Manual crank standing desks

IKEA's US store no longer lists the TROTTEN sit/stand — the TROTTEN desks it sells now are fixed-height — so this is a reference for anyone weighing a used one. It is a hand crank that folds away under the top, with no motor, no controller, no power lead and nothing in it that can fail electronically. At $249 it cost a fraction of a powered desk, and for a desk that gets raised once or twice a day that is a reasonable trade. What it costs you is range and load. It starts at 27.5 inches, which is close to a standard fixed desk and too high for a short user to sit at properly, tops out at 47.25, and is rated for 110 lb. The frame has a crossbar, which helps the rigidity. As a used buy it is a cheap way to find out whether you will actually use a standing desk, or a zero-electronics desk that will still work in fifteen years.

Best for: Weighing a used TROTTEN crank desk, or anyone who needs a desk that works without power.

The cheapest way into height adjustment in this catalog, and a useful reality check on what the powered desks are actually charging for. A hand crank, a crossbar-braced two-stage frame, 110 lb of capacity and room for a top from 37 to 77 inches long, for about $130. There is nothing to fail: no control box, no motor, no firmware. What you give up is everything to do with convenience and range. At 15 mm per turn, end-to-end travel takes about thirty turns of the handle, and that friction decides whether a desk gets raised twice a day or twice a month; the 28.5-inch floor, with a 1-inch top, does not lower to a good sitting height for most people. It is a good frame for a workshop bench, a sewing table, or a low-commitment experiment before spending five times as much.

Best for: A workbench, a craft table, or testing the idea of a standing desk before committing real money.