I'm Loving my new Under Desk Keyboard Tray

Computers don’t suck after all!  I claim this after working comfortably for most of the day without much pain in right wrist due to my keyboard adjusted at a lower level after I installed a keyboard tray underneath my desk.

Decades of an unergonomic work environment really caused severe tenosynovitis in my wrists and right shoulder. For whatever reason, the inflammation reared it’s ugly head with such intensity that work was nearly impossible.  Ten days after giving blood, the pain was bad enough to seek medical help because the 1600 mg of Advil a day just wasn’t reducing the inflammation anymore.

I guess my mind was playing tricks on my, but with the bluish-yellow bruise from the blood donation, my only thought was that it was infected and the source of the pain.  Just tenderness and slightest touch in the area was magnified 10 fold due to the tenosynovitis.

Luckily, there was no infection or blood clot.  Just continue on the anti-imflammatories until the pain subsides.  Some physical therapy to boot.

Sorry, I digressed, but to make the point clear, an ergonomic environment really reduces this type of injury and makes it easier to recover while continue working.

I splurged and installed an HumanScale keyboard tray because in my honest opinion the best that I’ve ever used.  This is the second one I installed in the house.

My original plan was to install keyboard trays underneath the built-in desks in our home office.  But I never got around to it because I liked the keyboard on top of the desk even though it was awkward and never quite the right height and position.

I took about an hour to install.  I’m sure that anyone else could have done it faster.  It just took me about 15 minutes to find the tools that I’ve left scattered all about the house.   The 1″ thick desktop is dense and even after drilling starter holes, I had trouble attaching the base plate while laying on my back.

With base plate screwed to the bottom of the desktop, you then add the back rubber stoppers, insert the sliding adjustable keyboard mechanism and then the front stopper.   The tray comes with cable attachments so your mouse and keyboard wires are kept out of the way.  I use the wireless Microsoft Natural Mouse so there is no mouse wires to worry about.

An additional  feature about having a under desk keyboard tray is that you get an extra 2 square feet of desktop that you can now use.  My desk should be nice and clean which should make me and my wife very happy!