IKEA Chairs Any Good ?

[Macky-Mac]

....I'm supposed to visit a local Herman Miller dealer for they have a demo unit of Aeron and some other chairs which would be about 500$. Super confused as to what to go for.

Aeron.....I had one for awhile. I didn't find it to be comfortable and gave it away. Comfort is going to be a very individual thing. I know people who've loved their Aeron chairs. I ended up with a cheap Ikea chair and an extra seat cushion.

I'd say go sit in the Aeron and then decide if you think it's worth the money.

 

[Cobalt50]

I have some Ikea stuff. Good, serviceable, not great. I'd buy more if I needed more furniture and if fit the bill. Strangely, I'm allergic to Ikea leather. If you get one of the cheaper tables, varnish the underside of the top. If you don't, the humidity will affect the wood unevenly and you will have a warp.

 

[smirking]

I'm supposed to visit a local Herman Miller dealer for they have a demo unit of Aeron and some other chairs which would be about 500$. Super confused as to what to go for.

Like @Macky-Mac, I had an Aeron and didn't really like it, but I do like most mesh chairs that are in the same family as the Aeron. The super rigid seatback frame of the Aeron was really not working for me. It was always hitting my back or neck in the wrong place so I could never lean back on it.

Herman-Miller makes a chair that's similar to the Aeron that doesn't have as much fame, but I think is the far more comfortable chair. If you like the Aerons, but find it uncomfortable in some ways, try the Mirra. They're also quite a bit cheaper than the Aerons and around here it's not hard to find a Mirra at half of the original list price.

 

[Sovon Halder]

I went to IKEA yesterday. It was an experience. Wow.

I ended up buying Gerton top with Finnvard legs(white). And HATTEFJÄLL office chair. The table top and the legs are heavy, solid & gorgeous(although I am fairly certain IKEA gave me 9 screws in a unit of Finnvard, instead of 10). The chair is fine also, except, the tilt tension seems too strong for my weight and resistance. I couldn't find any info about it anywhere. Any suggestions?

 

[Cobalt50]

View attachment 775560

I went to IKEA yesterday. It was an experience. Wow.

I ended up buying Gerton top with Finnvard legs(white). And HATTEFJÄLL office chair. The table top and the legs are heavy, solid & gorgeous(although I am fairly certain IKEA gave me 9 screws in a unit of Finnvard, instead of 10). The chair is fine also, except, the tilt tension seems too strong for my weight and resistance. I couldn't find any info about it anywhere. Any suggestions?

Looks really good. Good for you.

 

[Sovon Halder]

And I am seriously thinking about returning the chair because the back isn't very comfortable.

I went to Herman Miller showroom also yesterday and out of all the flagship office chairs I saw, the Sayl felt the most comfortable to me.

 

[NightGeometry]

Markus and HATTEFJÄLL - these two are in my wishlist if I end up buying from IKEA.I'm a 5.4" short guy. I'm not sure if the Markus would be big for me until I see it in store.

Me and my partner both have Markus chairs. She's about 5'5" and it's no way too big for her. (I'm just under 6', and it's not too small for me).

They are perfectly reasonable, partner has had hers about 6 years, and it's still in pretty good condition, she uses it pretty much all day every day (she works from home, and tends to also use it on weekends, so it's sen a lot of use).

I use an aeron at work, and Markus doesn't even begin to compare, but we used to have fairly cheap office chairs at home, and Markus us significantly better. I think this is where Ikea shines, their stuff isn't fantastic, but it's a lot better than normal cheap stuff.

We also have a lot of the paper fill desktops in use (and various types of cheap legs). We've never had oen fail, but we do see them mostly as disposable if it came to it, as they are so much cheaper than solid wood tops...

 

[Tarek]

The quality of IKEA products in Egypt is completely different from that in Europe, so I don't know which kind of quality you'll be getting in India. The products I buy from IKEA here in Europe are a lot better compared to the ones I get in Egypt.

 

[Sovon Halder]

The quality of IKEA products in Egypt is completely different from that in Europe, so I don't know which kind of quality you'll be getting in India. The products I buy from IKEA here in Europe are a lot better compared to the ones I get in Egypt.

Are you sure ?

I believe a company isn't supposed to sell different quality of the same product in different locations. Never heard of it. Are you certain of it ?

 

[Tarek]

@Sovon Halder No I am not 100% sure, I am just speaking from experience and what I have seen and bought in the past from IKEA in Europe and in the Middle East.

 

[Sovon Halder]

I might sound here a little different here compared to what I had said earlier.

I observed that the chairs in my office have the same if not stronger tilt tension. The only difference in this IKEA chair(Hattefjall) is that it doesn't have tilt locking mechanism. But the lumbar support here is better than the chairs in my office.

I'm slowly starting to like this chair. I probably won't return this.

 

[Sovon Halder]

Been 10 days only.

The Gerton tabletop is not flat anymore.

Right after couple of days, I noticed that there is a bowing (the tabletop curved a little bit upwards) kind of thing. I searched online and found that it's one of the things in wood furnitures called, warping. Since then I've been turning it upside down left and right etc. so the other side curves the opposite way which might compensate. But it's very heavy and becoming very annoying at this point. My laptop doesn't sit flush on the tabletop anymore. it wobbles (rocks) at certain positions.

I haven't applied any oil or finish yet. IKEA doesn't sell the Behandla Wood Oil(which they recommend in product description) in India.

Any suggestions?

 

[dotnet]

Tung Oil. It'll bring out the wood grain and darken it overall. It will offer good protection from moisture, once hardened.

 

[Sovon Halder]

Tung Oil. It'll bring out the wood grain and darken it overall. It will offer good protection from moisture, once hardened.

I ordered a can of quite expensive (at least in India) Danish Oil from Rust Oleum the day after I bought the table top, having known that IKEA doesn't sell the wood oil they recommend. It's taking ages to deliver and I'll receive it probably tomorrow.

But the tabletop is already warped in places. Might not be visible at first look. But as soon as I put laptop around the areas, it rocks. Will oiling it help at this stage?

I called IKEA earlier today and they told me to send photos of the top and the bill. Don't know why cause they won't be able to pick those curves from photos. It's just annoying. Things that I think I never have to deal with, always come to bite me with stupid problems.

 

[Lioness~]

Almost any quality oil would work. I use olive oil or sometimes even coconut butter on a lot of wooden furnitures. If you can eat it you can certainly use it on wood. Dried out wood is not happy.

 

[Sovon Halder]

Almost any quality oil would work. I use olive oil or sometimes even coconut butter on a lot of wooden furnitures. If you can eat it you can certainly use it on wood. Dried out wood is not happy.

Okay. I get that oil works.

But how do I fix the already warped (not smooth) wood? (I've never worked on any wood in my life, this will be first)

 

[oneMadRssn]

I have the MARKUS swivel chair: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00103102/#/00103102

But I replaced the wheels with these, which are awesome: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N7S08G3/
Note, Ikea uses the non-standard 10mm wheel peg size, so double-check sizes before buying.

The combo is awesome. I love it. The chair is very comfortable, nice headrest, and glides across my floor like butter without damaging it at all. No rug or plastic floor protector needed.

 

[Lioness~]

Okay. I get that oil works.

But how do I fix the already warped (not smooth) wood? (I've never worked on any wood in my life, this will be first)

Treat it as fast as you can. When wood warps it's because it's hungry, so to keep it alive, give it food

 

[dotnet]

I called IKEA earlier today and they told me to send photos of the top and the bill. Don't know why cause they won't be able to pick those curves from photos. It's just annoying. Things that I think I never have to deal with, always come to bite me with stupid problems.

A tabletop shouldn't warp after such a short time, oil or no oil. They probably want to see pictures to see whether it got waterlogged or otherwise mistreated. They should (and probably will) replace it.

Tung oil is special because (unlike most other plant oils) it doesn't oxidise into a sticky resin, it oxidises into a hard resin. Once hardened it provides good protection against moisture and scratches (depending on the number of coats). Each coat will take several days to harden, but once done this makes for an excellent finish. Tung oil is indigenous to most of Asia, and should be a lot cheaper than imported concoctions. Be sure to get the pure oil, then mix it with turpentine before applying.

 

[D.T.]

A tabletop shouldn't warp after such a short time, oil or no oil. They probably want to see pictures to see whether it got waterlogged or otherwise mistreated. They should (and probably will) replace it.

Tung oil is special because (unlike most other plant oils) it doesn't oxidise into a sticky resin, it oxidises into a hard resin. Once hardened it provides good protection against moisture and scratches (depending on the number of coats). Each coat will take several days to harden, but once done this makes for an excellent finish. Tung oil is indigenous to most of Asia, and should be a lot cheaper than imported concoctions. Be sure to get the pure oil, then mix it with turpentine before applying.

Terrific post, I was going to say the same, i.e., a brand new table top - regardless of whether it's been oiled or not - shouldn't warp in a few days (at least in a normal environment). I did read in the review section on Ikea, that a few folks have reported this piece was warped OOTB, maybe the OP didn't noticed it at first (if I hadn't abused it, that would definitely be my story ...)

 

[Lioness~]

A tabletop shouldn't warp after such a short time, oil or no oil.

We don't know how long the wood have been in the package?
And no, it shouldn't warp so quick. But 10 days after packing it up can be enough for oxygen to have its toll. Especially if it's been in package for awhile. I always oil in all my stuff immediately at unpacking.
I doubt that IKEA have a factory in India, yet. So the product have been distributed from EU somewhere I guess.
But oiling it in well will restore it in most cases.

Remember it's IKEA, they do huge massproduction. That's why they keep the costs down.
Mostly stuff is pretty good, sometimes...uhhm some annoyance.

 

[Sovon Halder]

Just to clear something up, I noticed the wrap in less than 7 days. And might well have missed to notice this first when I unboxed. Maybe. Anyways, for the past 3-4 days, I've been turning the top upside down keeping a light damp towel in the sunken part like woodworking tutorials show in internet. For most part it fixes issues but then in another area same thing happens. There has been NO misuse, unless keeping a wooden tabletop without oil is misuse.

Note that, I asked IKEA for their Behandla oil but they don't sell that in India & told me to arrange something myself. So I did; I ordered a can of danish oil cause it seemed the easiest way even though a bit costly.

Tomorrow it might be delivered. Not sure whether the seller would entertain a return-refund if I don't accept it. Also been 10 hours but no response from IKEA yet. Don't know what they will say. I asked them for a solution, not a replacement. Because I'll have to travel for 3 hours for a trip to the store just to go to the store and the transportation would cost about 50$. Sucks.

Here is where I'm at, which is a pretty s*#t situation. Why can't things be easy! I didn't want to spend any time researching sanding or wood oil or finish let alone doing those myself. I would have purchased glass had I known about all of these earlier. It's so frigging annoying and boring. I'm complaining. I'll stop. I hate this. All of it.

 

[errol]

I have the MARKUS swivel chair: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00103102/#/00103102

But I replaced the wheels with these, which are awesome: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N7S08G3/
Note, Ikea uses the non-standard 10mm wheel peg size, so double-check sizes before buying.

The combo is awesome. I love it. The chair is very comfortable, nice headrest, and glides across my floor like butter without damaging it at all. No rug or plastic floor protector needed.

I also have the Markus - one at home and one at work. It's a great chair except my cat likes to use it as a cat scratching post.

 

[Sovon Halder]

I ended everything today. Returned all of these, the whole bill. They straightaway told me they'd give full refund for the table top. Ultimately they deducted 10% for the product I assembled myself(the trestle) & refunded the remaining. And after a great deal of discussion and requests they gave me full refund on the chair also. In total I paid 30080Rs. & I got back 29540Rs. I am satisfied. Also kind of surprised that they did that without any physical inspection of the products. Later in the afternoon I bought 2x Oddvald trestle legs and a Linnmon 59' tabletop costing total 4000Rs. & I'm currently using is a chair from dining room. Totally cost almost 1/7th the price of original setup.

I was lost between the headache of sanding and oiling etc and the transportation in case something goes wrong in future. I relieved myself from all those. I returned the oil 2 days ago, returned all the expensive desk stuff today. Bought a cheap but sturdy desk and a fake plant. Here is a current photo.

To my surprise the paper fill Linnmon table tops seems very very sturdy. I am the last guy to be impressed with anything and I have a nitpicking knack of finding faults in seemingly everything around me. I am saying here that it's definitely worth the price. Good sturdy build, also perfectly flat .

 

[Maneater]

The thing I worry about with inexpensive chairs, is the cushioning, how well will it hold up from day to day usage and if you have kids abuse.

Same here, I'm really worried about the cushioning