Hello Narella

As Kitchen Designers and Manufacturers, there are several different ways to produce a Handle-less kitchen and yes to bevel the back of the doors and drawers in one of these ways. It is also the least expensive and least ergonomic method. Your Cabinet Maker has actually used the best ergonomic method as well as it being the most difficult construction method to execute.

The square grip combined with the set back rail provides positive finger purchase for your first finger knuckle with less slip than you get with a bevelled back. By preserving a square top edge this also reduces the chance of damaging your Laminate as compared to the bevel that gives you thin top leading edge. The method your cabinet maker has employed actually works really well and as said really is the best method. I hope this helps put your mind at ease.

Kind Regards

Malcolm

Dear Malcolm, thank you so very much. Yes, this is a great help. We went to see the drawers today and he has made the square grip a little deeper, which is much nicer on the fingers to open. Cheers Narella

Malcolm because you are so fabulous. May I ask you another question? ... Our kitchen cabinets are being made 650mm deep. We have an 600mm W Neff induction going in and do not understand why he has made them 650 deep. It is my understanding that bench depths are normally 600. Unless they are in an island of course. I dont mind the 650 but its not going to work with the rest of the cabinets. Cheers N

Hi Narella, most manufacturers of induction cooktops such as say Miele and
Smeg make their 600mm wide units around 500mm to 505mm deep (front to back) where
these fit comfortably into a 600mm deep cabinet, while still allowing for all
the clearances, overhangs and venting required.

You may like to check with your
cabinet maker but as far as I am aware NEFF make their induction cooktops much deeper;
making these 546mm deep instead of 500mm. This means that your cabinets also
need to be deeper than the "normal" once all the required clearances
are taken into account.

I am not sure what you mean when you say this will not work with the rest of
your cabinets. If you are positioning your NEFF cooktop above your underbench
oven as it is shown in your original photo; then it appears that your cabinet
maker has again done the right thing and has actually made all your adjacent cabinets
the same depth; whereby preserving these clean modernist lines of your kitchen.
Regards, Malcolm.

Thanks Malcolm, helpful as always.

Yes, you may be correct about NEFF, I'll check tomorrow.

Sorry I confused you. There are other cabinets will running along these into the study. There was supposed to be a clean line running all the way thru. Which at 650 would be fine. Except we have a door and a small space going into the study. Which now means that our door and walk thru can only be 720mm wide. It was going to be tight at 770. Now 720 is very narrow.

Cheers and thanks again

Malcolm, have you ever had the experience of smartstone cracking at the corners of the induction hotplate?

Hi Narella, no we have never had this problem.

Interesting. This is the reason our cabinet maker insisted we have 650mm bench tops. Even though the recommendation is only 600mm.