How every appliance is installed — and what to have on hand.
One page per appliance: what a surplus unit typically arrives without, what the install needs, the steps in order with an original diagram, the mistakes that look like a broken machine, and where a licensed installer is the standard. Written to be read beside the manufacturer's manual, never instead of it.
Three things to know before install day
Where our units come from, what that means for the small parts, and why professional installation is the standard we recommend on every sale.
A note on small parts and accessories
Every appliance we sell is surplus inventory — open box, cancelled order, customer return, overstock or minor scratch & dent — and it is priced that way. Because of where these units come from, a unit may arrive without some of the small items that ship with a brand-new, boxed machine: installation screws and mounting hardware, a power cord, fill hoses, a vent kit, brackets, shelves or the printed manual. That is normal for our inventory and part of the reason for the price. We note it on every listing and on your receipt, and we encourage you to look the unit over in person before you buy, so you know exactly what you are taking home. The pages below list what is typically not in the box for each kind of appliance, so the parts can be on hand before install day.
Professional installation is the standard
We recommend professional installation for every appliance we sell, and we consider it required for gas, water-heater, hardwired and built-in work. This is the industry standard, not a house rule: every manufacturer's installation instructions call for a qualified installer following those instructions and local code, and manufacturer warranties exclude damage caused by improper installation. A licensed installer brings the right cord, connector or hose, follows the code your city inspects to, and tests every function before leaving — so anything that needs attention is reported the same day. If you choose to install an appliance yourself, these pages and the manufacturer's manual are the reference; the responsibility for the installation stays with the person who performs it.
If your unit did not come with its manual
Open-box and surplus units often arrive without the printed manual. Every manufacturer publishes the installation instructions and the owner's manual as a free PDF: search the brand's support site for the model number on the unit's plate (inside the door, behind the kick plate, on the back or under the lid). Our Warranty & Service page links each brand's support page. The manual's installation section is the authority for your exact model — clearances, cord and hose sizes, venting and leveling — and the steps on these pages are written to be read beside it.
Before any appliance
Read the plate, then the manual
The model on the plate tells you the cord, the circuit, the hose and the clearances your exact unit needs. Download the installation instructions for that model before you buy a single part.
Buy the parts first
A cord kit, new fill hoses, a vent kit, a flex gas connector or a dishwasher install kit are sold separately on every new appliance — and on ours. Having them on hand is the difference between an install and a second trip.
Move it the way the manual says
Upright and strapped for a refrigerator, bolted for a front-load washer, never on the control panel. A unit laid on its side needs the manual's standing time before power. If a refrigerator door has to come off to clear a doorway, every wire connector and the water tube under the hinge cover go back and click home before the plug goes in — a door rehung with a connector left apart is the second most common reason a new refrigerator never cools.
Test every function before the installer leaves
Fill, drain, heat, spin, cool, ignite — run a short cycle with the installer there. Anything that needs attention is reported the same day, which is exactly what the warranty and our receipt ask for.
Step by step, kind by kind
What a surplus unit typically arrives without
Sold separately on every new appliance too — and the reason for a second trip when they are not on hand. Each guide lists its own in full.
| Appliance | Typically not in the box |
|---|---|
| Washer | Fill hoses, the drain-hose clip, leveling feet caps |
| Dryer | The power cord (never included), terminal-block screws, the vent kit and clamps |
| Washer-dryer combo | Fill hoses, the cord on a 240V model, the drain-hose clip |
| Refrigerator | The water line and shutoff, handles or handle screws, shelves, bins, the ice bucket |
| Freezer | Baskets, the dividers, the key |
| Range | The power cord (electric), the flex gas connector and shutoff (gas), the anti-tip bracket |
| Cooktop | The gas regulator or flex connector, the mounting clips, the trim |
| Dishwasher | The install kit — supply line, 90° elbow, cord or junction box, drain hose extension, mounting brackets |
| Over-the-range microwave | The mounting plate, the top-cabinet bolts, the template, the exhaust adapter |
| Water heater | The T&P discharge pipe, connectors or dielectric nipples, the expansion tank, the drain pan |
Three installs that are a licensed trade's job everywhere
We recommend professional installation for every appliance. For these three it is the code, the permit and the manufacturer's warranty, not a preference.
Gas
A gas range, cooktop, dryer or water heater is connected by a licensed gas fitter or plumber under the fuel-gas code your city adopts (NFPA 54 / the International Fuel Gas Code). New connector, shutoff valve in reach, leak-checked, and the anti-tip bracket on a range.
Water heaters
Most cities require a permit and an inspection for a water-heater replacement, and the temperature-and-pressure relief line, the expansion tank, the venting and the seismic or drain-pan rules are code items. A licensed plumber owns this install.
New circuits and hardwiring
A new 240V receptacle for a dryer or range, a dedicated 20A circuit for a dishwasher or microwave, or any hardwired connection is electrical work under the National Electrical Code and your local permit rules — a licensed electrician's job.
These pages are a general reference for the appliances we sell. They do not replace the manufacturer's installation instructions, the local building, electrical, plumbing, gas and mechanical codes, or the judgment of a licensed installer. Apex Sales does not perform installations and is not responsible for installation performed by the customer or by a third party. Damage caused by improper installation, transport or connection is not covered by the manufacturer's warranty or by Apex Sales.
Text us the model number and what it's doing — we'll point you at the next step.
A fix, a part, or a warranty call — the plate's model and serial plus one line about the symptom is all it takes to tell which.
These pages are educational. Every appliance is a little different — follow the manufacturer's manual and local code, and leave gas, water heater and 240V work to a licensed installer.
Installed and something is off? Troubleshooting by symptom · Error codes by brand · Dryer vent rules · Care & upkeep · Warranty & manufacturer manuals