What is the best chair to stay 12 hours a day typing on the keyboard?

[Cherry1990]

What is your best/prefered chair for staying all day long in front of the computer, typing on the keyboard?
I need to change my old chair and I searched on the web but I found only strange, and expensive, chairs that I cannot try by myself...
Do you have any suggestion for a chair I can find in the European market? I don't want/can't buy a so big item overseas.

What chair are you using now?

Thank you from my back pain!

[andrewjoy]

I like the ikea markus, i have one at home and one at work and i have never had any problems with it

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/20103101/

Pay the extra few pennies for the leather effect one its not so much for the arse area but the cloth headrest is not very nice

[Cherry1990]

I tried it at the Ikea store near my city... But i found it too big for my legs (I am 170 cm tall).
How tall are you?

[scottc]

I have the leather Markus too and love it. I'm 195cm tall though.

[chzel]

I have the same, in leather, and it's great! I'm ~175cm and with my arse pushed against the back (back locked in place) there are about 5 cm from the edge to the back of the knee.

So much Markus love around!

[davkol]

Using a chair 12 hours a day is a bad idea.

That being said, find a local specialized store and test stuff. By testing I mean bring a book, laptop, whatever, and spend some time in each potentially relevant chair.

[andrewjoy]

As good as the markus is , if you are truly spending 12hrs in it there is only one option

http://www.hermanmiller.co.uk/products/ ... hairs.html

[seebart]

Using a chair 12 hours a day is a bad idea.

Exactly. With that much time spent sitting I recommend regular breaks with exercise.

[Madhias]

You could try not only sitting, but also standing - just put your screen and keyboard on some boxes to see if you would like it. I can't only 'stand' all the time although I try, but the switching between standing and sitting is great.

[chzel]

Sometimes I use one of those inflatable gym balls, 75cm diameter, inflated hard, it's a nice size, and makes me work to stay steady, it's a bit tiring after a while but it's good switching it up with the normal chair for an hour or so.

[HAL]

... if you are truly spending 12hrs in it there is only one option

http://www.hermanmiller.co.uk/products/ ... hairs.html

I have to agree. I bought an Aeron 8 years ago. Back then they advertised it with the following words:
"It will feel as if it was made specifically for you." And they are right. There are three differnt sizes available.
But still don't forget to get up stretch your back and walk around at least once every hour.

[chzel]

How good is a chair like Aeron for upkeep? I'd hate to spend that kind of money on a chair that I won't be able to clean effectively.

[stratokaster]

Sometimes I use one of those inflatable gym balls, 75cm diameter, inflated hard, it's a nice size, and makes me work to stay steady, it's a bit tiring after a while but it's good switching it up with the normal chair for an hour or so.

I second this! Sitting on a gym ball is really good for the core muscles.

[webwit]

If you're gonna sit on it 12 hours a day, I believe that ergonomically the chair would probably resemble a car seat more as opposed to an Aeron, similarly to if you type a lot, you need a good keyboard instead of a hip looking one from Apple.

[Muirium]

His profile says IBM Model M. No need to worry about the board!

But sitting 12 hours is insane. I don't think there is a good answer, because the question is so inherently unhealthy!

I stand full time at my desk. Love it. Gets easier the more you do it. But I walk an hour or two most days, and ride when I can, which is just as important. Your back is telling you the truth. You need something different!

[jou]

I can attest that height adjustable desks are awesome. We have them at work and I usually spend at least half of my working time standing.

[Hypersphere]

At home I have a Pollock chair. When it was first introduced, I don't think it was considered ergonomic, but I have found it the most comfortable chair I have ever used, and it works well for long sessions at the computer. The one shown in the picture has a height adjustment -- mine is an older model that doesn't have a height adjustment, but the standard height works for me.

pollock.jpg (13.61 KiB) Viewed 18404 times

At work I have a Steelcase Leap chair:

Leap_2.jpg (21.72 KiB) Viewed 18404 times

The Leap has all manner of ergonomic adjustments, but it is not as comfortable as my Pollock chair for long work sessions.

At work, I also have adjustable-height work tables. They were handy for getting the work height just right when setting things up, but I have not used this feature since then. Nevertheless, it is nice to know that I could adjust the height again if I decided to do so.

Other things I like about my "at work" setup include work tables all at the same height, plenty of space behind and under the tables for cables and workstation computers, and Humanscale monitor arms for the computer monitors. I don't change the positions of my monitors all that often, but I like the floating look and having the extra space under the monitors that would otherwise be occupied by monitor stands.

[Cherry1990]

Thanks to all! This week-end I will buy a Swiss Ball (or Fitball) and I will try it. Cheap and simple. Next move will be to find a good chair... I will check again the Ikea models.

No, I don't stay 12 hours on my chair, I go around for small walk but sometime I really need to stay on the chair...

Mmm... Still own the Model M but now I am using a Ducky Premier DK9008P MX Brown... Lovely keycaps!

[chzel]

When trying the fitness ball for the first few times, don't do anything critical, just browse DT or something. Balancing yourself on the ball takes a bit of concentration!
And when you switch back to the normal chair, it's a very funny feeling! Your brain is still expecting the seat to move under you!

[hypkx]

I have this:
http://www.amazon.de/Open-Art-2010-OPA0 ... B003L5BZDW
since some years, the headrest is just such a goodness for your neck, I dont want to sit anymore a day long on a chair without it.

[Julle]

I know this is not the answer you want to hear but the best chair is no chair at all. Sitting in general is detrimental to your health in the long run. I use a standing workstation both at work and home, with occasional breaks on a saddle chair. At first it was a bit hard to concentrate on some tasks while standing up but after a while it became a second nature. I have Ikea's Bekant adjustable table in my home setup, at work I use a Martela table. The saddle chairs are made by Salli.

[Cherry1990]

Yes, standing workstation is another option...
I know, is better to move or walk around, but is not always possible...

[davkol]

That's actually the route I've picked. A standing setup can be really cheap (look up the $22 Ikea standing desk), and adding a simple stool for occasional breaks doesn't require breaking the bank either. It's not like standing is the final solution, because then you're dealing with other stuff, such as varicose veins, but making the desk tall in the first place might be cheap, while easy to adjust to your proportions.

[scottc]

Could you please give me the name of the cheap IKEA standing desk? That sounds ideal.

[davkol]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=%2422+ikea+standing+desk

[Muirium]

Thanks. I still don't know what you're on about. Now I'm off to clear my cookies. Fucking Google.

The only thing you can buy for that little in IKEA over here is coat hangars and meatballs. And they recently hiked the price on both!

[scottc]

An ever-useful contribution. Except that's not a standing desk, it's a shitty coffee table on top of a normal desk. Fantastic.

[Muirium]

Holy fuckballs. Putting things literally on top of one another. Mind blown. Nobel prize in the mail. Where do we build the statue.

[TacticalCoder]

How good is a chair like Aeron for upkeep? I'd hate to spend that kind of money on a chair that I won't be able to clean effectively.

It is very easy to clean but it must be cleaned up semi-regularly or a lot of accumulates in the lower part of the chair.

I've got an Aeron since nearly 5 years: it was expensive (but came with a 12-years --non-transferrable-- warranty) one of the very best item I ever bought in my life.

There are two main things to know: you must buy an aeron fitting your size (most people will be fine with the B model) and you must set it up correctly. When you put your hands "behind your head", the chair must lean back without you forcing it. When you then put your hands back on your keyboard, the Aeron should lean forward: that's the "correct" setup.

Now: the Aeron is amazing and is a piece of art (and rightfully present in the MOMA in New-York) but since then there have been chairs with better back support (including other chairs by Herman Miller).

But... I cannot live without the "pellicle mesh" that the Aeron offers. To me this is it: I'll never be able to sit my butt and lean my back on anything else than that "pellicle mesh". No. More. Sweat. Ever. And it's so soft at the same time...

When my brother tried mine, he ordered two the next day for his office.

People who complain that their Aeron is "hurting" their legs or their hips have either an Aeron of the wrong size or an Aeron incorrectly set up. Or both.

Now YMMV: it's not a chair for everybody. But it's over 20 years old and there are many, many, many people who swear by this chair and by this chair only. Quality-wise there's a 12 years warranty and, well, they're built like tanks.

I've got one without the armrest (never using those) and I added a little "coat-hanger" to it.

In the U.S. after the first dot com bubble crash you could buy near brand new Aeron for pennies... But in Europe I had lots of problems finding a used one so eventually decided to buy a new one.

My only regret is not having bought one sooner (and, no, I don't work for Herman Miller: just a very very happy customer)

[HuBandiT]

What is your best/prefered chair for staying all day long in front of the computer, typing on the keyboard?

Before I go into suggestions, what kind of work are we talking about exactly?