How to Build a Computer Desk Station
When building a computer desk station, the primary considerations should be physical comfort, adequate space and appropriate environment, which will vary somewhat depending on what sort of work you intend on doing with the computer. It is useful to become acquainted with ergonomics, which is the study of "human capabilities in relation to work demands," according to Ergonomics.org. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Computer
- Computer monitor
- Keyboard
- Desk (preferably adjustable height)
- Measuring tape
- Adjustable-height office chair
- Desk lamp
Instructions
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Choose a space that will suit your computing needs. If you are a writer and need quiet, try to choose a room away from distractions, such as the television or high-traffic areas around the house. For video or audio editing, you might even consider soundproofing a separate room. On the other hand, if this is a family computer, you may want to place your computer desk station in a more visible space so that you can monitor your children's activities.
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Light the room. You will be able to adjust lighting further once you have a desk upon which you can place a lamp, but an initial survey of the space will help you determine whether overhead lighting is possible. Natural light can be pleasant, but you do not want it directly behind you, as it can cause glare on the monitor.
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Choose a desk that will allow adequate room for the monitor, keyboard and any accessories, such as a mouse. If you plan to take physical notes from the screen, you will also want room to write. SafeComputingTips.com recommends the desk be deep enough to allow the monitor to be about 20 inches from your eyes. Use the tape measure to measure the monitor and the desk.
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Adjust the height of the office chair so that when your feet are flat on the floor, your legs form an approximately 90-degree angle at the knee.
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Adjust the height of the chair, the desk or the monitor itself so that your eyes are level with the top of the computer monitor. This will mean that you are looking straight ahead and slightly down when looking at text or images on the screen, which Network Science says is the most comfortable position for the eyes.
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Adjust the height of the chair or desk so that when typing, and your elbow rests on the armrest, your forearm and upper arm form a right angle at the elbow. You should also try to use a desk that has a rounded edge at the point where the arm rests on it.
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Light the setup using a desk lamp. You may want to shine the light in the direction of the keyboard, or light the wall behind the monitor. A mixture of incandescent and fluorescent light is the easiest on the eyes, with the most important element being glare reduction on the monitor.
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Clear space beneath the desk for your feet. This is often overlooked, especially because we tend to shove all the wires under the desk. Consider getting a wire wrangler or attaching the wires to a wall. SafeComputingTips.com recommends allowing at least 24 inches of space for the feet, as well as space above the knees so that they are not knocking the bottom of the desk.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit woman at desk #9 image by Adam Borkowski from Fotolia.com
