Gaggenau 538 User Manual

As previously described, the required depth of the installation cavity is mainly dependent on the kitchen design.  

Gaggenau refrigerator and freezer columns are designed for a cutout depth of 24

"

 (610 mm). So, if the kitchen cabinet  

(case + face frame) is 24" deep, this should accommodate many standard installations.

A) Standard Overlay Design — 25" (635 mm) cutout depth

On a kitchen with standard overlay cabinetry, the face frame is also an important part 

of the design. If the same aesthetics are to be continued on the refrigerator, then not 

only the door cabinetry panel thickness (e.g. ¾") is included, additionally the face frame 

thickness must be emulated. Thereby the resulting thickness of the appliance door 

panel is ¾" + ¾" = 1 ½" (face frame emulation + door panel = custom appliance door 

panel). This cumulative thickness of the resulting custom appliance door panel requires 

added depth for the installation cavity. Example 24"+ ¾" = 24 ¾" (recommended is 25

"

).

B) Full Overlay Design — 25" (635 mm) cutout depth

The above mentioned requirements are of course also valid for kitchens with full overlay 

design. However there are some chances to work with a cutout depth of 24": For this, the 

small remaining visible area of the fully overlaid face frame has to be emulated within the 

standard appliance door panel thickness of 

¾

". This can be done by simply ignoring the 

visible area of the face frame on the refrigerator (“extended size

“

 of the appliance door 

panel) or by emulating the face frame by creating a respective “nose

“

 on the appliance 

door panel (see drawing). 

C) Offset Design, Flush Inset Design — 25" (635 mm) cutout depth

Here, the kitchen cabinetry door panels are NOT completely mounted on the cabinet, 

but partially or fully inserted into the face frame. Due to this, such offset or inset design 

kitchens do not gain sufficient installation depth by the door panel. If any appliance 

door panel (thickness e.g. ¾") is installed on the refrigerator, the complete depth 

dimension of the “paneled refrigerator

“

 will be 24

"

+ ¾" = 24 ¾" (629mm). The minimum 

depth of the cutout is therefore also 24 ¾" (recommended is 25

"

).

D) European style kitchen cabinetry — 24" (610 mm) cutout depth

If the kitchen design is based on European style cabinetry, there is no need to emulate 

the look of a face frame, as such a frame does not exist on any of the kitchen cabinets. 

Therefore a 24" (610 mm) deep cutout will always be sufficient.

24" Cutout depth is sufficient for:

 

– frameless cabinetry kitchen design with any kind of appliance door panels

 

– standard overlay or full overlay kitchen design with appliance stainless steel door panels.

 

– full overlay kitchen design with appliance custom door panels with “extended size” or with “nose” (to 

emulate face frame look). 

25" Cutout depth is required for:

 

– standard or full overlay kitchen design with appliance door panels with thickness bigger than ¾" (to 

emulate face frame look)

 

– offset or inset design kitchens with any kind of appliance door panels

Cabinetry style and cut-out depth.

1 ½"

appliance door panel
(emulating a face frame)

¾"

appliance door panel with nose
(emulating a face frame)

1 ½"

appliance door panel
(emulating a face frame)

¾"

appliance door panel with nose
(emulating a face frame)

176

 Refrigeration