6 On Your Side Consumer Confidence: Home office upgrades

Consumer Confidence – Home Office Upgrades

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(ABC 6 News) –Setting up a comfortable and ergonomic home office can be challenging…

“I’ve tried at least six chairs in the last three years,” said Rachel Kent, who works from home.

Until she finds the right one, Kent works from an old wooden chair in her home office.

“The wooden chair is not ideal, but it doesn’t cause me lower back pain like the fancy chairs I tried to buy,” said Kent.

To help folks like Rachel find comfort while working from home, Consumer Reports’ ergonomics experts recently evaluated budget office chairs.

“When looking for an ergonomic chair, the one thing I tell people to focus on is adjustability because that’s going to allow you to fit the chair to your body,” said Paul Ritchey, Consumer Reports Ergonomics Expert.

CR says with the Staples Dexley Chair, you can adjust the height, armrests, lumbar, and headrest.

If you’re working on a laptop, a stand can raise the top of your screen to eye level so you don’t strain your neck looking down.

The Insignia Ergonomic Laptop Stand requires no assembly or tools to adjust the height.

While using a mouse a wrist rest can keep your wrist in a neutral position to help reduce hand or wrist discomfort.

And if your feet can’t rest flat on the floor, try a footrest to bring the floor to you.

“With a footrest, you’re going to help support the feet and take some pressure off the underside of the thigh, which you’d find if your feet were just dangling,” said Ritchey.

No matter how long it takes, upgrading your space to fit your needs is worth the work.

“When I find the right chair, I’m gonna feel like my home office is finally complete,” said Kent.

CR says it can be helpful to try chairs out at a store before buying or from a site with an easy return option.