Sit/Stand Desk: IKEA Skarsta Review
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blog.c-mart.in
Along with a drafting chair ($150): http://www.amazon.com/LexMod-Office-Drafting-Chair-Leatheret...
Thanks for the picture :)
That's the point: the table never moves. You buy a table thats tall enough for comfortable standing use then buy a chair tall enough to that you never adjust the table. What's great about this is that there is no conscious effort needed to switch between sitting and standing you don't have to set a timer to remind you to stand up, crank your desk into standing position, nothing. You just flow on and off your chair.
If I could, every surface I owned would be adjustable height.
There are some merits to adjustable desks above and beyond that though.
If we wanted to do the same thing with a fixed desk, we would need some kind of platform for her to stand on, plus at least two adjustable-height seats with adjustable foot rests.
My home desk is at a height which looks strangely low to visitors, but my knees and elbows are at nice right angles with my feet firmly planted on the floor.
What if we had tall desks and tall office chairs with a flat, elevated platform? Then you could easily plant both feet on the platform and it would feel just like a regular chair, but then you could easily stand up and have a standing desk?
Something like this: http://www.lkgoodwin.com/more_info/brio_series_chairs/brio_s...
My first standing desk was similar: http://is.gd/X0JzNu
Our cubicles let you attach shelves or desk tops anywhere along the height of the cube wall. Oh man, I forgot I literally used tape to keep that together. And it wasn't even duct tape, yikes
ETA holy crap you found one</praise jesus hands> I feel like a jack ass now.
We're primarily using a Printrbot Simple Metal at my local makerspace, and I usually expect a solid object the size of my fist, 20% infill, PLA, to run 3-4 hours.
We use a cheap 3D printer weekly to make little fixtures, brackets and mounts for robots. These we use for months or years. They are also incredibly great for prototyping: print the doohickey in crappy plastic, check it fits together right, then get it made for real. It's amazing how helpful it is to have a model in your hand for debugging before spending a fortune.
It is definitely not ready for my Nana to print out a new frame for her eyeglasses after she accidentally sits on them. But it will be one day.
I'd say that you'd be looking at 8-10 hours per print with a consumer FDM (extruded plastic) printer on the default settings.
If the printer is correctly configured it will probably be more durable than you're implying, and even if it only lasts a year you could always cheaply print more.
¹That's what they're called in the trade, but they're much sturdier than an actual apple box.
http://imgur.com/a/H7fxb reclaimed scaffolding and a 8x4 cut down to 7x3, offcuts used to make shelf.
Works really well.
And here's where I sell them: http://is.gd/1v7H8k
It is an advantage to be able to adjust it instantly according to the task, be it sitting or standing: drawing, fixing something, or of course typing on a keyboard. Reading on the computer is not not the same height for me that writing email (standing or sitting).
Once you are used to these sometimes small adjustments, you really want to have them on all desks.
I've settled on using a bar stool. I fidget a lot. Sit, stand, lean, one leg stand, foot rest, dance. Bar stools don't run away.
I bought one like this off craiglist for $30. http://amzn.to/1lYaKgZ
http://www.presalesinc.com/store/media/catalog/product/cache...
Also, more than the desk, a decent chair is of great importance.
With a 72x36 Maple butcher block top from Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Relius-Solutions-Butcher-Block-Maple/d...
The top easily weighs 200 pounds, and that's not including the 2 Thunderbolt displays that sit on my desk.
It's been a great platform. At my standing height of 45", it needs to be up against the wall or it would likely vibrate a bit. As it stands, it's great.
The pushbutton memory allows for fast adjustment between sitting and standing. I probably transition a couple of times a day. If I'm going to be on the phone a while, I might sit if I'm not pacing.
Even if you simply used it as a regular desk, one of the things that have become most apparent to me is the difference tenths of an inch make in getting your workspace dialed in. Maybe you're wearing different shoes - or no shoes - you can dial in your desk appropriately.
I get tired of standing or sitting too long, so memory buttons are a nice feature.
I kind of figured that for the amount of time I spend at the desk, ~$600 wasn't too much to spend. I had gotten by for years on an old Office Depot-esque desk propped up on cinder blocks and 2x4s.
So often furniture these days can only really be moved about twice due to the structural integrity of the fake wood they're constructed out of. I was able to mount solid anchors into the bottom of the desk, have mounted a drawer and a cable management tray. It's pretty solid.
A mat of some sort is pretty important for me as well since the floor at the office is thin carpet over cement.
http://rocketmission.com/collections/desks/products/evolve-d...
Best, most thoughtfully designed desk I've ever seen, let alone owned. My kids will fight over it.
The Envelop is truly fantastic when paired along with an Embody (or less optimally with an Aeron). IMHO sitting slightly reclined with relaxed arms is a great ergonomics setup.
But the price is really high for a low-quality blocktop (the legs are fine though).
Anyone knows similar desks that are better quality and/or cheaper? This kind of desk deserves to be more popular.
I built the top myself from strips of oak, maple and cherry, pretty easy to do if you can access the tooling and massively cheaper than commercial tops. It's a bit thinner than the linked top but weighs over 100lbs I would guess.
"Overall, the SKARSTA meets expectations. I would recommend it if you want an adjustable-height desk and only want to spend $230. I would not recommend it if you're very tall and want to use this desk near its maximum 47-inch height, or if you need an absolutely rock-solid desk that doesn't sway at all. If your desired surface height is around 41 inches (or lower), you'll probably be happy. Eventually I'll post a long-term review, but if you are reading this, I've had no issues using this desk daily since January 2016."
"Conclusions: Sitting time was not associated with all-cause mortality risk. The results of this study suggest that policy makers and clinicians should be cautious about placing emphasis on sitting behaviour as a risk factor for mortality that is distinct from the effect of physical activity."
I always wanted a standing desk. I saw pictures of many awesome home-built desks here at HN so I thought that I could built myself one too. However, it turned out that it's not very easy. So I started looking for one at local shops.
Fortunately, IKEA is about 10km from my home so I went there and asked. They told me they have some Skarsta desk. Long story short, I bought it for 200 Euro (the larger version). The assembly took max 1 hour. Initially, the desk was a little "bendy" and unstable, but I discovered that the screws were not tight enough. After tightening them, the desk is pretty stable, even at the highest position.
I'm about 190cm tall and at the highest position, I can comfortably work on the desk. What I like the most about it is that it's pretty huge and spacious. You can put three 22" monitors on it + smaller speakers + mechanical keyboard + notebook for drawing without a problem. Although you have to manually get it up and down with a handle, it usually takes something like 30 seconds and you can look into the monitor while doing that. :) It's a good training for your hands.
All in all, Skarsta is very nice and comfortable standing desk for a reasonable price. Since owning it, I no longer understand all the standing-desk startups with their smallish desks for Macbook + one monitor for 500 bucks. What is more, you can put a spin bike under the desk and exercise while doing a light work, reading or watching videos.
Disclamer: I know the founders and currently working on Slack integration for the desks :)
Cranks, motors and the like have nothing on this simple counterweight system.
I don't like cranks or electronic motors. My criteria for a sit/stand desk was that it must be fast and practically effortless to switch between the two positions. For that you cannot beat a lift-system like the one in the Ergotron.
[0] http://www.ergotron.com/ProductsDetails/tabid/65/PRDID/757/l...
[0] https://www.ergotron.com/Portals/0/literature/productSheets/...
I think if you really want something fast you need a sitting desk AND a standing desk with mirrored monitors and each desk with its own keyboard and mouse.
OTOH it might work for you if you use it with a high stool (like a drafting stool). I had a co-worker that would go back and forth from a regular chair to the high stool and they said it helped their back. YMMV.
All these adjustable desks start to have perceptible sway when mostly extended. If this really bothers you, consider mounting your monitors separately.
http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/S49061191/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S49022524/
http://www.ikea.com/se/sv/catalog/products/S69022537/
http://www.ikea.com/dk/da/catalog/products/S69022523/
The Swedish and Danish versions have the same product code, but the British one is different, yet I don't see any difference in the description. Maybe it's just the different plug.
Americans also benefit from a warning not to be crushed by their furniture.
Otherwise love it.
I keep the desk surface such that my elbows are about 90 degrees while resting on it. I have a monitor arm that puts the center of my screens about 18" above the desk surface.
If you're trying to use a laptop sitting flat on the desk while standing, that is going to be uncomfortable at any height because your eyes and hands/arms need to be further apart.
I've had no problems with the motor and the legs, it raises and lowers quickly and smoothly. The motor and legs do come with a 10 year warranty for what it's worth.
If I have one complaint, it's that it has a tiny bit of wobble, but it's a very minor complaint and not any kind of deal-breaker for me, especially when comparing the price of other motorized sit/stand desks.
1) The top is affixed to the leg brackets using plastic screws, and the top tends to move around a little bit. Definitely wouldn't want to pick up / move the desk by holding onto the top only
2) The top was bowed slightly in the middle on the one I bought. My Apple Keyboard would wobble slightly, so I put masking tape on one of the rubber feet.
* A 2x10 bucked up into 1' pieces = 8 pieces. Stack 2 under each of four of the desk's feet, and yer set!
For me, using a stool makes the switch back and forth between sitting and standing much more seamless. And it's the shifting weight and switching positions that gives you most of the benefit anyway.
My standing desk is also just high enough to fit my exercise bike under it (if I take off the handlebars), and that is really nice.
I definitely think typing and using a mouse while standing takes some getting used to (in particular if you rest your arm on an armrest while seated); but concentration itself, to me at least, is not correlated.
I will say I think simply standing as a health benefit exists but is overblown. If you really want health benefits you have to move, so now we're talking about: treadmill desks or exercises.
That said, I don't use a standing desk, I just occasionally stand up and work from a counter when I feel compelled.
It's really hard. I have had to get used to it, though, because I have yet to work in a place with enough space where I can do that.
Wow, I wasn't aware consumer protection was quite that bad in the USA. I've got a BEKANT (the smaller table-top version that the linked reviews say doesn't exist) and haven't had the slightest problem with it, but I admit I might have been more nervous if not for the 10 year guarantee it's given in the UK.
Oh and I also have a BEKANT at work and never had any issues with it. I honestly don't understand the review that was linked in the article. I use it with a different table top which was a complete non-issue to attach if you have a drill.
You're of course blaming the wrong culprit. That's on IKEA for not offering a warranty.
Companies should not be forced to offer warranties on products. Instead companies should mostly be left to compete on their offerings. A minimum warranty time won't make sense from one product to another. Six months for this, seven years for that, 90 days for this. Inserting bureaucrats into the process of setting warranties on products is just another small but wonderful way to add to the endless parade of regulation that has seen most of Western Europe's growth plummet to almost nothing for a decade.
Secondly, the right for redress within 2 years is subject to a legal test for if it is reasonable. Anything that's designed to last less than 2 years should be obvious. For example, by supplying a use-by date on the packaging, or by being a consumable.
Thirdly, companies are left to compete on their offerings. What these regulations do is give consumers the right to legal redress from the seller on grounds of reliability being significantly poorer than expected, something that consumers cannot generally know at the point of purchase. This puts additional competitive pressure on the manufacturer, as poor quality products will damage the seller's profit margin.
Finally, there are no bureaucrats involved. If the seller doesn't meet its obligation the only recourse is legal action. There is no government office of extended warranties, or similar.
Raising and lowering takes some time, but the brief mechanical labor involved in changing the height is probably a good mental and physical break for the operator. I don't change my desk height often - it stays in standing position 90%+ of the time.
I'd consider the hand crank next time or if I were filling an office with desks. Motorized isn't really that much of a bonus for me.
I think the desk sways a bit more than the article says. That said, I would imagine using a sturdier monitor stand (or an arm clamped to the desk) would counteract that enough to make it more comfortable.
For less than ~$250, I couldn't find a comparable sit/stand desk.
I have a BEKANT and I am pretty happy with it. No issues with the motor or controller. Also, it has a 10 year warranty I think. And this being IKEA, getting stuff replaced should be super easy.
Wobbly desk really bugs me and I would rather have a fixed height desk rather than a wobbly one. Testing the stability (or confirm from other's review) before you buy.
If all you're using is a laptop, there may be no need to adjust the height of the desk - just move the laptop to where you need it. Voila.
https://www.jerkersearcher.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/bw...
* Get one with a motor in it. Hand cranking sounds awful.
* Get one with presets. Having to hold a button and wait for a desk to go up and down sucks.
* Get one that goes up and down -- sitting or standing all the time sucks.
* Regarding the above items, you'll probably want to move it up and down every 45 minutes to 1.5 hours.
* Just because you can build one for $4 in parts or put your laptop on a box doesn't mean you should. If it looks like you made it out of $4 in parts or is an old diaper box you probably don't actually care about your workspace.
> Get one with a motor in it. "Damn I need to get a standing desk. I sit around too much and don't move around enough. GOD I definitely need to order the motorized version!"
For example: Most of the people I know, even the health conscious, don't get annual physicals. I pressed them on why, and it came down to this: They didn't want to spend a half-day getting it done. There's just too much activation energy: scheduling, commute, checking in, waiting around, finally seeing the doc for 10 minutes, driving back to work. It's even worse when you have to return for labs because they didn't inform you that you should fast before drawing blood for labs. Simply reducing the activation energy goes a long, long way!
There is such a thing as excessive screening and testing. PSA testing (for prostate cancer) had so many false positives resulting in procedures that were ultimately harmful for the patients that the recommendation to get the test routinely was dropped entirely. Recently the American Cancer Society changed its mammogram recommendation age from 40 to 45. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Services went further and suggested 50 should be the age. Again, the reason is false-positives causing harmful outcomes.
I greatly disagree with the giving it to the employer part, which is one of the reasons im switchng to freelance work.
Also, I don't stand because it burns calories and I wouldn't expect to burn significant calories cranking a desk or holding a button.
The following bit piqued my curiosity:
> Regarding the above items, you'll probably want to move it up and down every 45 minutes to 1.5 hours.
You transform your desk several times a day? I am surprised. I really didn't think transforming desks saw that much transformation in practice. Sounds like you are getting great value out of it!
If anyone is interested, here's a DIY step-by-step guide that will run you $50 for a custom standing desk, no cutting required.
http://blog.nickjanetakis.com/post/137161793153/build-home-m...
Spoiler alert:
It's not adjustable but it takes ~10 seconds to move things down a level manually if you really want to sit down.
I recommend resting with a tall chair so you don't have to touch the desk set up.
$400, easy to build, not super loud considering.
Note that's for just the adjustable base; it's at least $90 more including the surface, depending on options. Looks like the height range is 28-45 inches.
It's sturdy and I prefer it to the electric model because I didn't feel like I needed one extra thing to plug in. The top I went with is much heavier and I haven't had any issues with weight either.
http://www.upliftdesk.com/uplift-height-adjustable-standing-...
We've used these at my work and they're pretty nice.
Definitely not cheap, but its quality is top notch.
http://www.steelcase.com/products/height-adjustable-desks/ai...
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/10/sit-stand-nifty-new-w...
But 4000-5000 is a little bit too much for me personally.
Seriously though, I agree with you I think. As I understand it, you get the health benefits from moving and fidgeting more, not from just standing like a statue.
Ye olde New York Times article talks a bit about this: http://is.gd/3k4zJp
And that article gave me a fancier way to say fidgeting: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenes or "NEAT"
I'm considering to buy ergo depot Jarvis. Anybody using it?
120×80cm.
Overall though, I highly recommend
I like this table. Use it 95 % in standing mode, one reason is that it is not as easy to put it down as the electric version - so the laziness makes me to use it most of the time in standing mode :-)
edit: Apparently there's also BEKANT which is motorised.
> Uncaught Exception: SQLSTATE[HY000] [2003] Can't connect to MySQL server on '127.0.0.1' (111)
When a machine runs out of memory, sometimes new SSH connections can fail because when it tries to fork the processes needed to handle the session, that forking can fail.
You may want to look at how much memory MySQL in particular is allowed to consume on the box. It is actually very configurable in that regard, but pretty greedy out of the box.
Thanks for trying to bring the site back up (and for writing the review, which I'll read when I am able). :)
Though pricey, but seems neat idea and seems sturdy
Of course, nothing beats my TrippTrapp!
(It's also a bit wobbly, which isn't great, but probably expected.)
One thing I've noticed is that I still have to sit down to maximize focus and think through certain problems. Alternating walking for 30-60 minutes, then sitting for a while feels natural.
It seems like one of those under desk ellipticals would be a better idea: http://www.amazon.com/FitDesk-Under-Desk-Elliptical/dp/B00Y1...
Mine stops within five seconds, so taking calls etc. is not really a problem either. Plus you can stand motionless on the side rails while it slows down.
And it's cool to hear you say that last bit because I feel the same way. I really need to sit down to work through through a complicated problems that requires focus. Emails and phone calls are standing and furrowed brow activities are sitting.
As a rule of thumbs if you multiply kilograms by 2 you get a rough equivalent in pounds ;-)
I can manage inches, feet and pounds quite OK but Fahrenheit are a bitch though.
Ha, ha, couldn't agree more... :)
Anyway, I looked it up just now, looks like you substract 32 from Fahrenheit and then divide by 1.8 to get Celcius: http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-Between-Fahrenheit,-Celsius,-...