computer desk/armoire

gesher

Mon, Nov 18 2013, 12:02 am

We are expecting child #2 b'h and need to rearrange some rooms. We need to put our 'office' = computer, speakers, printer, file cabinet into our dining room. we were looking into computer armoires = computer in a closed off cabinet because I have a 19 mnth old son who will touch the computer and printer if it's out in the open, BUT I am having a very hard time finding something decent for a dining room. I did look at compact computer desks - where there is alot more variety and style and I was wondering what did you guys do for child safety??

Any help/guidance is greatly appreciated.
Thank You

amother

Mon, Nov 18 2013, 10:22 am

Most computer armoires are a waste of space because they're short. Compact computer desks have no security and detract from the look of your room on Shabbos/YT. Get a tall wall unit that will hold a lot. We ordered a three-piece "custom"' wall unit, which was not so much custom as modular--you told the vendor what features you wanted, selected finishes, cabinet pulls and trim from what he showed you. You could mix and match doors, drawers, fixed or sliding shelves, but measurements were standard. You could not get it made to fill a specific space.

Our "office" unit was something like a TV armoire, but instead of a TV in the middle section with a turntable to turn the tv, we had a fixed shelf for the computer, with a slide-out shelf below for the keyboard and a narrow shelf in the back for manuals and so on. In the bottom section we put a slide-out shelf for the printer, and in the top third were shelves for other stuff. You could order drawers with guides for hanging folders in the bottom section if you preferred, or if your printer has a low profile, you might be able to put in both a file drawer and a printer shelf.

We bought three units that we put side-by-side to hold everything behind double doors with C-shape pulls that we could lock with childsafe locks. It was a major capital outlay. I will not give you the name of the vendor because we were very disappointed with the quality and workmanship, but the basic idea was very good. We're still using this unit but it's falling apart and would not survive a move to a new house.

You can go to IKEA and get something like this, choosing the features you want, but of course you'd have to asemble it yourself. I suggest checking out Gothic Cabinet Craft, which uses solid wood instead of particle board and formica. They are also modular in that you select how many shelves, what kind of doors, or no doors, what kind of door/drawer pulls, what kind of finish, and so on. They have some styles that are a bit fancier that cost more but you may want an embellished door for something that's going in a more formal room. GCC is not cheap--those extras like glossy finish and so on can really add up--but their stuff is decent. Not heirloom quality, but decent.