The eight hours (or more for workaholics) we need to spend inside the office is no small matter. That is why we have to give much attention and notice to the ones we spend those eight hours with. And yes, that includes your humble (or not, in some cases) office chair.
However, there are still people who view the workplace chair as lower than what they are really worth. Chances are these are the kind of people who walk into the office and cannot wait for the day to end. And a likely reason why they immediately want the day end is that they are uncomfortable with their seats. Ironic, isn’t it?
In order to make you (and your employees as well) work even more productively, you have to secure a comfortable place for them. You may already have done your part by securing not only comfortable but also ergonomically correct chairs for your office. However, what happens when we suddenly encounter problems with these chairs?
Do not fret or worry. Most of the problems workplace chairs have do not even need the attention of a professional. You don’t have to be an expert in fixing furniture or appliances to be able to fix of these problems, some of which are described in this article.
Your office chair stinks, I mean, sinks
If you have always owned an office chair, this is one of the most common, not to mention most frustrating, problem a workplace chair could possibly have. Office chairs usually sink because of two reasons. The first reason is when the pneumatic lift of the office chair becomes worn out. By then, it will not longer be able to carry weight. When this happens, you may need to replace the faulty lift in the chair from the supplier.
Another reason why chairs sink is when its height adjustment lever becomes damaged. Aside from being damaged, it may also come out of alignment. This happens when the gas lift is permanently set to release all the weight applied to it and so it forces the chair to sink.
To fix this problem, you have to see whether the height adjustment lever is misaligned. Turn the chair over, locate the said lever and try pressing it back into its normal position.
Your office chair shocks you and not in a good way
Getting static electricity shocks while sitting on your office chair is also one common situation. Experiencing it can range from unpleasant to painful. Sometimes, this problem results from another problem in the office chair’s upholstery, clothing and even from the office carpet, made even worse with your office’s air conditioning, which makes the said problem quite hard to resolve.
A possible solution to this problem if it happens frequently is to buy a portable humidifier. Moisture can help lessen static. If static persists, you can try gripping a metal portion of your workplace chair before you get up as it can ground the electrical charge.
Your office chair squeaks and it’s not cute
Children may like the squeaking sound of a chair but for an employee trying to do his job well, the persistent squeaking of his office chair may frustrate him, not helping at all to his work productivity. A squeaking office chair is usually a result of either of these two reasons. First, the squeaking sound may be because there is constant friction between two metal parts. Usually, this metal to metal contact happen where the back is attached to the seat. Another cause for squeaking are the loose fixings that secure the back to the seat.
To resolve the annoying problem of squeaks, expose the office chair’s moving parts and coat them with a special spray which reduces friction and provides lubrication to improve motion. You can also try tightening all the fixings up.
Either it reclines or does not recline!
This is another common problem of workplace chairs which brings upon more frustration to its user. When there is something wrong with the way your office chair reclines, it removes your attention from the work you should be doing and you tend to focus on how to sit more comfortably on such a chair.
When your chair does not recline anymore, a very likely cause is that the back of the chair has been set to a locked position, as most models come with this function. To release it from the locked position, move the control levers which re located on the underside of the chair.
On the other hand, if your office chair can’t seem to stop from reclining, there might be two root causes. First, the back of the chair might have been locked at a full recline position. To resolve this, do the same procedure with the control levers. Another reason for this is faulty mechanism, wherein the chair has very little or no resistance. Look for a round knob which is located under the seat. Turn this clockwise which will increase the tension of the back.