Like pdxgal, I've had my fridge and wall ovens next to each other for 20 years with no problem. I, too, don't want to change my electrical service for those appliances, so the new ones will occupy the same positions. That said, you should be sure to e-mail customer service of the company that manufactures your new refrigerator and ask what their policy is regarding ovens and refrigerators next to each other. GE customer service told me it would void the refrigerator warranty. KA customer service told me the warranty would still be in effect, but they recommended 3 inches between the appliances if it was possible. I am going with the KA built-in side-by-side, and I have their answer IN WRITING (love e-mail!) regarding this appliance issue. FYI: When I asked GE customer service by telephone whether their policy was "carved in stone", they said yes. But their own marketing brochures have at least two photographs where their ovens and fridges are right next to each other!

schicksal- what kind of garbage bins are those? I really like them! oh, to answer the original question. no pic yet because my pulls are on backorder, however I chose an extra long pull for my garbage/recycle pullouts (12"). There is no drawer above it (I have outlets above my trash pullout). I chose the extra long pull for two reasons: 1) easy to pull open (I guess I was thinking no matter where you grab the handle is there) 2) can hang a towel on it the pull does match the other pulls in the kitchen though, as far as style

I considered moving the trash to a different cabinet that is smaller, but I really want to keep it near the sink. (although it is currently located under my cooktop and I actually really like it there!) And I can't deduct 3" from that cabinet and add it to another because of where it's located (between supersusan corner cabinet and sink cabinet) The space will be completely divided by a wood partition from top to bottom, front to back, so I hope that garbage doesn't get in there!! However, I really only wanted to keep serving trays in there, which I don't use all that often and would probably rinse off before use anyway. Badgergal, that's exactly what I was thinking!! Was it difficult to get the trash hardware placed on the door exactly where it needed to be so that the door would fit into place correctly? That's my concern...especially since the doors are inset. I'll probably leave this for my contractor but I kind of need a plan in place to know if I should order an unattached door for that cabinet (to attach to garbage) or a regular door that opens to the side.

Thanks for all the responses. Having the last 3 houses with the DW on the left seems like second nature and obviously according to Kateskouros it might be the preferably way to go for righties. Having 2 DW would be a good way to test. As best as I could, I just mocked up the set up pulling out a 15" (not an 18") drawer next to the DW and pulled it only the equivalent of 1/2 way since I'd only need the garbage and not recycling. I found myself comfortably straddling the trash between the imaginary sink and the DW. If I didn't have the belief, I had to rinse my dishes too, it might even be preferable. Though I had to stretch a little more then if I didn't have the 18" pull out in the way, it wasn't that big a deal. The plus is that I wouldn't have to walk around the trash pull out during prep to get to the sink --- something I would do much more then scrape plates to put in the DW. LIvewireoak, We finally conceded (and glad we did) to having the sink on the island so all of this is on the island. I initially was going to put the trash on the edge of my prep but using an entire cabinet for trash just doesn't sit well for me. We think for us having it under the sink makes so much more sense. We even tested it at a few model homes, and I barely had to move to the side for my DH to be able to pull the 18" side of the sink base open. Unless, I'm not getting something, I'm thinking now that this set up might even be best. It sound good to not have to go around the trash to get to the sink when I'm prepping. The set up would then be DW, pull out trash 18" cabinet door under the sink, drain side of the sink with the garbage disposal, and 5' prepping area.