You've heard about ergonomic furniture for the office. But you can make your entire home really comfortable, even if your household includes people with conflicting needs.
For example, you can boost your energy and avoid aches and pains by changing your living room furniture. We all love to sink into soft sofas and lounge chairs, but if you’ll be sitting a long time, reading or watching TV, you’ll end up with an aching back, neck or shoulders. Soft seating is especially unhealthy for the elderly, who may injure their hips when they struggle to pull themselves up.
Ideally, every chair you own would have solid back support, and allow you to sit so that your feet touch the ground, with your knees at a 90 degree angle. But many of us don’t fit standard furniture. Tall people often end up slouching in low sofas, while many shorter women find themselves perched on the edge of every seat without back support. For the petite, the solution can be a foot stool, or antique chairs designed when people were smaller. Shop around for a reading chair you love. Duane Collie, owner of The Keeping Room, a furniture store in Alexandra, Virginia, recommends the 297-07 Leathercraft recliner: “It’s one of the few on the market that let the ladies in the 5' 0" tall range sit upright,” without dangling feet.
Think about each household member. If Mom and the kids are small and Dad’s over six feet, the family might choose a low shallow sofa and a big recliner for him.
The latest trend in office ergonomics are devices that allow you to move your computer up and down so you can stand while you work, and then sit down again. They can cost under $600.
It sounds weird, but don't dismiss it. There's a host of evidence that long hours of sitting are terrible for our bodies—even if you hit the gym every day. On the other hand, standing all day strains the legs, knees and lower back. We need to do both and move between them frequently.
When it comes to beds, you may find that you and your mate need different mattress firmnesses. The least expensive fix is to push together two twins. Better air mattresses allow you to control the firmness on each side. Boutique latex mattress firms like Flobeds.com or earthsake.com sell panels that can be stacked to adjust the firmness on each side.
In your kitchen, you want countertops that are the right height for the most active cook. Ideally, if you place your palms on the countertop, your arms will be at a 45 degree angle.
It’s possible to raise the counters you have now by installing wood of the correct thickness underneath the countertop, but for lower countertops you’ll need to remodel.
The Home Depot and Lowe’s chains sell Rev-a-Shelf products that will expand your usable cabinet space, including an add-on that will make it easier to reach items in high cabinets. Use pullout shelves in base cabinets, to reduce the time you spend bending, searching for items in the back.
Also, think about where you keep appliances and food. Store heavy items lower down. Light items like cereal boxes can go on top of the refrigerator. That may seem out of the way, but a falling cereal box won’t break your toe.
One tip for the bathoom: To light the way from bedroom to bathroom, install night lights with built-in light sensors so that they’ll turn on automatically, with at least one night light every 20-30 feet in a hallways, says Delia Treaster, a certified professional ergonomist. Inside the bathroom, a switch with a built-in light, or a motion-activated light that will go on automatically will keep you from stumbling in the dark.