Installation of Dishwasher for community cafe.

Description

Penicuik Storehouse is a volunteer‑run shop, café and community space focused on revitalising the town centre, trading ethically and sustainably, and bringing people together. We host a free weekly community meal and offer free meeting space for local groups.

Our volunteers are a diverse and dedicated team, including many with additional support needs, who help create the warm, welcoming environment the Storehouse is known for. Everyone is welcome, whether to meet others, shop, relax in the café, or get involved through volunteering. We are proud to support access to local, healthy food while keeping community-focused shopping alive.

 

 

Our request

We have constant problems with equipment breakdown in our busy cafe kitchen - ovens, fridges, and dishwashers.

One of our dishwashers has a long history of problems, and in 2025, we were successful in a grant bid for the money for a new dishwasher. However, we didn't realise at the time that the new one - which is sitting upstairs in storage - is 3-phase and needs an electrician to install, and the funds didn't cover that. So, we are looking for an electrician and the materials needed, or a donation to cover the cost (we have been quoted £500).

Technical details: The machine is a 15kW three-phase model that requires to be cabled up to our mains distribution board. For that, approximately 25m of armoured cable, a 30A RCB for the Dorman Smith distribution board, an isolator switch, and cable glands.

The cable should be fixed overhead around the building to the point of use.

Why it matters

We really need this dishwasher to keep our cafe running smoothly - not only is it the heart of our thriving community space, but it's also where volunteers create our weekly Community Meal(Wednesdays) and Family Tea (Fridays). An efficient dishwasher will contribute to the running of a happy and harmonious place to work - our ASN volunteers in particular depend on the smooth running of the cafe kitchen. It will also reduce the number of times we have to close the cafe due to work overload.

We are happy to discuss any potential offers.