Standing desk frame only: how to choose one and fit your own top

Check the width range first

Every adjustable frame spans a range of desktop widths. The V1 takes 100.5–160 cm and the V2 and V3 105–180 cm, which between them cover almost every rectangular desktop sold in the UK.

Measure your top's width, not its diagonal, and make sure it falls inside the range with a few centimetres to spare at each end. A frame set to its absolute maximum leaves the feet close to the edges, which is where overhang wobble comes from.

Check the thickness and the underside

Aim for at least 2 cm of solid material where the fixing screws go. Thinner than that and the screws can pull through under load, particularly if you lean on the desk.

Then run your hand along the underside. Frames need a flat area to sit against; a top with a deep lip, a moulded edge or existing hardware in the way needs either packing out or a different top. Hollow-core doors are a common mistake — the screws find air.

Weight matters twice

Once for the motors: your desktop's weight counts against the frame's load rating. A 160 × 80 cm solid oak top can be 35 kg on its own, which eats a third of a 100 kg rating before you put anything on it.

And once for you: you have to lift that top onto the frame during assembly. A heavy solid-wood slab is a two-person job, and worth planning before you start.

Our frames are rated 100 kg (V1), 120 kg (V2) and 140 kg (V3) dynamic load, which is the weight they will lift, not just hold.

What comes with a Desko frame

Both legs with motors, the crossbar, the feet, the controller and touchscreen keypad, every fixing sorted by step, and the hex tools. You supply the top and about half an hour.

• 01Dual motors, one per leg, synchronised by the controller
• 02Anti-collision — the desk backs off when it meets resistance
• 03Touchscreen keypad with four memory presets and child lock
• 04Levelling feet for uneven floors
• 055-year warranty on the frame and motors

When to buy the complete desk instead

If your existing top is chipboard from a flat-pack desk, thinner than 2 cm, or already sagging, the frame will simply expose it. A complete desk arrives with an FSC-certified laminate top, pre-drilled, with rounded corners and cable ports on both sides — and it costs less than buying the two separately elsewhere.

Measuring your existing desktop

Three measurements decide whether a frame will work, and all three take a minute with a tape.

• 01Width, edge to edge: must fall inside the frame's adjustment range — 105 to 180 cm on the V2 and V3, 100.5 to 160 cm on the V1.
• 02Depth, front to back: 60 cm works, 70–80 cm is more comfortable. The frame does not care, but your eyes will.
• 03Thickness at the fixing points: 2 cm minimum of solid material. Measure at the back where the frame sits, not at a moulded front edge.

Tops that catch people out

Hollow-core doors look like a bargain and are the most common failure — the screws find air a centimetre in and pull straight out under load.

Glass needs a subframe; you cannot screw into it. Very thin laminate desktops from flat-pack furniture often have a chipboard core that crumbles at the screw. And a top that already sags in the middle will sag more once it is only supported at two points.

If in doubt, put your existing top across two trestles at the frame's spacing and lean on the middle. If it flexes noticeably empty, it will flex more loaded.

Fitting your own top, step by step

Work upside down on the floor, on the flattened packaging so you do not scratch the surface.

• 01Set the frame width first, with the feet as wide apart as the top allows.
• 02Centre the frame on the underside and mark the holes with a pencil.
• 03Pilot-drill for hardwood — 2 mm undersized, and no deeper than the screw length. Skip this on laminate or softwood.
• 04Fix everything finger-tight, check the frame is square to the top, then tighten in a diagonal pattern.
• 05Fit the keypad under the front edge where your hand naturally falls, and route the motor cables along the crossbar.

The honest maths on frame-only

At full price a V2 frame is £339 and the complete V2 desk at 140×70 is £449, so the top is effectively £110 (check the product pages for current offers). If your existing desktop is solid and you like it, keeping it saves real money and one more board from landfill.

If your top is tired chipboard, buying the complete desk is the better deal — you would spend that £110 or more on a decent replacement top anyway, and ours arrives pre-drilled and colour-matched to the frame.

Questions, answered.