Assuming you mean panels for appliances, then yes your cabinet maker would make them.

The appliance manuf. will have specs for the exact size of the panel to work with their unit. They will also have instructions for installing them.

I'd suggest enlisting the help of an experienced designer to help guide you through the process.

They are just like regular panels but.. custom. :)

Sorry couldn't resist. If you are using modular cabinets from one of the larger us cabinet makers, they will usually have prefab panels for most of the popular brands that accept panels. For custom cabinets, this should be an easy task for the cabinet maker (easy doesn't translate to cheap). Either way, you usually start with selecting appliances that accept custom panels.

Good luck.

This isn't an inexpensive choice. It can run into the thousands extra for some models and some cabinet companies, so you need to decide if the cost/benefit ration is worth it to you. You pay more for appliances that can accept panels, you pay again for the panels and the specialty install. And, when that appliance craps out on you in 7-10 years, you may have to pay again for a new custom panel in a different size for the replacement appliance--if your cabinet maker is even still around and can match 10 years of patina. The upside is that done correctly, your kitchen appliances are fully integrated and invisible. That's a considerable upside for some.

To me, if your budget can handle it, and your style can benefit from it, there's nothing more beautiful than a run of gorgeous cabinets uninterrupted by the glaring utility of an ice maker. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing well. However, there is a big difference in fully integrated and "built in" or "panel ready" appliances. I don't personally care for the look of the latter. It looks sorta half done to me. But, that's me. You need to decide if YOU like the look and if you want to spend the money to obtain that look.

There are "Other reasons" to panel a DW or A Fridge, instead of just to "Hide It". I watch a lotta Home & Garden and DIY Network too. You may have seen the posts in "Kitchen Forum" where somebody asked, "Do I need a DW in my new kitchen"? The answers were "almost" universally yes!!

So I don't get this "Latest Fad", Hide the appliances (it will pass). I have looked at probably thousands of pictures of Kitchens both on GW and elsewhere! I have not seen a single (not a single picture) where I could not walk straight up to the Fridge or the DW (Regardless of the "Total Integration" which as mentioned, You will pay "Dearly" for.

Both our Fridge and Miele DW are built in and wood panelled. We did that for 2 reasons, One is, we were tired of trying to keep stainless steel "Spotless" The DW is a real problem , you get a drop of water on it, and it instantly "Morphs into a difficult spot to remove".
The other reason we did it, is we like the look of wood, and I "Personally think" that the Miele label above the wood looks great, and I like seeing the readout so I know what the DW is up to.

"Semi" integreated appliances are quite a bit cheaper than fully integrated ones, and this 67 year old has no desire to "Design to the latest Fad" which as I mentioned is a farce anyway, and most ppl want a Fridge and DW in their Kitchens, so why "Pretend" to hide them?????

Gary

I install custom appliance panels for several vendors and while they can be "trendy", the expense is in the configuration of the appliance doors/dwrs to not only accept the panels, but also brackets, trim kits,(or not) with integrated handles and there is always the option of your own hardware.

A well done installation makes the appliances appear as much as the furniture the the cabinet installation should.

While bag-n-box cabinet vendors offer panels, custom cabinet panels are generally ordered from the cabinet door company.

The Miele panel ready dishwashers run $200 less than their "regular" models. So, in my case it wasn't terribly expensive to add that feature to the kitchen. I guess a lot depends on the type and brand of appliance you buy and how expensive your cabinet doors are.

I also am well aware that if something happens to the dishwasher it is unlikely that I'll be able to replace it with one that will take the current custom panel or be able to order a new one that will match the kitchen (wood colors change over time). A number of years ago I managed to live with a mix of almond and white appliances. So I've learned to design my kitchen the way you I want it to look initially, within budget, and then roll with the changes.

The ones that cost more for panel ready may do so for two reasons. One is that if the door is made differently that's a fairly low demand item that they have to manufacture and stock separately, adding to their inventory costs. My warming drawer comes with a stainless front that's removable so that it can accept a panel, saving the company from having to have a separate unit. The way DWs and fridges are styled, however, this isn't always possible. A lot of kitchens in Europe have panelled appliances so Miele's inventory cost may be less. They also may have worked out their styling so that they can use the same door for either, and just have to specify whether there's a panel on or not. A slightly higher inventory cost, but not really big.

The main reason for any pricing, however, is what economists call "what the market will bear". In the U.S., although it's becoming more popular to have panels, it's traditionally a high end "decorator" finish. Most houses where I come from have them, but in many parts of the country, as you know, they're practically unheard of. The people who want them, want them, however, and they're willing to pay the extra to get what they want, so the companies charge them the extra because they can.

"The people who want them, want them, however, and they're willing to pay the extra to get what they want, so the companies charge them the extra because they can."

I resemble that remark...I'm one of those people. In my new kitchen I'm paneling both the refrigerator and DW. In fact that drove my price for appliances way up because I splurged on a Jenn Air integrated panel-ready refrigerator. That one item cost 60% of my 10K appliance expenditure!

Why? Because *for me* the refrigerator sticking out is, has been and always will be an eyesore and something that makes a huge visual impression in a small galley kitchen. I knew going into the remodel that I wanted paneled and that I would pay dearly. It still was an expense I was willing to take on. Same with the dishwasher, although that didn't end up costing extra. Am getting a Bosch panel ready model. That was driven by again wanting a clean seamless look in the kitchen.

So as pillog says it is up to the consumer to decide and as long as there are idiots like me who will pony up, I suppose the manufacturers will keep charging what the market will bear.

I'm definitely going with a paneled DW and maybe the refrigerator. I've looked at tons of kitchens, and to me, DWs and fridges can really uglify even an expensive kitchen. My kitchen is small with the DW at the end of the peninsula which is what you see as you enter the kitchen door. To me, it will look much better and more spacious with the DW paneled. There are situations where SS DWs look fine, like in a large symmetrical kitchen with pale green or gray painted cabinetry with 2 DWs flanking the sink...but that's not my kitchen.

Many decisions are made for aesthetics in the kitchen remodel. I figure, why spend all the money to remodel and then not like the way part of it looks?

Fortunately, since I started looking a few years ago, there are much more affordable choices in panel-ready DWs now.

You're not an idiot, runninginplace. You may have seen the post about the lemon stain on the brand new Stainless Steel Dishwasher door? so one reason to build in and panel!

The wood is so much easier to care for, and doesn't show fingerprints like Stainless or even the black or white painted ones.

I agree, (purely my taste not saying I'm right) but I too do not like to see a fridge "sticking out" in my kitchen.
My wife's twin sister redid her kitchen but they did not buy a "built in" fridge yet they panelled it. You see the thing sticking out from the entry between the family room and kitchen (Yech)!

Where I have a "Lil problem", is where folks go to the "Nth degree" to be sure it is "Fully Integrated" and hidden---Did you see the arguements about what was/wasn't fully integrated??? To Me, that got a bit Silly but at least they Got their Pocketbooks "Socked" for being so "Dern Fussy"!

Gary

We are a family of six and while I would enjoy not looking at what I call the eyesore in our soon to be kitchen, the refrigerator, we just don't have it in our budget...boo-hoo. I dread looking at the fingerprints and smudges on the fridge; the dw will not be in plain view but the fridge will be the first thing you seen when walking into the kitchen. UGH.

It seems that if one were to choose it makes more sense to panel the DW than the fridge. The DW without a custom panel interrupts the run of cabinetry. It unbalances the symmetry of the sink and faucet. And in a kitchen that is trying to have a vintage look, it really looks like a modern anachronism. The fridge on the other hand, is often standalone, so while larger than a DW does not necessarily "stick out" of the kitchen landscape the way a DW does. In a modern kitchen a DW with no panel looks OK. I think it all depends on what else you have going on in your kitchen.