Standing desks

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Carolyn Cirillo

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Jun 9, 2016, 1:13:50 PM6/9/16
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If anyone is considering adding standing desks to their space, I've been doing a lot of research on the topic.

Here's the first of a few blog posts on the subject:  http://bit.ly/25LXaDa

Best,

Carolyn

        
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Jacob Sayles

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Jun 9, 2016, 1:27:30 PM6/9/16
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I wrote about "standing desks on the cheap" over at Ikea Hacker way back when (2011) and someone even added a variation.  We have 9 or 10 of these around the office.  They don't work well in the middle of the room but if you have spaces against a wall they work great.  We have a few 1/2 walls that are nice as members can still look out across the room.

Jacob

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Aaron Mader

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Jun 10, 2016, 9:51:29 AM6/10/16
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I ended up building my own sit/stand desk. The ability to switch easily from sitting to standing makes me SO much more likely to change up my position through the day. I can't overstate it. 
Here's a link to the build: http://imgur.com/a/FWcxT

It's a fairly simple build.. constructing the desk just took a day. Finishing it on the other hand.. that took several days.. but maybe that's just because I didn't know what I was doing. If you wanted to build 6 of these, it wouldn't take you much longer than building one. 

Сергей Петренко

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Jun 10, 2016, 2:10:02 PM6/10/16
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Hi,

We have just received for testing interesting device — it can be placed on the top of the standard table and provide an opportunity to use it virtually in any position. It is pretty solid, equipped with gas lifts and comfortable for using with desktop computer.

There is a FB page of it
https://www.facebook.com/stiystil/
It is Ukraine-based, so can be useful for Europeans.

Sergey Petrenko

> 10 июня 2016 г., в 16:40, Aaron Mader <a.m...@gmail.com> написал(а):
>
> I ended up building my own sit/stand desk. The ability to switch easily from sitting to standing makes me SO much more likely to change up my position through the day. I can't overstate it.
> Here's a link to the build: http://imgur.com/a/FWcxT
>
> It's a fairly simple build.. constructing the desk just took a day. Finishing it on the other hand.. that took several days.. but maybe that's just because I didn't know what I was doing. If you wanted to build 6 of these, it wouldn't take you much longer than building one.
>
>

Jacob Sayles

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Jun 10, 2016, 2:14:20 PM6/10/16
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Nice build!  

Chad Ballantyne

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Jun 10, 2016, 2:17:11 PM6/10/16
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That is awesome!

Chad Ballantyne






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Alex Hillman

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Jun 10, 2016, 2:18:33 PM6/10/16
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REALLY nice build. Beautiful finish, too. 


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Derek Neighbors

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Jun 10, 2016, 2:22:19 PM6/10/16
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We have had good luck with these.


On Wed, Jun 8, 2016 at 8:03 AM, Carolyn Cirillo <car...@carolyncirillo.com> wrote:

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The Fellow

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Jul 21, 2016, 3:34:24 PM7/21/16
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We built all of our own desks from square tubing, plywood tops, and casters. Our standing desks are a big hit along the back wall, looking out to the trees. Very simple, and well used.

Caner Onoglu

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Jul 21, 2016, 6:30:15 PM7/21/16
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Hello, what is a good width for the desks? How popular are the standing desks? Do people prefer it instead of sitting desks? Are people confortable looking at the wall and their screen is visiable?

Thanks!
Caner


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Jerome Chang

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Jul 22, 2016, 9:42:06 AM7/22/16
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Hi Caner.

I’ve used and seen others use 48-72” wide. The more that desk is shared, the smaller. The more likely it’s dedicated to them, the wider. I personally like 54-60”.
Standing desks have been promoted hard everywhere. I’ve also read that few actually change their standing height setting, once it’s set. Like the constant debate between open or closed office environments, the best is a mix: don’t sit only, or don’t stand only, but sit and stand sometimes throughout the day.

Change is good.

oh, and please avoid any work settings where one stares at a wall. The issue is not how people could stare at your screen (which few bother to do anyway…that’s just paranoia), but being humane/ergonomic.

Alex Hillman

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Jul 22, 2016, 9:48:34 AM7/22/16
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Your milage may vary, here's what I've learned observing the standing desk phenomenon in our community (and using one myself for a little over a year)

What is a good width for the desks? 

When standing desks started to become popular in our community, I issued a challenge to look for options that could "bolt on" to our existing desks, or be set on top of them. This way we didn't need to "replace" any of our existing desks, and if people wanted to switch between standing and sitting (which is the most common thing I've seen over 3-4 years of using them), they can.

All of our desks are ~2' deep x 4' wide, and lots of the modular standing desk options fit nicely on top of them. 

How popular are the standing desks? Do people prefer it instead of sitting desks? 

Relatively speaking, they're still in the minority, even when the popularity is growing. We have ~130 spots you could sit and work. At any given time, maybe 10-15% of them have been converted to standing desk. 

Like I mentioned above, the biggest pattern I've noticed is that people go back and forth. People love having the option - and a few people use it exclusively. But even they will take time away from their desk to work at a common table sometimes to give their legs a break or get a change of scenery. 

We have about a half-dozen standing desks available for our flex members & drop ins, too. I don't think I've ever seen them all used at the same time. 

Are people comfortable looking at the wall and their screen is visible?

This anti-pattern is one that we work really hard to avoid, but I see often, I think because it's easy to push a desk against the wall. 

Some people are more comfortable than others with their backs being to the room, so we're always looking for layouts that let us maximize "back against the wall" for people who really prefer (or in some cases, based on their work, need it). 

But just as importantly is that we design our workspace layouts to increase the odds of interaction with the people sitting near you. Face to face or even face to side is much better at encouraging interaction than a row of people elbow-to-elbow facing a wall.  

When we experiment with new layouts (standing, sitting, or hanging from the ceiling), our goals in order of priority are:

- Mix of full time and flex
- Always a person between where you're facing and the next wall
- Min 3 desks, max 6
- Max possible back-against-wall seating options

-Alex

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