What type of drawer...modern I am assuming Blum Intivo? We have done them up to 58" wide, weight capacity is 140LBS, need to make sure that they cabinet maker installs the extra support clip that is required with wide drawers. With Intivo all drawer bottoms are 5/8" thick

If a wood drawer, make sure to specify a min of 1/2" bottom and the heavy duty slides...

Just hope you've got help when you need to take the drawer out. :) Sure, that doesn't happen often, but OMG that's a heavy, awkward drawer to handle on your own.

I'd imagine, though, that the finished look will be very, very sleek and clean.

The thing is, because of the weight limitations, a 48" drawer is going to be much more limited in the amount of storage that it can provide you vs. 2 24", or a 36" and a 12" pantry pull out. 2 24" will provide you with twice the weight capacity, which is important if you will be storing cookware or dishes in the location. 48" of space half full isn't a very efficient storage choice in a small or average sized kitchen. You'd have to have a larger kitchen or a well used large pantry to not miss the loss.

Thank you all so much -- this information is very helpful, and I will discuss the options you all have mentioned with the cabinet maker :)

This post was edited by alermar on Wed, Jun 4, 14 at 11:58

48" drawers are just fine! As long as they're made correctly. Since you have a cabinetmaker, you can make sure he makes them well. They do need to be structurally sound, have strong bottoms and heavy duty glides. Mine are Blum, rated for 250 lbs. They don't have soft closers, though I think they do make soft closers for them nowadays. I keep my Le Creuset collection in them. No problems in four years. They've had to be removed occasionally, and it's not a problem. Unclip one side, unclip the other, then remove.

You can fit a LOT more in one 48" drawer than two drawers side by side in the same space. You not only lose the 3-4" that the cabinets and hardware take up, you lose the "holes" between the big things where smaller things can fit.

It's true that some factory made lines do not have structurally sound big drawers, which would force you to use smaller sizes, but there's no reason to make that compromise if you have a good cabinetmaker who can make anything you want.

Edit: I forgot to mention that my mother's 50 year old pot drawers are 54" wide and extra deep front to back, and they're just fine. They were made by a carpenter out of solid, as in not flimsy, wood and plywood. There may have been an upgrade to the hardware sometime or other (certainly not in the last 25 years but I just don't remember--I know the door hinges have been repaired), but the drawers themselves are good as new.

This post was edited by plllog on Wed, Jun 4, 14 at 20:02

I had the failed 42 inch drawer. I still love the wide drawer but remember the weight of the drawer counts as total weight.
They added more screws and heavy duty soft close.