Declutter The Mess Under Your Desk!
Studies show that the clutter underneath your desk is to blame for all the failures in your life! Okay, so maybe that statement is completely false but it is a fact that clutter can lead to issues. One way to combat these issues is to head in the polar opposite direction by practicing some extreme OCD clutter control under your desk!
You honestly won’t believe the intense satisfaction and feeling of accomplishment when your friends and loved ones see how neat and tidy the space under your desk really is! Of course, you may be criticized for wasting time that could be better spent on your business or with family and friends. However, such criticism is simply due to the fact that they are jealous of your mad decluttering skills and probably have a tangled mess of power cords and cables living below the surface of their desks! Anyway, eliminating the clutter under your desk is simple and easy, just follow these examples…
The Closet Entrepreneur’s Home Office Desk
What self-serving megalomaniac blogger wouldn’t start by showing off his own decluttered setup first? To be honest, my setup isn’t as nice as the other setups shown below, but there is a reason why I’m including it as an example. The issue with my Palermo desk (by Cost Plus World Market) is that it has a sliding shelf that holds the keyboard and mouse, so mounting anything to the underside of the desktop is nearly impossible. To get around the issue, two “L” brackets and plywood strips were used to mount a piece of pegboard below the sliding shelf unit (click on the photos to see notes on the installation). Seven and three quarter inch nylon cable ties attach the power strip, backup hard drive, and power brick to the pegboard; there is also some spare room on top of the pegboard for additional items.
Adhesive backed nylon mounting bases hide all cables from view, while wire loom is used to gather all cables running to the computer tower into a single unit. By the way, all the cable organizing accessories were found at The Home Depot and Fry’s Electronics, but you can easily find them on Amazon and other online retailers.
Blupics’ Two Person Work Table
Blupic’s immaculate setup uses Macessity and Sonnet under mount brackets to mount the Mac Minis and Mac Pro to the underside of his Andover dining table turned 3-person work table. Obviously the Mac Pro is visible, yet all the power strips, power bricks, power cords, and network cables are completely hidden from view. The power strips are held in place by double sided tape and plastic desk grommets allow cable access from the table’s surface.
**By the way fellow closet entrepreneurs, take note of the cool business idea that under mount brackets and cable organizing systems could make for desks and offices.
Van Mardian’s Decluttered Computer Desk
Van Mardian’s decluttered desk uses an ingenious solution to mount pegboard to the underside of his IKEA JERKER desk (that’s the name of the desk - I kid you not). Instead of using brackets or adhesives, he uses Stanley Safety Hasps [Part # 81-1800] and wooden dowel segments to securely mount the pegboard. Wire is used to attach components to the pegboard, and the assembly can be easily removed in case any components need to be added or removed. In my opinion, this is the most versatile and useful solution for aspiring decultterers to take advantage of in their own home.
Merchandc’s Custom Built Home Office Desk
Lastly, we have merchandc’s custom built home office desk that uses a cabinet to hide all cables and peripherals. The cabinet also acts as a printer stand and storage for the printer paper. The power strips are glued to the underside of the desk and cabinet using Liquid Nails; it may not be the most technically savvy solution but it gets the job done. To finish things off, wire loom and nylon wire ties organize and hide all the power and network cables.
In Conclusion
Whether you’re embracing your decluttering OCD, or simply looking for a way to prevent electrical shock hazards under your desk, the setups shown in this post provide several useful examples for tackling the mess that lies under your desk. And if you’re still not convinced that people have taken such organizing to heart, or you need some additional inspiration and ideas, then check out the following setups:
- Lifehacker - Hack Attack: The Cordless Workspace (sort of)
- Declutter Your Desk (see reader submissions near the end)
…and more inspiration on Flickr…
Know of a setup I missed or have a setup of your own that you would like to share, then please leave some info in the comments section!
Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur
Post Scriptum: A huge “thank you” goes out to Unclutterer for their Workspaces Flickr Pool!
20 Comments
Eva Wallace
Holy Cow! I’m impressed! They all look so nice. I guess I figure I only notice the cords as I’m approaching my desk. Once I sit down, my knees don’t care what it looks like under there - out of site, out of mind.
Those pictures do make me want to give it a go, though!
Thanks!
~Eva
Apr 24th, 2008
TOMAS
@Eva - Yeah, it may be a bit extreme for most people to go through the trouble of making everything nice and tidy when most things are hidden from view in the first place. Do share your setup if you do indeed decide to give it a shot!
Apr 24th, 2008
Rita
Okay, I’m officially motivated to clean under my desk! Thanks for the fantastic photos.
Apr 27th, 2008
Richard McLaughlin
those images are almost funny. For a home office I have a clean area, most cables are out of the way on the left side of my desk. But do the people who work in an area like those above not read? No need for a pen and pad of paper? In all the pictures I only saw one phone - I have 3.
Maybe one day I’ll get there!
Apr 27th, 2008
TOMAS
@Rita - Glad to see that you’ll soon be joining the ‘I decluttered the mess under my desk’ club!
@Richard - Personally, I do indeed use pen and paper about 15-20% of the time. However, since I mostly use my computer to write/type with, I’ve gotten into the habit of storing less frequently used items on the shelves in my office where they won’t clutter up my desk and I can easily grab them when needed. I also have a set of notebooks and folders that I use on a regular basis and store them in a set of Stockholm Project Cases (as shown here).
Apr 27th, 2008
Laiet
WOW!
I’m doing that this weekend and nothing’s going to stop me!
Then I’m going to show it off to my family.
If they have time for me that is.
Apr 27th, 2008
Duncan
Great stuff; can I come & work at your desk? Mine’s not too bad underneath, but the top is dreadful. Always has been. I’m working on it though…
Apr 29th, 2008
TOMAS
@Laiet - How will your family not have time for you!? I mean, what family can resist gawking over the decluttered space under your desk!
@Duncan - You’re more than welcome to drop by and work, as long as you don’t mind the FM3 Buddha Machine playing an endless loop of music in the background.
As for your desk top, see my note to Richard (3 comments up) - I basically decluttered the top of my desk with some Stockholm Project Cases (for all my notebooks and paper) and some baskets from IKEA which now sit in my EXPEDIT shelf (as seen here).
Apr 29th, 2008
Seth
Although cleanliness is next to Godliness you should be very careful cleaning in this way. Power cords are not made to be wrapped up like this especially if there long cords or several power cords all wrapped up and tied together. The cords do not dissipate heat like they are supposed to when wrapped together. This is in the top ten for fires here in iraq along with running cords under carpet and pluging the wrong cord in the wrong type of outlet. Please be careful if you do wrap up your power cords and ziptie them together.
Apr 29th, 2008
Matt
Nice idea for the use of the peg board. I’ll have to look into this. But this is certainly much neater.
Apr 30th, 2008
TOMAS
@Seth - I completely agree that safety should be a top priority in any situation whether you’re bundling up power cables or even doing something as simple as changing a light bulb. However, I believe most of the peripherals that are used in offices are consuming mere mW of power excluding larger items like power bricks and desk lamps. So unless someone is running a toaster oven or high powered lamp, most individuals should be okay (even the power cord on my 1500W 120VAC garment steamer barely gets warm to the touch after 30 minutes of use, but hardly anywhere near a temperature that will melt plastic). Regardless, you bring up a good point - pay attention to what you’re tying together and double check your setup for any possible issues.
@Matt - The nice thing about the peg board is that 1) it’s cheap, 2) the holes provide easy mounting access for nylon cable ties, and 3) it’s thin so trimming and cutting it is a snap.
Apr 30th, 2008
Coach Kip
What great ideas and concepts. I have always tried to figure out how to go beyond the usual zip ties and cable wraps, these give me really good ideas. Thanks
May 1st, 2008
Metro
Thanks, I just cleaned my desk. I feel better.
May 8th, 2008
The Tech
As a sufferer of OCD and a computer tech at a cable company of all places. I found your site a few days ago and it is my new mecca. Cable clutter kills me to look at. The cable management systems featured on your site give me hope. We are testing a product by Cable-Safe.com to sell. I installed the first system yesterday; DeskClamp. Super sweet. Our company hasn’t decided to carry them yet, but I am hopeful.
May 9th, 2008
marie
How come sites with uncluttered offices never show printers (or if they have one, where they’re hidden)?
Don’t people print any more?
Merchandc’s is the first printer I’ve seen in (literally) dozens of attempts to find a solution for hiding my printer.
I finally ended up buying a mini-buffet from target.com, putting holes in the back, and rigging up a wire shelf on slides so I can extend it a little from the shelf.
May 9th, 2008
TOMAS
@Coach Kip - I too was a cable/zip tie fanatic but never considered actually hiding the cables from view until I stumbled upon (and was inspired by) the pegboard and under mount solutions.
@Metro - No problem, glad this could be of use.
@The Tech - I know exactly what you mean. There have been times when I’ve paid visits to my family with cable ties in hand - they’ve pretty much gotten used to it. BTW, I would be in heaven working at your company - if my entrepreneurial endeavors don’t work out, I’ll be sending you my resume.
@Marie - Since my printer is networked, it actually resides in a separate room that can be accessed by all. If and when I decide to buy another printer, it will most likely be a wireless or bluetooth printer that I will tuck away in a closet or shelf.
May 10th, 2008
Pamela
I love this, especially since all the cables under my desk are an eyesore! But my desktop is glass, so this solution wouldn’t work…
Any suggestions for glass topped desks?
May 10th, 2008
TOMAS
@Pamela - That’s a tough one. If you don’t have too many cables on your desk, you could try using some enclosures like the locking latch channel or or J-Channel solutions featured here:
http://www.cable-safe.com/products/covers_hide.htm#sstrip
You could also find something similar at The Home Depot in the home electronics section where they sell wire covers for home speakers that are mounted on walls that work like the aforementioned locking latch channels.
May 10th, 2008
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