Electric Lifting Columns for Standing Desks: One Column or Two?

Every standing desk, height-adjustable workbench and TV lift hides the same component: an electric lifting column — a telescopic actuator built to carry a tabletop instead of pushing a load sideways. This guide explains how to size one, using our HH-LC-01 lifting column as the worked example: 2,500 N of push and pull force, 24V DC, 4 mm/s under load, sealed to IP65, with strokes from 100 to 450 mm off the shelf.

Column or ordinary actuator?

A standard linear actuator can lift a desk — people build DIY desks on our U-series actuators — but it pushes from a single point and needs a guide structure to stop the top from wobbling. A lifting column is telescopic: the sections slide inside each other, so the column itself is the guide. The result is a desk that stays steady at full height, a flat 180 × 180 mm base plate with four mounting holes, and a clean single unit to mount under the top. For a product you will sell or a desk you will use for years, the column is the right tool; for a budget one-off build, an actuator and your own guide rails still work.

The load maths

The LC-01 is rated at 2,500 N — about 255 kg (562 lbs) of lift per column. Desk loads are smaller than people guess:

• Desktop (1600 × 800 mm, 25 mm board): roughly 25–35 kg
• Two monitors on arms: 10–15 kg
• PC tower, books, equipment: 10–20 kg
• Someone leaning on the edge: allow 20 kg

A realistic single-desk total is 60–90 kg — comfortably inside one column's rating on paper. In practice, most full-size desks use two columns, not for force but for balance: the load sits between them, the top cannot rack sideways, and each column works at a fraction of its rating, which is where drives run quietest and last longest. One column suits compact desks, side tables, monitor and TV lifts, podiums and single workstations where the load is centred over the column.

Whichever layout you choose, the two columns of a pair must move together — that takes a control box with synchronised outputs for lifting columns, plus a handset; the column needs a compatible 24V DC control system (control box and handset sold separately). Tell us your layout when you order and we will confirm what the column needs to run.

Stroke, height and fit

Stroke is the difference between your sitting and standing desk heights. For most adults that difference is 250–400 mm, which is why the LC-01's stocked strokes run 100, 200, 300, 400 and 450 mm (strokes up to the 500 mm factory maximum are available as custom orders). Two numbers from the dimension drawing decide whether a column fits your frame:

• Retracted length = stroke + 150 mm. A 400 mm stroke column closes down to 550 mm — check it against the underside height of your desktop at its lowest position.
• Base plate 180 × 180 mm, four Ø6.5 mm holes on a 160 mm pitch: the footprint your frame or floor mount must accept.

The built-in limit switches stop the column at both ends of travel, and the duty rating (S2, max 10 minutes) is far beyond desk duty — a desk moves for a few seconds at a time. IP65 sealing is more than a desk needs indoors, but it makes the same column suitable for workshop benches and semi-outdoor workstations where dust and splashes are real.

Worked example: a two-column desk

Desktop and equipment 80 kg, shared across two LC-01 columns at 400 mm stroke: each column lifts about 40 kg against a 255 kg rating, rises at 4 mm/s (a 400 mm sit-to-stand trip takes about 100 seconds at full load — columns are deliberately steady, not fast), and closes to 550 mm for transport. Total parts: two columns, one synchronised 24V control box, one handset. That is the whole drive system.

The LC-01 carries a 12-month warranty. Planning a desk, bench or lift around it? Email the top size, load and target height range to support@hyhavenstore.com and we will check the column count and stroke for you before you order.

FAQ

Can one LC-01 lift a full-size desk alone? By force, yes — 2,500 N covers a typical desk's weight several times over. By stability, a wide desk is better on two columns so the top cannot tilt or rack. Single columns are ideal for compact or centred loads.

How fast does the desk rise? 4 mm/s under load. A full 400 mm adjustment takes about 100 seconds; smaller sit-stand corrections of 50–100 mm take roughly 13–25 seconds. Lifting columns trade speed for steadiness and load capacity.

What else do I need besides the column? A compatible 24V DC control box (synchronised outputs if you run two columns) and a handset, sold separately, plus your frame and top. The column itself has built-in limit switches.

Is a longer stroke available? Stocked strokes run to 450 mm; the factory range extends to 500 mm as a custom order. Longer travel than that calls for a different design — ask us and we will say honestly whether we have a fit.