Home office will keep the peace

Jun 15 2008 Donny Sheridar

Diy Donny With More People Working From Their Houses, It's Vital To Have A Room Where You Can Concentrate - And Avoid Kids

Working from home is a dream for many of us - especially those who want to avoid the beady eyes of their boss.

If you're lucky enough to get a job where this is possible - and more and more staff are being offered the option as technology advances - you'll need a dedicated area to work from.

Even if you commute to your job, you still need a place at home to avoid the kids so you can sort out bills and keep files for important documents, not to mention search the internet and shop online.

And when you're finished your work, let the children use the room to do their homework and play video games so you can get some peace.

Having an office will also add value to your home as many people see this as a huge benefit when buying a house. So here are a few things to consider when setting one up.

DESK

The starting point is to get a desk which fits your room and offers enough space for a computer, printer and phone.

IKEA make good-quality flatpack desks and chairs.

Remember to consider the height of the desk and how many people will want to work from it - will it be suitable for children as well?

The computer keyboard should be slightly lower so a pull-out drawer is a good option.

When planning location, a desk is often ideal for the corner of a room.

IKEA also do flatpack office chairs.

SHELVES

Paper, files and other documents need to be stored but must also be easily accessible.

Get your spirit level ready and choose the correct fixings for the wall where you are going to hang the shelves.

There are two main types of fixings - hollow wall and solid wall.

I prefer floating shelves because they look clean and modern as their fixings are hidden.

Don't forget to consider the weight of the books, papers etc to go on the shelves. The cheapest fixings can be a false economy as they may not take the weight.

Stronger shelves such as 25mm plywood will require half the number of brackets that weaker 15mm chipboard ones do. If you are buying shelving material by the sheet, get it from a merchant or DIY store that offers a cutting service so you can order an exact size.

SOCKETS

Don't overlook power points. If you are converting a room to an office, avoid overloading single sockets with extension cables as you run the risk of blowing the circuit.

Get an electrician to extend the ring circuit, which is the safest and most efficient way to add sockets.

Plan where you will need these additional sockets (position of desk) and make sure they are doubles.

Add more than you think you need - at least four at skirting level and two or three at desktop level.

Sockets are cheap to install and, for anything from mobile phone chargers to paper shredders, you can never have too many.

LIGHTING

Not a major consideration but don't forget about it. There is no need to have the main light on all the time so consider desktop lighting.

This will need a socket point or, if you have an electrician working in your home, get a single spotlight installed or a dimmer switch so you have the right level of direct and background lighting.

DONNY'S LITTLE HELPER It's always handy to have a set of hole saws and arbors at the ready. Don't break the bank by buying an electrician's hole-saw kit but bear it in mind when getting a drill bit set as they are a useful addition.