Renovate shop and bench height for post back surgery?
This is post one so be kind please! I’m prepping for back surgery in 6 months. The plan is to glue, screw, and chisel my retired 67 year old lower back. The result won’t be a new back but a useable one. The surgeon assures me I can’t be foolish with activities but I won’t be fragile either.
I’m wondering about strategies and hacks others used to overcome back surgery and what they were required to change going forward. Please, everyone comment but I’m eager to hear from those with similar challenges.
The shop is a single bay of a double garage. It currently has a woodworking bench at 35 inches and a mechanic’s bench at 40″. At 6′ 2″ 40″ seems too low now, 35″ is not doable. My mechanicing days are done. The bench will shrink but be dedicated to messy chores and a home for a vice, grinder and sharpening tools.
My shop tools include most power tools but downsized with firm resolve to never wrestle a 4X8 sheet again. I’m planning stick built projects like junk room shelves, storage boxes, and small projects like stools and tool totes with in situ assembly.
Replies
The best thing I ever did for my back (and legs & feet) is a rubber floor mat on the concrete floor in front of my bench. I'd put down more, but I move machines too often for that to work. Best wishes for a swift recovery!
I also use a rubber floor mat in front of my bench which helps a lot.
I recently built a "bench top bench" to provide me with a taller work surface to reduce the stress on my back. There are several articles on this site which address various design options.
Nice bench top bench. I like using mine too. I like those hold downs. Not so much stooping.
That was going to be my suggestion a s well.
That or one of the scissor lift adjustable height tables.
My whole shop floor is rubber and everything is on wheels and everything rolls. Maybe not that easy sometimes but they roll. Interestingly the powermatic tablesaw at 600 lbs rolls the easiest. Better on my back, cuts down on a lot of noise and when I butterfinger my favorite tool it survives! Bench height is of course subjective but I tend to think that the top of the bench is best when standing I can ,at arms length ,lay my hands flat on the bench. What your doing is on top of the bench and if something is too low I can always figure out a way to get it higher but if it's too high that's a problem. I've had back problems off and on for years but now that I'm old I think most of what was bothering me has turned to dust and isn't as much of a problem. Of course I do things differently now. Like today, I decided to move an anvil. Then I figured,no hurry, my son will be up for Thanksgiving, I'll deal with it then!
I'm not there yet (51), but I got sick of bending, stooping and the like and bought a scissor lift table. I build a workbench top to put on it. Now I can easily adjust the height to match what I'm doing. It's absolutely the best thing I've done for working in the shop.
I've had a spinal ablation and still cursed with spinal stenosis. So, my best advice is forget standard bench top heights. Make bench tops as high as your wrists when you're standing. I did that. It saves wear & tear on the back and eliminates bending just to work.
Mikaol
When my dad had surgery on his back 10ish years ago, it took him about a year to feel better. I'd say give it a while before making any changes. If possible, I'd try lower and higher heights via temporary solutions to see what works well. When I was 140 lbs heavier, my feet used to hurt all the time. As such, I sat much more while woodworking and that helped me. Not sure if you could try sitting on a shop stool to see if that helps you as well. Good luck on the surgery. Hope it helps. My dad has had a bad back most of his life and it was very debilitating.
I think he's trying to prepare. Do the work now in case he can't later. I don't know how to get by without heavy things coming up. The best I can do is use mechanical vantage. That and good shoes! I have a hydrolic lift as well, handy in the shop and good for getting heavy stuff off or on the pickup. Handtrucks and rollers. Amazing what you can move with a couple pieces of pipe kept handy.. I want a gantry, that with a power winch and I could move the world. Best advice I have is after the surgery choose your PT people well and do what they say. Of all that money ,and I mean ALL THE MONEY ,the ones that really earned it were the PT people!
Yes I'm trying to setup a useable shop prior to surgery. Winterizing and added wiring is in order, professionally done. Anymore will be about the workbench and area. It needs to be located in front of my window but the floor tilts alot. Now I'm thinking of adding area flooring in the form of osb and soft matting. Finishing upgrades to the 14" Delta BS are about the limit to shop mods.
The mini bench is an outstanding piece of kit being researched now. Also a bench stool with a backrest is in order. At least quick useable mock-ups before surgery.
My bench top bench was loosely based on Steve Latta's article. However, instead of using clamps to secure it to my bench I use 5/16" bolts. My regular bench top has a series of T-nuts installed on 8" centers so I can easily locate and secure the mini bench at any location. Some tasks, like planing, are easier to accomplish at a lower bench height. This option allows you to go from task to task without a lot reconfiguration effort.
I built a 2x6 base to raise up my workbench to a comfortable hight. My power tools remain the same hight as normal as their use is short in duration. If I have a task to accomplish on my power tools that takes awhile I’ll take breaks.
I had a low back spinal fusion. Like you, I looked at my way of working, but in the end didn't change very much. I'm 4'10" and my bench height is 35 inches - this is comfortable for me. I left my bench so I can walk round it, so I don't have to lean over. I still use 8' by 4' sheet material, but I bought a Festool TCS55REB portable saw and enough guide rail for an 8 foot board, so I can cut the sheet as soon as it is delivered.
Did all the physio excercises and still got my fingers crossed 4 years later at 76.
I did suggest to Ben that an article by a physiotherapist on avoiding back and other problems would be gold dust, but nothing yet!
5'10" not 4'10" !!!
Oh, nearly forgot. DO get a friend to help lifting, don't be proud.
That is really interesting solution!
Before an accident and complete lumbar fusion I 45 years ago I was 6’4”. Now I’m 6’2”. I have one bench for assembly and glue up at 36” and another for smaller work at 42”. The higher one allows me to avoid bending over and if I need to I can lean on my elbows to take some weight off. Long hours of planing, hand sanding and other repetitive tasks result in extended recovery time. Stretching, yoga and massage can make you more comfortable. If you want to get an idea of the limitations, strap a board to the area of the surgery and try a few tasks. My best advice is do the rehab, take the meds and if the doctor says don’t lift more than 50 lbs, believe it. Limit yourself to 40 lbs. Loss of flexibility and different skeletal symmetry are something you have to get used to. Back surgery is forever and you don’t want it to be done again. I wish you good luck and a pain free future.
Kia Kaha. I wish you all the best for the surgery.
There is a very good chance that once you have had your surgery you will be no worse off than you are now (otherwise why have it at all) but there may be deterioration over time.
If you think about it that way, you can make plans based on what you can do now, and reasonably expect that to be effective once you have had your surgery, allowing for any recovery time.
In general terms, people don't tend to be more disabled after back surgery, though over time the problems can recur at other levels. There has been a lot of work on prevention and core strengthening (such as might be expected to occur naturally if you are doing the general day to day activities involved in woodworking) has been shown to be the best thing to keep going.
Perhaps the only advice I can give is to be flexible with machine and bench heights. You will probably find some positions more comfortable than others so be prepared to be inventive about the height machines are set - depending on how tall you are, machines at which you spend a longer time may need to be raised (or have the floor raised around them) Perhaps a stool for a seated rest might be high on the list of projects for your shop!
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