Home Ergonomics: How to Create an Ergonomic Setup for Your Home Office
Designing Ergonomic Office Workstations at Home
If you’re one of the many office workers who’s working from home right now, there’s a good chance you might not be feeling as productive as you want to be. That might be because you don’t have a work setup in place that accommodates your traditional work style. Office ergonomics are crucial so you need a comfortable workstation in order to keep up with your workload.
If you’re at loss for what to do, we can help. Try using these tips and tricks to craft an ergonomic workspace so you can stay productive while you’re at home.
Get an Ergonomic Office Chair You Can Adjust
The most important piece of ergonomic furniture to have in any home office is a comfortable office chair with adjustable features. To accommodate long work sessions, you need a chair that offers lumbar support and allows you to set its height and angle. You should also look into using a chair with swivel support, so you can swing it around freely.
While a regular chair will technically get the job done, its lack of proper back support may result in back pain and a lack of motivation to work. Look around for chairs that are freely adjustable and offer ergonomic features, like arms. These will ensure you stay nice and comfy while you’re working, which will keep you motivated to do the best job you can.
Swap the Laptop for a Traditional Monitor & Mouse
If you’re used to working on a laptop at the office, you may want to consider an alternative while you’re at home. While laptops are great for portability, you usually have to look down at them due to the way they’re designed. This can result in neck strain, and can have a negative effect on your work output.
To make sure you don’t lose progress on your work, try getting an external monitor and a mouse that you can hook up to the laptop. This will allow you to transform it into a more traditional computer setup. In turn, this will keep you from titling your neck around, and will let you position your hands on the mouse and keyboard in a comfortable manner.
Set Your Monitor & Keyboard Correctly
Similar to working in a regular office, it’s important that you know how to position your monitor and keyboard for maximum comfort. This is crucial if you don’t want your hands and neck to cramp up while you work.
Keep your monitor around 20 inches away from your face so it isn’t too close to your eyes. To avoid having to tilt your head up or down while you work, position the monitor so the top of the screen is just below your eye level. If your monitor is too low down, try using a monitor riser to bring it up a bit.
As for the keyboard, make sure it is positioned at the same height as your elbows. Also, keep it close to you so you don’t have to stretch your arms out while you type.
Grab a Sit-Stand Converter
Standing up while working has become one of the most popular trends for office workers in recent years. Using one helps you burn more calories as you work, reduce back pain, and lower the risk of you dealing with serious health issues later in life. Therefore, a sit-stand workstation converter would be a great addition to your home office.
With a sit-stand converter, you can set the height of your workstation freely, giving you the choice to sit or stand while you work. This gives you the ability to switch between working methods depending on how you’re feeling throughout the day. Standing for too long can strain your muscles, so having the option to sit back down gives you a lot of flexibility.
Buy Some Extra Ergonomic Accessories
There are some additional ergonomic office products you can use to improve your work-at-home experience.
The Fellowes Split Design Keyboard is one good example, as its broken up design conforms to the position of your hands, allowing for an easier work experience. If you can’t get your feet to rest on the ground, you should invest in a footrest. You can also use a seat cushion to give yourself additional support as you sit.
Another smart idea would be to add an extra monitor for a dual screen setup. Being able to display information on two screens at once will give you more room to work with on your computer. Accessories such as these will lead the way towards a more productive work ethic at home.
Allow Yourself to Get Plenty of Light
To avoid straining your eyes, your workspace at home also needs to have plenty of light.
When choosing a place to work, try to pick a room that has a few windows in it. That way, you can let some natural light into your workspace, and you’ll have an easier time seeing what you’re doing. Keep the blinds open so you can let in as much light as possible.
It isn’t always sunny out, however, so you may need to rely on other methods to light up your home office. You can always hook up an external lamp if you need an extra source of light. When using a lamp, try to keep the bulb out of your line of sight, because the glare it gives off can harm your eyesight.
Our tips for working from home doesn’t stop here. We have actually put together working from homes essentials part one and part two for you as well, so check them out!
Workers in New York, Northern New Jersey and Connecticut, do you need some extra tools to build your perfect home office? ProfTech Office Solutions has all the ergonomic supplies you need to stay productive at home.