How To Raise Office Chair Without Lever? Detailed Guide

Helen Skeates
Helen Skeates
19 min read

This article will teach you how to adjust the height of your office chair without using the traditional lever. The height of your office chair is still manually adjustable.

There are several older desk chairs that don’t have levers. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean they can’t be modified in some way.

We’ve provided two methods for you, along with ways to elevate your chair and the adverse effects of a wrong seat height. If you want to find out more about office chairs, please keep reading!

The Benefits of a Good Office Chair

Create A Professional Image

In addition to making a good impression on customers and guests, a beautiful and professional chair can boost productivity and morale among staff. When it comes to the health and safety of workers, nothing is more important than making sure they can execute their duties in a relatively comfortable environment. High-quality office chairs are built to last and include ergonomic designs that ensure a comfortable seating experience regardless of your weight or build.

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Select The Best office Chair

Seating materials for office chairs can range from poly vinyl mesh to vinyl to leather to polyester. However, “green” fabrics are also commercially available; these are crafted from recycled plastic bottles and colored using an environmentally beneficial process. Take into account the percentage of recycled materials in each model before making a final decision.

Size Matters

Purchasing an office chair wouldn’t be difficult if everybody worked at the same height and weight. Thankfully, quality office chairs are designed to accommodate such adjustments. In the same way, client and visitor seating in the workplace is subject to the same wear and tear. Chairs’ widths, back heights, and seat depths all vary slightly. An adjustable chair is not a luxury but a necessity.

A Chair For Every Office Need

Some workers are more comfortable in chairs that have armrests, lumbar support, and height-adjustable frames. Office climate plays a role in determining chair fabric. Choose lobby chairs that are both comfy and reflective of the company’s ideal image. If seats will be used, make sure there is enough space around the desk for people to move around. The space needed for an executive chair is typically greater than that needed for a receptionist’s stool or desk chair. The use of a swivel or tilting chair for the office is something else to think about. Observe the foot rest areas in the office chair’s base.

How To Raise Office Chair Without Lever

Method #1. Clockwise and counterclockwise adjustment

Older types of office chairs do not come with a pneumatic lever, therefore adjustments must be made by hand. Here are the necessary procedures:

Step #1. Stand up

Your inability to modify the height of your office chair while seated is due to the lack of a pneumatic lever. Instead, you’ll need to get out of your seat before adjusting the height.

Step #2. Manually adjust

After getting out of your chair, you can manually tilt your seat forward or back by moving a knob in either direction. The former is typically used to lift the chair, while the latter is used to lower it. However, you’ll want to check to determine which chairs are designed for lowering and which are designed for elevating.

Step #3. Check the height

Check to see if the height you’ve set the seat to is comfortable for you and your workplace.

Step #4. Repeat until perfect

If the seat still isn’t just right after you’ve adjusted it, repeat the steps above until you find the sweet spot.

Method #2. Under-chair bolt adjustment

Some chairs, typically older versions, use bolts instead of pneumatic levers to adjust height. Such chairs often have a huge bolt located at the base that can be adjusted by twisting it. Below you’ll find a detailed breakdown of the procedures involved:

Step #1. Stand

As with the first approach, you’ll need to get up to make any adjustments to your chair’s height or depth because there’s no pneumatic lever. You’ll need to get up out of your seat to adjust the bolt that’s hidden beneath your chair.

Step #2. Turn the bolt

The chair can be lowered and raised by turning a bolt underneath the seat; observe if the bolt turns clockwise or counterclockwise. After adjusting the bolt to a comfortable height for your seat, you can stop.

Step #3. Gauge the seat height

If you want to be sure the chair’s height is right, you should sit in it. Verify that your knees are at a right angle to the floor and that your hips are level.

Step #4. Adjust as needed

If your legs are crossed or your feet are off the ground, you may be sitting awkwardly. The next step is to sit in the chair to determine the ideal height for the seat, and then readjust the chair accordingly.

How can you elevate a chair?

A chair can be raised in a variety of ways. However, before choosing how to give your chair a boost, you need think about the chair’s design. To increase the height of a chair, you can, for instance, purchase a new or larger seat cushion.

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You can use a strong but pliable buffer to raise the height of your chair while maintaining a good level of comfort. Seat cushions with backs are another option for providing necessary lumbar support.

Adverse effects of non-ideal seat height

Maintaining proper posture while working is greatly aided by a chair that is just the right height for the user. Work in an uncomfortable position that restricts your movement and respiration.

If your chair and desk are too high or too low, for instance, you may find yourself working with your head inclined forward. Forward head posture while working can cause neck strain.

Furthermore, if there is not enough space between your desk and chair for your thighs, this can restrict blood flow. Putting your body through unnecessary strain by sitting at an unnaturally high height.

If your thighs and sciatic nerve are hurting, it could be because you aren’t getting enough lumbar support. Add lumbar support to your seating arrangement with a cushion.

When blood circulation to the legs is impeded, as it is when sitting at too low of an angle, the legs may bulge. It could also cause discomfort in the buttocks and other organs.

Overstretching your spine and the lack of lumbar support from a desk that is too high can lead to back injuries. The whole body, especially the shoulders and neck, feel the effects of this strain.

How to determine a good chair height

The following would have to be measured first:

  1. I’m interested in your stature.
  2. Seat depth (using different kinds of shoes)
  3. Seat-Back Height
  4. Depth of the Seat
  5. Height of the armrests and
  6. Bench Depth

Then, think about how tall your desk is, or how tall your workspace is. It’s also important to think about whether or not the chair you’re using has pneumatic levers.

Naturally, pneumatic levers simplify the labor process. Classic chairs, however, have their own special appeal.

How to Clean and Maintain an office Chair

Vacuum Dust and Debris

Vacuum the office chair regularly using the wand attachment. Assuming the wand attachment is smooth, it should be able to pick up the vast majority of dust and dirt without damaging your desk chair. The vacuum wand attachment can be used to clean the seat, back, and armrests of a vehicle by simply switching to the “low suction” setting.

Vacuuming your office chair on a regular basis will help it last longer and keep it looking like new, no matter what kind it is. The wand attachment will vacuum up dirt and debris that would otherwise settle into the upholstery of your office chair and hasten its demise.

Look for an Upholstery Tag

Check the tag sewn into the fabric of your office chair if you haven’t previously. Most office chairs, but not all, will have an upholstery tag. The manufacturer’s instructions for maintaining the office chair are included on this label, which is also called a “care tag” or “care label.” In order to identify the safest and most efficient method of cleaning your office chair, see the upholstery tag.

Most office chairs will have a label sewn into the underside of the seat covering. When you find it, see if there’s a “clean” code in there. Office chairs typically include cleaning instructions labeled with a single or double letter that correspond to the most effective method of cleaning the chair’s fabric.

The various cleaning codes found on upholstery tags are explained below.

  • If the cleaning code on the tag for your office chair is “W,” that means you should use water or a cleaning product that contains water to clean the chair.
  • If the cleaning code for your office chair is “S” on the tag, you should use a water-free solvent to clean the upholstery. Manufacturers often advise using a water-free solvent on office chairs upholstered in natural fibers like cotton, wool, or rayon to prevent the fabric from being damaged.
  • Cleaning code W/S denotes that the office chair can be cleaned with either a water-based or solvent-based cleaner.
  • X: Finally, the X cleaning code means the office chair should be cleaned by vacuuming or brushing only. If your office chair has this cleaning code, you shouldn’t use a water-based cleaner or a solvent on it.

Spot Clean Using Soap and Warm Water

Cleaning your desk chair won’t require any special detergent. Use a dish soap with a mild composition. Put a few drops of dish soap on a clean washcloth and run it under running water. Next, wipe the discolored area or areas instead of scrubbing your office chair. The substances that produce stains can be removed from the fabric by blotting. Scrubbing the stain will just spread the dyes or proteins that caused the stain further into the fibers of the garment. If you need to clean your office chair on the spot, remember to blot it.

Test Stain-Removing Products in a Discreet Area

Surface stains on an office chair should be easily removed with soap and warm water, but more pervasive stains will require a more powerful cleaning agent. There are several solutions on the market designed to remove stains, and many of them use strong cleaning chemicals. You should do a test on the underside of your office chair before utilizing any of these products.

The stain remover shouldn’t be slathered throughout your entire office chair. It’s better to try it out in a hidden spot where no one will be looking. You can observe the effect the product has on your desk chair in this way. For instance, the underside of your office chair would be an ideal place to test a stain remover. Even if the product does leave a permanent stain, it won’t be noticeable, which is obviously the best case scenario.

It’s important to perform a spot test before using any stain remover on your office chair, whether it’s something you bought at the shop or something more natural like vinegar. You can move the product to another part of your office chair to ensure that it does not damage or permanently alter the fabric.

Apply Conditioner to Leather

You should maintain your leather office chair once every few months to keep it from cracking and drying out. Full grain leather, rectified grain leather, and split leather are all examples of the various varieties of leather available. The greatest quality leather is full grain, and the next best is rectified grain. However, the surface of any genuine leather will absorb and retain moisture because of its porous nature.

Natural leather has millions of tiny holes that only become visible under a microscope. These voids, also called pores, maintain a constant moisture level within the leather. The pores of a leather office chair will absorb moisture that has settled on its surface, preventing the leather from drying out. The pores will dry out and the moisture will evaporate over time. The leather will eventually peel or even shatter if the problem is ignored.

Applying a leather conditioner to your office chair will help prevent damage from occurring over time. Mink oil and saddle soap are two examples of leather conditioners used to replenish lost moisture. The combination of water and other substances in these products helps prevent leather from drying out and cracking. The leather on your office chair can last longer without cracking or drying out if you treat it regularly.

Additional advice on taking care of your leather office chair:

  • If you have a leather office chair, be careful not to spill anything on it.
  • Keep the humidity in your workplace between 40 and 55 percent. Your leather office chair could crack if the relative humidity is below 40%. However, if the percentage is over 55%, it could become overly saturated with water.
  • Only condition your leather office chair once every few months. Leather that has been over-conditioned becomes overly saturated with moisture.
  • Consider using a leather protectant product. Protectants, which are often used in addition to conditioners, work by forming a barrier between the leather’s surface and the elements.

Clean and Lubricate Casters

You should think about investing in some leather protection. Different from conditioners, leather protectants work to fortify the material’s outermost layer.

Most modern office chairs roll with little to no resistance, which is a nice feature. However, if you’ve used the same office chair for a year or more, the casters may be clogged with dirt and dust, making it difficult to move.

Turn the chair upside down and remove any lint, hair, or dirt from the casters by pulling on the inside of the wheel housing units while the chair is upside down. The casters can be be cleaned with a vacuum cleaner or bottled air to remove any stubborn debris.

To keep your office chair rolling smoothly, spray some WD-40 on the wheels after you’ve cleaned them. To make your office chair glide more easily, simply spray some lubricant into each housing unit. At least once every six months, you should clean and lubricate the casters of your office chair.

Tighten Fasteners

Fasteners on your office chair need to be checked and tightened as well. If you don’t regularly check and tighten the screws or bolts (or both) on your office chair, the chair’s legs could become unsteady and you could fall out of it. If a screw or bolt is missing, for example, your office chair will wobble.

All fasteners may be found, as described in the owner’s manual. While some office chairs may have just a few attachment points, others may have dozens. You can tighten the fasteners on your office chair using a screwdriver once you’ve located them.

If you want to tighten a screw, you should rotate the screwdriver clockwise. Conversely, a fastener can be loosened by twisting it to the left. Righty-tighty, lefty-loosey is a handy mnemonic for remembering which way to turn a fastener.

Replace Gas Cylinder

Can you move your chair up off the floor, but then it immediately returns to its original position? If that’s the case, you could need a new gas cylinder. Pneumatic lift is generated by a gas cylinder in most height-adjustable office chairs. This cylinder contains pressurized nitrogen gas that is capable of lifting and maintaining the raised position of the office chair.

You won’t be able to elevate your office chair if the gas cylinder is leaking or malfunctioning in any other way. One bright spot is that most gas cylinders are readily available for replacement. Put your office chair on its back, remove the gas cylinder using a screwdriver, and replace it with a new one of the same size and type. Once the new gas cylinder has been placed, you can test its functionality by lifting your desk chair.

Keep Away From Direct Sunlight

It’s best to avoid having your office chair in the sun. Most textiles and materials, including those used to make office chairs, degrade when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) sunlight. It is not an instantaneous process. But an office chair left in the sun for too long may dry out and fade.

The light can fade your office chair even if you don’t operate in total darkness. Instead, you should think about putting your desk chair in a spot that will be mostly shaded for the duration of the workday. The quantity of sunlight that reaches your office chair can also be reduced by partially closing the blinds or drapes. Taking these measures will prevent your office chair from fading or drying out as a result of exposure to sunlight.

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Replace When Necessary

In spite of your best efforts to keep it clean and in good repair, your office chair may eventually need to be replaced. One study found that office chairs typically last between seven and fifteen years. Your office chair should be replaced if it is broken or worn beyond repair.

A warranty is a must-have for any high-quality office chair. During the specified warranty period, the manufacturer will fix or replace any defective parts at no cost to the customer. An office chair with a warranty is a safe bet since it shows the maker has faith in its quality.

If you’ve recently purchased a new chair for your office, read on for some helpful maintenance advice. By taking these precautions, you can delay its inevitable demise. Conversely, if you take care of your office chair it will improve the quality of your workday.

Conclusion

Because not every workplace has chairs with pneumatic levers, it’s important to know how to lift an office chair without a lever. You should also consider your height and the layout of your desk while making your selection. Even with everything else on your plate, these considerations matter greatly since they have a direct impact on your output.

Helen Skeates

Helen Skeates

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