Home Decoration Views: Framsta

<div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AoSCY5e_2_iHsT71eJe5t6oP_I2uZaou_0UcMOmZKYUEXZ8PDGlfccvdBk67u41DxzwaBu2joBnnKuIIC6tWGUXrie27fxW5lJ27YgS1Q_bKvdi2YG3OW5qAzGViHQIrvWZIAS0-jJc/s1600/deskmeters02-800-734880.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5756175451285068370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AoSCY5e_2_iHsT71eJe5t6oP_I2uZaou_0UcMOmZKYUEXZ8PDGlfccvdBk67u41DxzwaBu2joBnnKuIIC6tWGUXrie27fxW5lJ27YgS1Q_bKvdi2YG3OW5qAzGViHQIrvWZIAS0-jJc/s640/deskmeters02-800-734880.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><br /><b>Materials: </b>BESTA, FRAMSTA, NUMERAR<br /><br /><b>Description: </b>I designed this desk to get all my computer equipment and cables up off the floor, behind cabinet doors, and leave my work surface completely clear.  A major part of this project was also incorporating the analog meters which show my computer's status.    <br /><br />The desk is built mostly from modified IKEA parts (see the end for a complete parts list).  There are wall-mounted cabinets in two depths.  The lower center cabinets are cut to allow my monitors to be wall-mounted; the upper row holds my backup hard drives, video game consoles, speaker controller, UPS, printer, and other devices.  In the right-hand lower cabinet, all the cables and interlinks between all the devices come together, fastened to a grid of garden mesh to keep them neat.  In the left-hand cabinet (behind the meters) are device docks and chargers.  The top cabinets are ventilated by small fans which turn on when the temperature rises, so that I can keep the doors closed.  <br /><br /><a name="more"></a><br /><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin9lJQgdBUuZoKpDzlxgpc26KdCOOVsTpSFHp3pBTu7PK1YJSnGqzY89YW0Oa3_mYQzR6IyynD54LYkADbFs03Edn7Rt9qiavrMGVre5xM52-HnlwtOaoEVQxNMY9P6UkDSxU5xAz4zAE/s1600/deskmeters01-800-733576.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5756175445458307106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin9lJQgdBUuZoKpDzlxgpc26KdCOOVsTpSFHp3pBTu7PK1YJSnGqzY89YW0Oa3_mYQzR6IyynD54LYkADbFs03Edn7Rt9qiavrMGVre5xM52-HnlwtOaoEVQxNMY9P6UkDSxU5xAz4zAE/s640/deskmeters01-800-733576.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><br />The work surface itself is an eight-foot-long countertop on adjustable legs, which I stiffened by adding steel angles along the back edge.  My Mac Pro is hung from the underside of the desk so that nothing is on the floor.  The work surface can be pulled away from the wall or even moved into the center of the room (but the computer has to be unplugged first).  Using a countertop gives a much more durable work surface than most laminate desks.  <br /><br />Below the wall cabinets are programmable LED strips behind glass panels, which show a moving stream of colored light (blurred to white in the image above).  The lights' speed indicates the current CPU load of my computer.  There are four INREDA spotlights mounted to the cabinet above to provide additional illumination on the desk surface.  <br /><br />The array of meters show the four cores of my CPU (top row), RAM usage (bottom left), and network send and receive (bottom right).  The large meter on the desk shows overall CPU load.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC3jyMI_VZOk7_wdhFpf3rRUOLexBARMvgMFcna-8JPi2LcTGsY34CoorA_g4aZcpwXoD3vi039_AHvqWQxJlLQOUUw60mlml0s-p6g-gSIGq6kdEFYY0d9gL0G47h7obkWuWltYHdVVAr/s1600/deskmeters04-800.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC3jyMI_VZOk7_wdhFpf3rRUOLexBARMvgMFcna-8JPi2LcTGsY34CoorA_g4aZcpwXoD3vi039_AHvqWQxJlLQOUUw60mlml0s-p6g-gSIGq6kdEFYY0d9gL0G47h7obkWuWltYHdVVAr/s640/deskmeters04-800.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><br />Parts list and notes:  <br /><br />Wall cabinets  <br /><br />2 x BESTA Frame - 47.25W x 25.25H x 15.75D  <br />2 x BESTA Frame - 47.25W x 25.25H x 7.875D  <br />8 x BESTA Suspension Rail  <br /><br />First I hung the suspension rails on the wall.  They clip together to produce one long rail, but I tried to attach each rail at least once to a stud.  I used the biggest lag screws I could reasonably fit, because there's a lot of weight in the cabinets, and I had no way to discover the condition of the studs inside the wall.  <br /><br />1 x 3'-0" 2 x 10 lumber  <br />2 x Rosewill RMS-MF2720 Monitor Mount  <br /><br />Then I mounted the monitors and cut the bottom cabinets: I mounted the monitors to a 2 x 10 which I fastened directly to the wall, and then cut a hole in the back of the cabinets to fit around that.  I also cut down the sides of the bottom cabinets where they come together, so that the side panel fit behind the monitors.  <br /><br />2 x BESTA VARA Black-Brown Door (23 x 25)  <br />4 x BESTA TOMBO Glass Door (23 x 25)  <br />2 x rolls of frosted window film from Home Depot  <br /><br />The glass doors are clear glass (IKEA no longer makes BESTA system frosted glass doors with metal frames) so I applied frosted window film to the inside of the doors.  This requires some patience if you've never done it before.  <br /><br />1 x Metal grid and mounting hardware (from Home Depot)  <br />4 x J hooks (from Home Depot)  <br />2 x Cabcool 1201-2 Fan Kit (from Amazon)  <br /><br />I did a few last modifications to the cabinets on the ground before I hung them.  I mounted a small section of 2" garden mesh in the back of the right-hand cabinet to clip cables to, and I installed the cooling fans in the right two compartments of the top row, where my game consoles, backup hard drives, and power supplies would generate heat.  I also drilled 2" diameter holes between all the compartments so that I could run cables inside.  (All this cutting works best if you do it before the cabinets are put together.)  Once they were up, I attached hooks to the bottom of the cabinets behind where the glass would go, so I could run cables there without them dangling down under the desk.  (E.g., see the cord going down to the outlet in the pictures.)  <br /><br />2 x FRAMSTA Basic Unit  <br />2x FRAMSTA Glass Gray Panels (2 pack)  <br /><br />Once the cabinets were up, I attached the glass panels upside-down to the bottom of the cabinets.  This is a bit tricky but works fine once everything is together.  <br /><br />Desk  <br /><br />1 x NUMERAR Countertop 96.875"  <br />4 x VIKA KAJ Adjustable Leg 4  <br />1 x 72" x 1.5" in. Zinc-Plated Steel Slotted Angle (from Home Depot)  <br />1 x MacCuff Pro from Sonnet  <br /><br />I used a countertop because it is much more durable and much bigger than any desk top IKEA sells.  I turned the counter upside-down and attached everything to it on the ground.  The steel angles are quite invisible when everything is put together, because they are turned up behind the desk.  I put felt pads on them (as you use under furniture) to stop them scratching against the glass panels.  <br /><br /><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC9Gb8IzsrghdYOW_qn0hqr6kVBHhePhDUs5Rmgcsnmtf7IKjbh87A0CwATUfnd0iQUIvM2Ro93mHx9j_3MccolM1PWSyPr-HmpUGK8w_J2G8bWts912iAUUSXYbpgpsG917ytpy9hhyU/s1600/deskmeters03-800-736653.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5756175454532228562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC9Gb8IzsrghdYOW_qn0hqr6kVBHhePhDUs5Rmgcsnmtf7IKjbh87A0CwATUfnd0iQUIvM2Ro93mHx9j_3MccolM1PWSyPr-HmpUGK8w_J2G8bWts912iAUUSXYbpgpsG917ytpy9hhyU/s640/deskmeters03-800-736653.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><br />INREDA LED spotlights  <br />After I finished, I discovered that while the LED strips provided plenty of light to see or type by, they were insufficient for tasks like drawing or soldering.  I installed four adjustable LED spotlights on the underside of the upper cabinets.<br /><br />See more of the <a href="http://www.matthewfickett.com/2012/01/desk-with-meters/">desk with meters</a>. <br /><br />~ Matthew Fickett

Desk with Meters

Materials: BESTA, FRAMSTA, NUMERAR Description: I designed this desk to get all my computer equipment and cables up off the floor, behind ca...

<div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfWQcNnalsYBvuVIhsVp89E5KmUQFO616C3AcxgKQRLAgmiEDXnl_N-mh2o41-hU3udFlRlSvfvlDQsXLCBsu_2g2mYAig89PSisl4VaLrzXwBUmVCVpVNiUg1MggKxDnikbggUhjSReg/s1600/photo+3+resize-734877.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505799044031351074" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfWQcNnalsYBvuVIhsVp89E5KmUQFO616C3AcxgKQRLAgmiEDXnl_N-mh2o41-hU3udFlRlSvfvlDQsXLCBsu_2g2mYAig89PSisl4VaLrzXwBUmVCVpVNiUg1MggKxDnikbggUhjSReg/s400/photo+3+resize-734877.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b>Materials:</b> Ikea Besta frames, Ikea Framsta doors<br /><br /><b>Description:</b> We wanted to replace our dated TV stand and open faced media towers with a new contemporary, sleek entertainment cabinet. Had to be modern yet functional. Key attributes were to be low to the ground, minimalist, big enough to hold the 56" HDTV, conceal all the components and speakers. We had to have doors that would allow sound and remote control signals to pass thru.  <br /><br />To center the AV Receiver and center channel speaker under the TV we needed an odd number of shelf alcoves.  This led us to purchase two double unit Besta shelf frames and a single unit Besta shelf frame. The left and right speakers as well as other components fit nicely in the Besta shelves.   <br /><br /><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGJH4lT_5bTPa6oXkwbSJMy7kABaYgmoiWYcEc650NqjB50UN8e_c93ZeFodoVmq1VjWKsjwWf9FQBWvAdS2uO8dNIsV0bBk9WER0DFBy8a-rYmLy3Uzv8dBZPR0M1iUmDZ1Lns8vWChM/s1600/photo+1+resize-737340.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505799054620764738" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGJH4lT_5bTPa6oXkwbSJMy7kABaYgmoiWYcEc650NqjB50UN8e_c93ZeFodoVmq1VjWKsjwWf9FQBWvAdS2uO8dNIsV0bBk9WER0DFBy8a-rYmLy3Uzv8dBZPR0M1iUmDZ1Lns8vWChM/s400/photo+1+resize-737340.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSyrCAAI8SCWfO4y4isGxxlYcU6WGzvq-dXW3Z_qS19-GtS1z0Udj2DJ0On69wGR4Bcpxqa7w8rXEuK_-d1NPQRNRI6e_UNrfFZF5C_wyEyJ4vu_LlTnvPp2gFCsq3SiR1j3VLDsqEqPg/s1600/photo+2+resize-740046.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505799066432308642" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSyrCAAI8SCWfO4y4isGxxlYcU6WGzvq-dXW3Z_qS19-GtS1z0Udj2DJ0On69wGR4Bcpxqa7w8rXEuK_-d1NPQRNRI6e_UNrfFZF5C_wyEyJ4vu_LlTnvPp2gFCsq3SiR1j3VLDsqEqPg/s400/photo+2+resize-740046.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />Key to this hack were the doors. We purchased 5 Framsta door kits in total. The center three doors were hacked to allow sound and IR remote control signals to pass.  I cut out the centers of the doors using a jig saw and then wrapped the door frames in speaker cloth purchased at the local craft store.  Using spray adhesive and a staple gun, the speaker cloth was stretched over the door frames and secured in place.  I used the Framsta hinges included and mounted to the Besta shelf units.  <br /><br /><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVYDj58U9BeGLvBveCp6gD9qHFMNZwISMiKHriY-1iluBCvSlW1MTdFGiAmuIvisRzyKS2_-ZRnd_uqeVXjOP7DTta2TrghAvh8GB6pAdu0g0Y_sPb6_aPPeZq-hdnBlYVGdDKBCpLD48/s1600/P1040499-741305.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505799072515041202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVYDj58U9BeGLvBveCp6gD9qHFMNZwISMiKHriY-1iluBCvSlW1MTdFGiAmuIvisRzyKS2_-ZRnd_uqeVXjOP7DTta2TrghAvh8GB6pAdu0g0Y_sPb6_aPPeZq-hdnBlYVGdDKBCpLD48/s400/P1040499-741305.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="mobile-photo" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh477vX-nr3Bzj-jvLeOnnNCdtvVDj9qFe0LF6SJ-MZ7wSjyEZO9JacPfnCrtKEGgW7BTJE3UgBlJ-JhvbypHj2SmPuzAD3pUfhkoZVDOH76kGOVNJpeANlYiMMF4F7mV3BN4lwRPd-8nc/s1600/P1040500-743093.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505799082457186786" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh477vX-nr3Bzj-jvLeOnnNCdtvVDj9qFe0LF6SJ-MZ7wSjyEZO9JacPfnCrtKEGgW7BTJE3UgBlJ-JhvbypHj2SmPuzAD3pUfhkoZVDOH76kGOVNJpeANlYiMMF4F7mV3BN4lwRPd-8nc/s400/P1040500-743093.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />We're really happy with the system.  The simplistic, low sleek entertainment cabinet fits our style and budget - less than $350!!<br /><br />~ Tim, Orlando, FL

Contemporary concealed entertainment center

Materials: Ikea Besta frames, Ikea Framsta doors Description: We wanted to replace our dated TV stand and open faced media towers with a n...