Office-in-a-cupboard

May have been me. its worktop Express

I've used velcro strips screwed to the underside of the desk. It's quite adaptable as you can open and close the strips easily.

Thought it was, but couldn't find the post.

Cheers for reposting it as we're now looking into desk options. Ideally want something that can foldaway for the few times when we have people over.

These straps are also good for that sort of thing if you have heavier stuff:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/163540598577

1 Attachment

@hugo7 they look great.
We had loads of stuff leftover at work and instead of it going in the bin I took some home but these are much better as they've got a metal loop which will make tightening easier

@gillies how's the den of self gratification coming along?

I took two days off work this week to get some DIY done. Sadly sanding and painting doorframes and skirting boards took priority over the hovel. Really only managed to work 10-4 both days after kids and other domestic chores were taken care of.

I have arranged for an electrician to come fit power/ethernet sockets in there along with the ikea FLOALT panel too - 2 weeks from now. I'm aiming to have it ready to paint very shortly after that.

Unfortunately my kids nursery has closed down due to covid so everyone is stuck at home for another week. Doubt there will be much actual progress in that time!

I think I've decided on Birch ply for the worktop. On attaching it, I'm wondering if 4 of these will be sufficient

Placed near the 4 corners of the desk?

I've also bought a keychron k2 in anticipation of making my desk nice and clean. Only to find out that my work laptop is so locked down that I can't even pair a Bluetooth device with it. Guess I'll be running it cabled...

Nice brackets - did you have them made for you?

No, found them on etsy! Not totally sure I'll use them yet but I certainly like the look of them. Just want to be sure they'll support the desk sufficiently

Should be fine if you have one in each corner.

Shame about the laptop connectivity. Will a Logitech keyboard and unifying dongle work so that you don’t need Bluetooth?

Maybe, does it need software to run? Then I won't be able to use my nice keychron tho :(

I'd go for a timber batten on 3 edges to support the desktop from the wall. Reason: drilling into tenement walls can be unpredictable. A batten means you have multiple fixings and if one is duff the rest carry the load. Using shelf brackets like you're suggesting surely can work but puts more pressure on your DIY skills. Maybe/hopefully you're better at drilling holes in walls than me :)

I'm with you on tenement walls being unpredictable! Tried to put up curtain battens a couple few months ago and had an awful time of it

Wooden batten probably also cheaper than those brackets (£11 a pop...) and ultimately almost nobody will ever actually see them so...

Depends on how locked down the laptop is, the OS might auto install suitable software (though for the fancy Logitech customisation options, you need the software installed).

My wife was using a wireless logitech mouse and keyboard on her locked down work laptop.

Also looking for a wireless keyboard for my desk, looked at keychron, but the K4 doesn't seem to come in UK layout?
I'm very much missing my number pad on my Filco TKL ninja red MX at the moment. Will switch back to IBM model M until I find something perfect.

To be fair I'm about to have shelves pit up in my kitchen using that sort of bracket... But I will be probably paying someone else to do the work :)

You could have an extra wooden batten in front of the support batten at the back to create a channel so that you can disguise your cable management?

Guess that's what happens when you're on an overseas NSA posting... 😜

Nothing quite so glamorous I'm afraid but it is government. My IT dept doesn't even let me use the windows monitor calibration tool...

I've used twin slot style brackets a few times. Less attractive but also imo less fuss in terms of getting the fixings perfect every time.

@Acliff the batten idea is a good one! Thanks.

If you can't Bluetooth, then I'm guessing your usb ports are locked down too?

But maybe not. That would mean a government IT dept would have to be competent

USB devices are totally fine. It's just Bluetooth pairing for some reason. I might raise a ticket and make them attempt to justify it.

Usb bluetooth adapter?

Ha! So you could feasibly copy data off on a USB key, but hooking a Bluetooth keyboard up is a no-no.

Excellent! ✌️

Doesn't work :(

Exactly - makes no real sense.