I did this and have no problems. My cabinet handles are about 4 inches in length. I have been using it this way for over three years now.

We used cabinet handles on our dishwashers, they are 8" pulls from Restoration Hardware (Lugarno) and they match the 6" pulls that were used on all the drawers.

Does the manufacturer make a longer pull? Or, can you find something that will compliment it in a longer size?

I am using a 3" pull on mine with no issues. It's not like it's a fridge, you really don't pull that hard on the door...

They don't make the handles we chose in a longer version, clarygrace. I'm too much of a matchy-matchy girl to use something complementary. It would drive me nuts, LOL!

Thanks for sharing your experiences, mary11 and Emilner. We've decided today that we're just going to use the regular handle for our dishwasher. It's reassuring to know this has worked for both of you! I appreciate your input. :-)

You will be fine. In reality no matter what size handle you are using it will attach with two points (handles that is, not knobs). The size of the hardware will be the same for regular handles. The longer handles provide more comfort when opening a heavy item. On a DW you are not applying much more force than you would on a heavy silverware drawer. Only when you step up to appliance pulls designed for fridges do they increase the size of the screws that attach the handle.

Emilner, thanks for the additional info. We did end up having the regular handle put onto the dishwasher panel, and it seems like it should work fine. The screws go all the way through, so it feels sturdy and that size handle is comfortable enough. Now I cannot wait to close on our house so we can start using it! (It's a Miele DW, my first one ever!)