Office/PC room layout ideas

danlightbulb · 30 Jan 2023 at 17:06

Hi all,

So now the decorating is finished in my small bedroom, Im looking at how to lay it out for an office/PC room.

It will be my office when working from home, so need a small flat surface for laptop and mouse.

My PC gaming has taken a back seat for a while now, but I have a 24" flat monitor, PC case, large gaming mat surface, keyboard obviously.

And I have a steering wheel set up for racing and a quest 2 so I want to configure the room for seated VR as well. Want to also get a hotas for VR flight sim. The room is not really large enough for keeping those things out all the time so they will have to be stored when not in use. The room is not large enough for any standing VR unfortunately.

My girlfriend has an old writing desk that we'd like to incorporate if possible. You can see this in the pictures below along with a few of the room (its small, so its hard to photograph). Also below is a room dimension plan.

Any ideas appreciated! Don't want to spend £££ on sophisticated furniture, but can run to a nice Ikea desk or something to go alongside the antique piece. Or maybe I am better off trying to get a corner desk in and having the antique piece nearer the window. Or perhaps I shouldn't be trying to use the antique desk at all and go for something larger.

Layout:

View from doorway:

View towards doorway:

Awkward corner:

throwaway4372 · 30 Jan 2023 at 17:18

first ideas that come to mind:

danlightbulb · 31 Jan 2023 at 00:10

Thanks @throwaway4372 . Chat with gf tonight she agrees it's better to go for a full size desk and not try to work around the antique desk, so that is going somewhere else now.

So can accommodate a full length desk of ideally around 2m. What depth desk is minimum? 60cm? I notice IKEA has 60, 70 and 80cm depth desks. Think 80cm will be too deep for room though, might get away with 70cm.

Should I get a monitor arm to maximise desktop space? Or one of those stands that sits on the desk and the monitor goes on it, not sure what they are called.

And then shelves, mood lighting and cable management to think about too.

One problem will be where to put the pc itself, either under the desk or on top of it. Probably not a good idea to have it visible through the window on the right side of the room, but of course the pc itself needs to be on the right because that's where the clear window is on the case, and I notice most setups have the pc on top of the desk not hidden under it.

danlightbulb · 11 Feb 2023 at 12:05

This is what Ive gone with. Its my gf kitchen table which is a bit long for our lounge. So Im having it as my desk. It is 62cm deep and 190cm long.

So it needs pimping now but not too costly. Any ideas on reasonable cost improvements? OCUK gaming mat is showing its age as well.

Also thinking whether a monitor arm would work better than the monitor stand?

dlockers · 11 Feb 2023 at 17:57

danlightbulb said:
This is what Ive gone with. Its my gf kitchen table which is a bit long for our lounge. So Im having it as my desk. It is 62cm deep and 190cm long.

So it needs pimping now but not too costly. Any ideas on reasonable cost improvements? OCUK gaming mat is showing its age as well.

Also thinking whether a monitor arm would work better than the monitor stand?

I had a similar setup for ages. I ended up trimming the bit of wood that stops your chair from going under. And then fitted a monitor arm; but the arm required similar trimming as it was blocked by that bit of wood again (but at the rear).

The good thing is you can 'invent' depth with a monitor arm as you can pull the desk away from the wall/fit a cable cage on the back.

I also had some IKEA metal drawers sit beneath the desk too. Worked great for 6+ years till I upgraded to a proper desk.

throwaway4372 · 11 Feb 2023 at 18:18

The table fits the space nicely. :cool:

I'd bin that mouse mat and get a couple of these:

SteelSeries QcK Gaming Mouse Pad (63004)

Order SteelSeries QcK Gaming Mouse Pad (63004) now online and benefit from fast delivery.

www.overclockers.co.uk

I'm not convinced by the monitor arm idea, could pull the desk a couple of inches from the wall and achieve the same depth by just pushing the monitor back.

I'd swap the pc mouse for a wireless one.

I'd have some basic cable routing clips on the back to keep the monitor and keyboard cables neatly tucked away.

Get a shelving unit to go in the corner behind you for all the pc/work related stuff that accumulates and you'll want to have handy. If the space seems too small for shelving units look at bedside cabinets instead. I have one of these by my desk, very handy.

HEMNES chest of 2 drawers, grey stained, 54x66 cm - IKEA

New lower price! A classic smaller-sized chest of drawers in solid wood, with a traditional look and modern function. Please attach to the wall.

www.ikea.com

Think about lighting/blinds to avoid eye strain.