Are you wondering how you can raise your office chair without a lever?
You’re in the right place!
In this ChairAdviser.com guide, you’ll learn:
- Tips on not breaking your chair
- Why it won’t go up
- 3 steps to raising your office chair without a lever
- And much more!
It’s no secret that the beauty of having an office chair lies in how you can adjust it.
Built for maximum workplace comfort, office chairs have levers that allow you to easily adjust the height of your seat plate.
However, what do you do if the lever of your office chair breaks?
Or, worse yet, how do you adjust an office chair that doesn’t have a lever?
In this how-to guide, we’ll fill you in on how to adjust an office chair without a lever.
What You Need To Know When Adjusting Your Office Chair?
The lever of an office chair is meant to allow the chair’s user to raise or lower the seat.
Unfortunately, not every office chair comes with a lever.
In fact, you might be in a situation where you don’t have access to the height adjustment lever.
The lack of access to the lever can be due to one of two reasons.
- The height adjustment lever of your office chair broke
- Your office chair just does not have one.
The reason for the lack of access will determine how you will raise or lower your office chair. Unless the chair adjustment lever is broken, it comes right down to what type of chair you have.
Read More >> How To Adjust An Office Chair (The Easy Way)
Without a Lever (Leverless Office Chair)
If you’ve got a leverless office chair, chances are high that you have an older executive’s office chair.
Older executive chair models do not usually have height adjustment levers. Raising one will require you to turn the chair in a certain direction to adjust its height.
Here are the steps to raising an office chair that does not have a lever:
Step 1: Step on Your Office Chair’s Supports or Legs
Since you need to turn your office chair’s seat plate to adjust it, you need to stabilize the chair.
To do this, you need to step on the office chair’s supports. You can also step on where the wheels of your chair are if it has any.
Step 2: Turn the Chair Clockwise or Counterclockwise
Not all office chairs rise when you turn them clockwise. Depending on the chair, the direction you turn it will raise it or lower it.
To determine this, you will have to manually turn your chair clockwise or counterclockwise.
Step 3: Pull Your Chair Up
Once you see that your chair tends to rise when turned in a certain direction, pull it up. This will cause the seat plate to rise as you turn it clockwise or counterclockwise.
To lock it in place, all you need to do is press on the seat plate.
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How To Lower an Office Chair Without a Lever (Leverless Chair)
The steps for lowering an older executive office chair are almost identical to raising it, save for some differences.
Here are the steps to lowering your leverless office chair:
Step 1: Lock the Wheels of Your Office Chair
Most office chairs will have wheels. If they do, lock all of them to keep the chair in place as you rotate it clockwise or counterclockwise.
Step 2: Rotate Your Chair Clockwise or Counterclockwise
If you’ve figured out the direction your chair has to turn for it to rise, rotate it the other way. As you do, press down on your chair.
Step 3: Push Your Chair Down to Your Desired Height
Push your chair down as you rotate it in the direction that lowers it. To lock it in place, you can sit on it once it is at your desired height.
How To Raise and Lower an Office Chair With a Broken Height Adjustment Lever
Another situation in which you’ll have to adjust levels without a lever is when the lever is broken. Sometimes, the height adjustment lever or pneumatic lever is broken. For chairs that have this adjustment mechanism, the clockwise-counterclockwise approach will not help.
If the pneumatic lever is broken or missing, don’t worry. You can still adjust your office chair. Here are the steps that you need to follow:
Step 1: Locate the Pneumatic Pin
The pneumatic pin connects your height adjustment lever to your office chair’s height adjustment mechanism. If you can still see the lever, you may remove it to reveal the pin.
To perform this step, you may have to flip your chair over. In most cases, the pneumatic pin is somewhere directly beneath your chair’s seat plate.
Step 2: Find Any Sturdy Elongated Object
Any sturdy elongated object can be a substitute for your lever. All you need to do is press on the pin using such elongated tools or items. Anything from a screwdriver to a nail file can fill in for your pneumatic lever.
Step 3: Press the Pneumatic Pin To Raise or Lower Your Chair
Press on the pneumatic pin to adjust your office chair’s height. If you need to replace the lever, you may do so. Most office chair models have replaceable parts.
You can find a replacement in many furniture stores.
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Why Won’t My Office Chair Go Up?
Pneumatic office chairs are very common. If you own a pneumatic office chair, the adjustment mechanism is a gas cylinder.
The gas cylinder allows the seat plate to go up or down depending on the pressure in the cylinder.
If your chair won’t go up, likely, the gas cylinder can no longer repressurize, which means that it is leaking air.
This is an indicator that you need to replace your office chair’s gas cylinder.
Read More >> Best Office Chairs Under $300 (2021 Review)
Can You Fix an Office Chair That Won’t Go Up?
This answer depends on the situation. After all, your office chair may fail to rise and stay level for several reasons.
There are two possible reasons for your office chair not elevating. These will determine whether or not you can fix it yourself.
Sometimes, an office chair’s seat plate fails to go up owing to its adjustment mechanism.
If the problem lies in the pneumatic lever, then you can remove the lever and use other objects. You just need to be able to locate the pneumatic pin.
On the other hand, if there is a problem with the gas cylinder, you will need a replacement.
Depending on your experience with faulty gas cylinders, replacing it may be straightforward or challenging.
In short, the answer to the above question is both yes and no. It all depends on the cause of the problem.
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Final Thoughts - No Lever? No Problem!
Even if your office chair lacks a working pneumatic lever, you don’t have to panic.
You can raise or lower your office chair, but it depends on the problem and the type of chair you have in your workstation.
Hopefully, by now, you’re sitting comfortably at the right height — even if your chair lacks a lever.
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