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I am currently decorating a room which is going to be my office and there is a 2m space for a computer desk. I am thinking of ordering a solid oak worktop to use as the desk (2M X 720 X 40mm ~46kg) and was wondering what sort of legs/support this would need to prevent any sagging? Currently I have two IKEA Alex Desk Drawers for my current desk, would it be possible to use these?

Would there need to be anything in the middle? My monitors are going to be mounted on the wall so there shouldn't be much weight directly in the middle, just my PC on the right hand side.

I used a sag calculator (does this mean two legs/support either side should be acceptable) :

enter image description here

Edit : picture updated using floating method

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  • You should use the floating option, fixed in this context means that the ends are rigidly attached to something so they can't move at all. Legs will permit horizontal motion. For fixed the wood would need to stretch as well as bend. – Mattman944 Jan 11 at 14:33
  • More info is needed. Is this going to be free standing or attached to any walls? (you only mention two legs but there is no mention of other methods of support or where that support would be, back and/or sides.) – Alaska Man Jan 12 at 17:10
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    That is a really thick piece of oak, it should be OK even after you change to floating. But, please update it for future reference. – Mattman944 Jan 12 at 17:36
  • updated with new picture. – dtothef Jan 13 at 17:09
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    Looking at your new image, you've got a 200 inch wide by 72 inch deep, by 4 inch thick piece of wood spec'd. I'd be far more worried about supporting that than I would be any amount of sag or deflection! Also, bear in mind that while you may only ever intend to have 20 Kg sitting on it, people (perhaps even you) will have a tendency to pop a cheek on it and sit on it. I'd suggest planning on a noticeably higher load. – FreeMan Jan 13 at 17:15
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You could use side/back ledgers under the "shelf" and add a stiffener of 1x2 oak under the front edge with glue and screws.

You could use a piece of wood on the front edge also if it is unfinished with glue and finish nails. Also, it looks like you can order with an edging strip.

Consider letting them add a suitable piece of wood to the unsupported edge.

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Is the sag acceptable?

Yes, calculated with Sagulator, and another method. A center support is not needed. Note that when you updated the calculations, you got some of the units wrong. I believe that they are correct below. The two calculations yield slightly different results, probably because of assumptions of the strength of the wood.

Always design desks and counters so they can support the weight of a large person (as FreeMan also recommended). Someday somebody will sit on it. This is a really heavy strong piece of oak, it could support several people without any risk of breaking. The rupture stress is used for this determination (recommended deflection may be exceeded for unusual load cases).

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As several people have commented, the bigger risk is the legs or other support holding it up. More details are needed.

Can IKEA Alex Desk Drawers be used instead of legs?

Probably, a picture would help.

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  • Hi, thanks a lot for the help. these are the drawers : Ikea Drawers I was also considering some legs : Amazon UK Legs do you think either of these would be acceptable? – dtothef Jan 22 at 8:50

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