options? There is no
water under the sink (which is directly to the right of the
dishwasher), but the outside water outlet is just behind this wall.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Alex
Let me guess, your house is built on a slab instead of a basement.
Otherwise your outside spigot would be coming out of a basement wall and not
behind the dishwasher. I had this problem with a house in Arizona and it
was caused by a water pipe springing a leak under the slab. The water
bubbled up where the slab and outside wall met and by coincidence it was
under the dishwasher. Your "old" water damage may have happened before you
bought house and perhaps the previous owner repaired the leak but not the
damaged wood. Is there any evidence that the kitchen floor was broken up at
one time and replaced. Or as in my case, I had the water pipe rerouted
along the outside wall as there was no need to worry about frozen pipes in
the Winter. This is something the seller of the house would or should have
told you about in the disclosure statement most Realtors now use. I fixed
it right and made sure there was no mold problem so had no problem
disclosing it but did worry a little that prospective buyers or their
insurance companies would not be so understanding.