There are many factors that go into choosing a chair. Most people choose primarily on price, style, size and comfort.
Price – our website offers a variety of price points. There are cheaper chairs available in the market place. To achieve a lower price point the manufacturers will usually choose a cheaper foam that will not be as comfortable and will not hold up as long and they will use cheaper components that will not allow the chair to be very adjustable and that will wear out faster. All of the chairs that The Chair Place offer are designed for commercial wear and tear and that our customers have found comfortable over the years. Having a retail showroom allows us to get a lot of feedback from customers.
Style – our website offers a variety of styles. The mesh chairs offer a sleek and high tech look that appeals to many people. The upholstered ergonomic and executive chairs offer the advantage of having foam in both the seat and back for additional support. The leather chairs offer the classic look of leather seating.
Size – our website offers a variety of sizes designed to accommodate most users. We have an extensive selection of both petite and big and tall seating. The seat sizes and back heights are listed for each of our chairs.Comfort – people vary in their reactions to a particular chair. What one person can find comfortable can be very different from how some one else will react.
How to measure:
People come in a variety of heights and sizes but in general the following guidelines can be used for seat sizes:
Under 5’2″ – a small seat will usually work best.
5’3″ to 5’11” – a medium seat.
Over 6′ – a large to extra large seat.
It is always a good idea to add a seat slider to a chair to increase the flexibilty of the chair. Reimers Furniture has the biggest selection of seat sizes. You can also do a rough measurement of the seat depth needed by measuring the distance between the back of your knee to the hip joint. That distance should correspond to the depth of the seat.
Most of the chairs we have can also be ordered with different pneumatic cylinder height ranges. We usually order the chair with a cylinder height corresponding to the seat size. The small seats are usually ordered with a shorter pneumatic cylinder to allow the user to sit with their feet on the floor.
Ergonomic seating Information:
Seat height – Users should be able to sit with their feet comfortably on the floor or footrest without undue pressure on the underside of the thighs. The thigh-to-torso angle should not be less than 90 degrees.
Seat depth – Users should be able to sit in the chair without undue pressure against the back of the knees, their back properly supported by the backrest and with adequate buttock and thigh support.
Seat width – The seat should be wider than the hip breadth of the user with allowance for movement and clothing. The seat width should not limit the ability to use the armrests comfortably.
Seat pan angle – This should allow users to support their feet on the ground or footrest.They should not cause the user’s torso-to-thigh angle to be less than 90 degrees.Forward seat pan angles should not cause users to shift excessive weight to their feet or experience the sensation of sliding out of the chair.
Backrest height – All backrests should provide adequate lumbar support and buttocks clearance. For tasks requiring upper body mobility, the backrest should not interfere with the user’s movement. For users who prefer reclining postures or greater upper back support, the back height should provide support for the shoulder blades. Users that want neck and head support should use a chair with a headrest.
Backrest width – The width of the backrest should provide support for the curvature of the user’s back without causing localized pressure points.
Lumbar support – the height and shape of the lumbar support should coincide with the lumbar curve (the small) of the user’s back. The support should be firm, but not cause localized pressure points.
Armrest height – This should allow users to sit in a variety of postures while supporting their forearms and/or elbows in a manner that avoids lifting the shoulders or leaning to the side to reach the armrests.
Armrest length– The length of the armrest should allow users to sit close enough to the work surface to perform their tasks while maintaining contact with the backrest.
Inside distance between armrests – Armrests should allow users to sit in a variety of postures while supporting their forearms in a manner that avoids lifting the shoulders and/or excessive outward positioning of the elbows. The inside distance between the armrests should allow the user to enter and exit the chair easily. Many of our chairs can be done without the arms if you feel that they get in the way.
Improving Office Ergonomics:
Clear away all worksurfaces and office clutter to make certain you can move about your work area freely.
Eliminate stress and strain on pressure points by selecting a chair that promotes proper posture.
Take regular breaks throughout your work schedule and always stretch, stretch, stretch.
Analyze your current lighting, find ways to reduce glare and incorporate natural light wherever possible.
Reduce unnecessary noise in the work space.
Reposition your computer monitor and keyboard for better ergonomics,usually setting your keyboard at the height of your elbows to help keep your wrists in a neutral posture range. The monitor height should be level with your eyes.
Types of chair adjustments:
The chairs we offer have a number of different types of control mechanisms. The particular type of mechanism is discussed in the descriptions of the chairs. The general types of mechanisms are described below.
Swivel/tilt mechanism – This basic type of control will provide pneumatic adjustment of the height of the chair and the ability to swivel the chair from side to side and tilt the chair back and forth. The tension of the tilt is usually adjustable from underneath the seat. The swivel/tilt mechanism is usually found in our conference chairs and less expensive leather seating.
Tri-action control – this mechanism provides levers for pneumatic height,seat tilt, and back angle. The tri-action control is usually found on our counter-height chairs.
Synchro tilt control – this mechanism generally provides levers for pneumatic height and a rocking/locking lever that provides for a synchronized tilting motion of the back and seat. There is usually a two to one change in the seat and back as you lean back.The tension of the tilt is usually adjustable from underneath the seat.
Multi-function mechanism– this is the most versatile control mechanism available. It is available on most of our chairs from Reimers Furniture. The adjustments are as follows:
Back height adjustment – usually done in one of two ways. A) a knob that is loosened in a clockwise direction and then you can move the back up or down and retighten. B) a ratchet back adjustment that allows you to grip the back and move it up and down. To release and reset the ratchet back position lift back completely to top stop and return to bottom stop and then move up to the new postion.
Back angle adjustment – when seated you can pull the lever up and move the back back and forth and then lock it by pushing the paddle down.
Pneumatic height adjustment – to lower the chair you pull up the paddle while seated. To raise the height you pull up the paddle and lift your weight off the seat.
Rocking/Locking paddle – the infinite position tilt lock allows you to pull up the paddle and then recline and rock the chair. The chair can be locked by pushing the paddle down.
Forward tilt lever– unlock the chair with the rocking/locking paddle, lean back in the chair, and roll the lever forward for forward tilt or roll lever backward for straight position during rocking.Tension Knob – Turn the big knob underneath the middle of the seat clockwise to increase tension, or turn counter-clockwise to decrease tension.
Optional seat slider – While seated, pull up the seat slider lever up and push seat to desired depth and release lever to lock. Locks in 5 positions over 2 1/2 inches.
In general it is best to shift positions in the chair as frequently as possible. The human body is not designed to sit and stay in one position all the time. It is also important to stand up and move around as much as possible. No chair will be comfortable if you stay seated for eight hours straight. You also need to be conscious of sitting back in the chair rather than slouching or sitting forward on the edge of the seat. If you slouch or sit forward you will not get the proper support from sitting against the backrest.
