Your Home Office Setup Checklist

Have you or your employees been assigned to work remotely lately? When employees are working from home and don’t want to sweat the small stuff about their home workspace, it is a good idea to get expert advice on how to set up a home office.

A personalized home office setup checklist can give you and your employees significant confidence that workers will be working in the ideal home workspace.

Below are some tips from our ergonomics experts at Solutions Northwest Inc. that should be shared with remote workers looking to work in comfort from home.

Ergonomic Office Furniture

• Ergonomic Chair – Whether one is working from home or a traditional office, sitting down for eight hours or more can cause severe strain on the spine. And spending too much time in the wrong chair can increase the risk of health problems like diabetes, heart disease, or blood clots.

  Features to look for in an ergonomic chair include a supportive backrest from the lower back to the shoulders and adjustability features for armrests and height. Read this Occupational Health and Safety guide for more detail.

• Ergonomic Desk – Firstly, consider what items will go on the home office’s ergonomic desk. Likely, a worker will need space for a keyboard mount, mousepad, printer, etc.Make additional considerations for leg clearance between a person’s desk and chair, as well as the height of the desk to ensure that a monitor can be placed at eye-level, whether sitting or standing.

Every home office space is different and a home office will benefit from having an ergonomics assessment performed by an ergonomics consultant for the best results.

Monitor Placement

The main monitor should be placed directly in front of the user to decrease neck strain and twisting left or right. The monitor should be an arm’s length (or 18-24 inches) away from the user, so that their fingertips can just barely touch the screen.

The top of the monitor’s screen should be at eye-level. If the monitor is too low, worker’s will need to tilt their head forward and strain their neck. If a monitor is placed too high, workers will need to look up and strain their shoulders.

Read The Ergonomic Way to Sit at Your Desk and View Your Monitor for a bit more detail.

Lastly, consider the use of two monitors to separate daily tasks. For example, if remote workers need a browser full of tabs on one screen and a critical program on another, this becomes an especially critical piece of equipment.

Printer/Scanner

How many times have you found yourself sifting through unnecessary piles of documents or invoices? When you add a multifunctional printer to a home office, workers can organize their work and home life more efficiently and throw out the clutter.

Ergonomic Peripherals and Gadgets

Many home office workers make use of a laptop that comes with a keyboard and mouse. However, one should consider investing in an ergonomic mouse and keyboard to improve productivity and prevent injury.

Read Ergonomic Mouse and Keyboard Review: Goldtouch Go!2 Mobile Keyboard and FlexMouse to get an idea of what options are available.

Additionally, workers should always consider computer glasses, which can reduce headaches, eyestrain, blurred vision, dry eyes, or even neck and shoulder pain.

Plants and Decoration

Adding some green to a home office can reduce stress, improve mood, and support productivity. Beyond the aesthetic break from the harsher realities of work, workers shouldn’t ignore the health benefits either. Plants in a home office workspace can remove harmful pollutants and provide healthier indoor air for everyone.

Along with plants, fill the home office with pictures and decorations that can brighten one’s mood and bring some life to the home office workspace.

Quality Surge Protectors

A quality surge protector protects devices from random power spikes that can destroy electronics and data. Don’t skimp on something this critical, ensure that a highly-rated surge protector is used to protect data.

Home Office Setup Checklist Next Steps

Now that you have some essential items for a home office setup checklist, what happens next? Focus on priorities, create your own list, and dig into reviews. You’ll produce a healthy and productive environment for yourself or your workers that makes one excited to work in every day.

If you would like more guidance on what you or your employees should invest in, consider an affordable virtual ergonomics assessment.

The ergonomics experts at Solutions Northwest Inc. are now offering affordable Virtual Ergonomics Assessments specifically for remote workers (all you need is access to e-mail or a smart phone).

Looking for More Tips on How to Create an Ergonomic Workspace? Contact us at SolutionsNW.com, we will be happy to help you!

At SolutionsNW.com we value the importance of a positive workplace culture. Part of a positive workplace is a safe workplace, Contact Us to schedule an ergonomics consultation or ergonomics assessment for your office today.

Subscribe to our ergonomics blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics evaluations available in: Seattle, WA, Tacoma, WA, Olympia, WA, Vancouver, WA, Kent, WA Renton, WA, Beaverton, OR, Portland, OR, Salem, OR.

Virtual Ergonomics Assessment available nationwide!

Contact the Ergonomics Experts at Solutions Northwest Inc. Below: