Office Chairs

Looked through search and it seems like there aren't recent threads discussing chair options.

I used an actual Aeron at a previous job for about 5 yrs and liked it quite a bit, then I moved to a work from home job and for the past 6 years or so I've been using a cheap $80 Aeron knockoff from Costco, which I've mostly liked, but the mesh is starting to wear out on me and the hydraulic cylinder seems to struggle to keep from losing height, so I'm thinking it's time for something new.

I considered going to an actual Aeron, but at this point it's an old design and I never did love the way you could feel the frame at the front (especially when sitting cross legged, or with one leg under the other, which I like to do sometimes) so I'm looking into other options. Looking at something in the <$500 range and I'm ok with used/refurbished, but it's tough to make that kind of investment without actually being able to sit in and evaluate any of these options. So far I'm considering the below and wondering if anyone has any thoughts on these, or thoughts in general.

  • The Herman Miller Mirra 2 looks like probably my #1 choice right now. It looks very similar to the Aeron but does away with my chief complaint of the frame on the front of the seat being uncomfortable because you can just adjust the front of the seat and it looks like I can pick up a fully loaded one for around $400.
    However, I'm nervous because I've read the back is "hard.
  • The Steelcase Leap is very popular, and definitely in the price range, but I'm not sure I want a traditionally padded chair, I think I like mesh... kind of a lot.
  • The Vertagear Triigger series looks like a new entry into the mesh chair game, and pretty interesting, but it's hard to find much info about them. The high end 350 is probably out of my budget as well, so I'd need to get the 275 and I'd need to do it quickly cause there's a $250 off sale running...

Also one of my favorite features of my current chair is that the arm rests rotate up and out the way very easily and this is how I have the chair configured 80% of the time. It seems like none of the options I'm seeing out there have anything approaching this feature. It's very common for arm rests to be highly adjustable, but they're always... there. Does anyone actually use these? If i need to rest my arms on anything it's almost always my desk...

Or do I even need an ergonomic chair? I don't have any back issues or anything and honestly I don't sit properly and I'm not likely to make the effort to change that. When I'm working I'm typically leaning forward with my arms on the desk and my back not touching the backrest, and when I"m on a call or gaming I'm typically leaned back a bit and reclined. I also don't tend to sit for longer than 2-3 hours at a time, I'm pretty good about getting up and moving around. I typically work from my PC in my office for about 3 hours in the morning and then move to a laptop on the couch or at my kitchen table for a hour or two in the middle of my day and then back to my office PC for another 2-3 hours for the afternoon. My desk also converts to standing and I often use that for a few hours a day, especially in the afternoons. So I'm not sure I'd reap the benefit of an ergonomic chair? Perhaps I should reconsider my "mesh" chair requirement and look into one of these gimmicky "gaming" chairs? Or should I just stick with what I have until it literally falls apart and/or replace it with something similarly cheap?

Finally, I have hardwood floors and am currently using a chair mat to protect them, are hardwood casters worth it? Would they eliminate the need for the mat?

In summary - I need a new chair for my "work from home" job as well as for PC gaming and I'm not opposed to spending a somewhat decent amount of money to get one, but I'm nervous about making that level of investment and wondering if it's worthwhile and if so, how to choose a chair without the ability to try them out in person. Can anyone help advise me?

First thing's first: Does it have to be a chair? Is space an issue?

It's a 11x13 room with a large desk and a small futon and a cabinet in, so it's not a huge space but it's not currently cramped either.

Pretty sure I want a chair as opposed to a stool or a ball or any of the other esoteric options I've seen people adopt... but I guess I would at least consider something else. What did you have in mind?

Sorry, that was a site in-joke. I don't actually have anything worthwhile to contribute.

cls33 wrote:

In summary - I need a new chair for my "work from home" job as well as for PC gaming and I'm not opposed to spending a somewhat decent amount of money to get one, but I'm nervous about making that level of investment and wondering if it's worthwhile and if so, how to choose a chair without the ability to try them out in person. Can anyone help advise me?

Office chairs are like beds: anything you're going to be spending hours and hours on every day should be as comfortable as possible.

I've bought my last couple of home office/gaming chairs online and they've been fantastic. One I bought directly from some office chair website years and years ago and my most recent from Amazon. Neither were fancy name-brand office chairs.

There's a massive increase in quality, comfort, and configurability when you jump from the $80 big box retailer chair to a sub-$500 chair. Pretty much any chair at that level should meet your needs (not sure about the rotating armrest thing, though). My current chair has the mesh and it's been been fantastic.

Can't help you with the harwood coasters as I'm on carpet.

I have been using Leaps for about 12 years since that is what my work provides for people that work at home and they are good for all day sitting if you want something that isn’t mesh. They aren’t a small chair and the arm rests do not fold away, although you can lower them fairly low or remove them all together. Pretty comfortable and I get about 5-6 years out of them.

How old are you? Back and shoulder issues from posture probably won’t show up until your late 30s but it does matter before then. If you are in your 20s you can probably sit however and be fine but it will be a habit you need to break later...

The Mirras are supposed to be nice if you are looking for a cheaper mesh chair. If the back is too hard there are plenty of cushion options to throw on a chair back.

Costco usually has a couple of decent chair options in the $250 range, if you are a member you can try them out in the store. My wife got one of her desk chairs from there and she is happy with it.

cls33, did you find a chair. Your setup sounds like something I would go for. Arm rests are currently a pain on my chairs.

Wondering about this as well. I'm currently experiencing pretty dramatic pain and I think my arm rests aren't high enough on my current chair (a Steelcase Leap).

I had a look at the Herman Miller Mirra and looks like it's one of the ones that tilts back as you lean back. I hate those. Haven't had the opportunity to sit in one yet though. I can say that in the local preowned furniture store the Aerons were $850 AUD and the Mirras (not the Mirra 2 mind you) were $300, $200 for the ones that were a weird colour scheme.

I'm also looking for a chair and finding the search annoying because I have limitations on going around to places to look at/test them and getting it delivered. I dunno. I was told by a physiotherapist to go for one with adjustable seat tilt (independently of back) so you can angle the seat downward a little bit. Even on chair specific websites, sometimes they just list "has three levers". Three levers that adjust what, my man.

Usually the ones that lean back have a stopper you can set so they won’t lean back at all.

One thing I know is smell the cushion before you use it.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/TXnxB87.gif)

I had a sort of racing cockpit setup before. I sold it in a fit of minimizing in prep for a move. Now I deeply regret it, as I've been so uncomfortable since then. Im wondering if anyone has ideas about a different sort of 'office' chair that's atypical.

It was a car bucket seat, a little lower to the ground than usual. The seat itself was extremely comfortable but more importantly all the angles were right, and it didnt swivel or rock or wheel so it didnt move around on me. I could recline if I wanted to but that's not too important. Finally the setup had a slope where racing pedals would go which were a perfect place to rest my feat.

Essentially I was working in the same posture you'd sit on a road trip in a nice car. I could work 8-12 hours in it with no discomfort whatsoever. In the office chair Im in now my feet feel swollen at the end of the day, there's pressure on the backs of my thighs, I'm constantly shifting posture, my legs can't stretch out at all. Getting into any kind of work flow is impossible. Short of buying the setup again (obutto r3volution is the name of it) for about $1,200 or buying a car seat and setting up a rig (Im no woodworker) does anyone have thoughts of good ways to go?

Get thee to a junkyard and slap a junk car seat onto something!

I use a old toilet as a office chair. That is where I do my best thinking and I can get S done.

Baron Of Hell wrote:

I use a old toilet as a office chair. That is where I do my best thinking and I can get S done.

I sit on a pile of decommissioned forum bots. Almost as comfortable as an Aeron.