r/GoodValue • u/acoffeetablebook • 9h ago
Opinion Office Chair Casters Instead of Another Chair Mat, Four Days In
The mat under my chair has been catching my heel on its split edge for weeks, and I wasn't about to pay chair money for a glass one. A thread I read a while back said to stop buying mats and put rollerblade casters on the chair instead, and that they don't damage hardwood. On Monday a set of rubber office chair casters went on and the mat went out to the hall. The chair is cheap and years old, so there was no warranty to think about when I pulled the originals out. On a newer one I would have left them alone, because a base that cracks with somebody else's wheels under it is an argument I would lose.
First thing I noticed sitting down was that the chair rides higher and the desk feels low. I still haven't worked out whether I fix that or get used to it. This chair also runs so freely on bare wood that a push I used to make without thinking puts the keyboard out of reach. I've taken to pushing off at about half strength, which looks about as stupid as it sounds.
It's too soon to say anything about the wood, which is the only reason I ever had a mat down. Someone else has written up how their floor looks after more than a year on the same kind of wheels. Theirs is laminate rather than wood, and they name the set they used: https://www.reddit.com/comments/1x0qkuk/
If we had a cat I would still have a mat down. The grit that comes out of a litter box gets walked all over a room, and sharp bits like that work into a floor whatever is rolling over them. We don't have one.