Designing home office

[Snowdrop30]

It's pretty clear now that my company will not be going back to ft office based work - we will be in the office maybe a day a week. So I'm thinking through how to convert our spare room into a permanent home office, which still feels like part of our home.

The problem I have is that I need a full PC (with tower) for the kind of work I do. But I can't see any nice desks which are designed to incorporate a tower. Without that design feature, I'm always going to have cables trailing everywhere, which drives me nuts.

Has anyone seen any nice, large desks for sale which are designed for PCs? Or know a joinery firm which makes them to order? I usually like mid century or warm Nordic style.

IKEA do them, we've got one for our computer which has a big tower and multiple screens

We have an IKEA one at the moment, thanks @cherrybakewellll. But what I would really like is a solid wood one what is pretty enough to be the centre of the room, and is designed to hide away all the cables. I don't mind spending more on something I'll be working on nearly full time from here on in. To give you an idea, this is the kind of thing which would work with the rest of the house www.warmnordic.com/global/r%C3%BAna-desk-isabel-ahm-2835002.html

A bit spendy, I know, but I have some saved up!

I quote like this too, but no cable management, and no place for tower www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-partners-soren-desk/p3176350?sku=236845386&s_ppc=2dx92700055702964393&tmad=c&tmcampid=2&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=Cj0KCQjwhvf6BRCkARIsAGl1GGhqOvD7Y1X4zNDk9EO2kHosSl0zmXfo-1pjE4dCdC-I70HrsC5HIyMaAptrEALw_wcB

I'm a bit baffled that so many of us are working at home now. But most of the desks on sale seem to be assuming that we are all on laptops, rather than a full screen and tower rigs, and related cables. Surely there's a gap in the market for someone to design naice desks which you can actually work at full time?

It sounds like you want the desk in the middle of the room rather than against a wall.

You will always have wires because the tower needs to be connected to the monitor, so any desk you have will show these, even if this means the wires come up through a hole in the desk to the back of the monitor.

It will never look truly pretty as the back of your monitor will be on display. Dh has his tower unit inside a cupboard under the desk but he had to drill a lot of large ventilation holes into the back of it, his desk top is against the wall but there is a 20cm gap at the back of the cupboard. All the wires come up the back of the desk into a wall mounted monitor.

The children have desks on legs, they have a cradle/harness system to hold their tower units off the floor (easier to hoover underneath) but again they have wires for their two monitors each and the keyboard. None of it looks pretty, just functional.

I have a desktop pc with all the bits they would be in a tower built in behind the screen. Would that suffice?

Hm, maybe I am looking for a solution which doesn't exist?

If I have the desk along a wall, I would always have my back to the door, which feels uncomfortable to me. Or alternatively, I would have my back to the window, a shame as it is a lovely view. Hmm.... Any interior designers on here?

@user1497787065 maybe that is the answer? I can see desks with wire management flaps and could handle viewing the back of the monitor (Could always put a strategic vase or photo or something there, if that didn't look too daft?) Can I ask which built in system you have gone for?

It is a Lenovo which is about 7-8cm deep. My desk is against a wall as I prefer that to all the wires on show. Also USB ports are on the side of the screen.

Maybe I just need to get used to working with my back to the door? Honestly, I don't know why but it makes me feel unsettled and uncomfortable

Couldn’t you just use a cable tidy with the wires ?

I've tried - there are too many, and they always end up escaping the cable cage. I do a lot of multimedia work, so there are speakers, microphones, and so on...

Sounds like you might have to have something specially made? Any inspo on Etsy?

Our study has this type of desk with a filing cabinet under the RHS and the PC tower under the LHS on 2 granite floor tiles. As you sit facing into the corner, our window is just to the right and the door is just to the left. The wall behind is floor to ceiling shelving system. Holes in the desk to train the monitor, keyboard & printer cables. Completely utilitarian.

Could you work with your back to the door, facing the window, but have a mirror on the wall next to the window so you can still see the door from where you are sitting?

Normal standard track shelving in black with plywood shelves across the entire wall. In fact, the shelving was inherited and although it's basic, it's extremely functional and we just relocated it to our present study.

Could you have a sort of upstand, almost like an above desk hinged skirting for all the cables?

I'm thinking a bit like people do with breakfast bars in kitchens, when they have the back just slightly higher.

Don't work with your back to the window. The light behind you is not flattering on teams calls. Your back to the door is preferable with the light in your face.

Also, I'm guessing your PC is quite old? New desktop towers are much smaller now and can sit sideways on the desk with a monitor on top.

Multiple cable tidies in one mega cable tidy.

Would this work OP?
www.cotswoldco.com/home-office-furniture/sets/chalford-painted-desk-with-bookcase--filing-cabinet/ There's a cupboard for the PC tower and holes at the back so all the cables can go straight out of the back of the desk to the plug socket.

What about an L-shape? Have your desk at right angles to the wall, like a peninsular, then shelving and storage along the wall. Put your monitor in the corner and the tower on the wall side. The back of the monitor will be slightly visible me but not as obvious

I would imagine most people have their desks up against a wall. Not many people have floor sockets in their homes or want to view the back of screens and cables. Offices often have screens to hide these but wouldnt want that in my home. Design ads never show anything plugged in!

Could you have a mid hieght thin book shelf against the back of your desk? Slightly higher than your desk. Would hide all the cables, could fill it with bookS and/or photos and bits.