Skip to Content

SEARCH
MAGNIFYING GLASS

• HOW TO
• OFFICE CHAIRS
• HERMAN MILLER
• STEELCASE
• IKEA
• STANDING DESK
• ABOUT US
• CONTACT US
• PRIVACY POLICY
To Ergonomics is reader-supported. When you buy through links on
our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Read more.

How To Fix An Office Chair

That Leans Forward? 3 Ways
You Should Try
Posted on
Published: July 13, 2020 - Last updated: May 6, 2021
<img
src="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2
020/07/Man-Fix-An-Office-Chair-That-Leans-
Forward.jpg" srcset="https://toergonomics.com/wp-
content/uploads/2020/07/Man-Fix-An-Office-Chair-
That-Leans-Forward.jpg 1000w,
https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/
07/Man-Fix-An-Office-Chair-That-Leans-Forward-
300x200.jpg 300w, https://toergonomics.com/wp-
content/uploads/2020/07/Man-Fix-An-Office-Chair-
That-Leans-Forward-768x513.jpg 768w"
sizes="(max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 48px),
720px" class="size-full size-ratio-full wp-image-
45120 article-featured-img aligncenter" alt="How
To Fix An Office Chair That Leans Forward? 3
Ways You Should Try" height="668"
width="1000">
Does your office chair keep on leaning forward?

Is it very uncomfortable and annoying?

Or worse, does it give you back and leg aches?

It should. Which is why you need to fix this problem

immediately.

Unfortunately, when this happens, a lot of people

tend to think their office chairs are done for good.
That it’s best to replace it.

Hold up!

Your office chair isn’t broken. It just ran into a

common problem that you can fix yourself.

Here, we’re going to show you the 3 ways you can

fix your office chair that leans forward.

So let’s get to it!

Table of Contents [show]

Why Do Office Chairs Lean Forward?
To be able to fix a problem, you need to first know
what the problem is.

This will help you get to the point right away.

Why do office chairs lean forward?

Well, with a fully adjustable office chair, this is

actually an included feature.

It can improve posture, give better back support, and

help blood flow in the legs.

So it’s a good thing.

But, it becomes a problem when it leans too forward

and when you can’t position it any other way.

In this case, it provides the opposite of what it’s

supposed to provide.

If you’re facing this problem, there are 3 reasons

why you can’t lock the forward tilt mechanism.

The first one is rather simple. This is because the

forward tilt knob is loose.

Another reason why this happens is that the forward

tilt knob is stuck.

Finally, it happens when the forward tilt knob gets

dislodged or broken.

Since it all has to do with the forward tilt knob,

fixing the problem is easy enough.

Let’s take a close look at how to fix each problem.

The 3 Ways to Fix an Office Chair That

Leans Forward
These 3 ways we’re going to mention will each
solve one of the 3 possible causes of this problem.

1. How to Fix a Loose Forward Tilt Knob

<img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-
45117"
src="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2
020/07/Man-Fix-A-Loose-Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg"
alt="Man Fix A Loose Forward Tilt Knob"
width="1000" height="668"
srcset="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/upload
s/2020/07/Man-Fix-A-Loose-Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg
1000w,
https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/
07/Man-Fix-A-Loose-Forward-Tilt-Knob-
300x200.jpg 300w, https://toergonomics.com/wp-
content/uploads/2020/07/Man-Fix-A-Loose-
Forward-Tilt-Knob-768x513.jpg 768w"
sizes="(max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 48px),
720px">

It’s very easy to fix this problem. We’re not even

sure if we can term this as “fixing a problem”.

Still, people that aren’t familiar with office chair

adjustments need to know this.

All you need to do to “fix” a loosened forward tilt

knob is to tighten it.

If it’s loose, it’ll lean the office chair forward

because of the weight of your legs. If it’s tightened,
the mechanism will hold the office chair in one
position, despite the weight.

How do you tighten it?

Find the knob that handles the forward tilt

mechanism. Once you find it, turn it clockwise.

That’s it! as easy as that!

One thing to note. Make sure your office chair has

the right forward tilt for you before tightening.
Maybe between 0 to 4 degrees.

If you feel you need more or less tilt, you can

readjust by loosening the knob.

2. How to Fix a Stuck Forward Tilt Knob

<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-
full wp-image-45118"
src="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2
020/07/Man-Fix-a-Stuck-Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg"
alt="Man Fix a Stuck Forward Tilt Knob"
width="1000" height="668"
srcset="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/upload
s/2020/07/Man-Fix-a-Stuck-Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg
1000w,
https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/
07/Man-Fix-a-Stuck-Forward-Tilt-Knob-
300x200.jpg 300w, https://toergonomics.com/wp-
content/uploads/2020/07/Man-Fix-a-Stuck-Forward-
Tilt-Knob-768x513.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width:
760px) calc(100vw - 48px), 720px">
What if the forward tilt knob is stuck?

No matter how hard you turn it, it won’t budge.

And since you can’t tighten it, your office chair will
lean forward.

To fix this, you have to ask one question.

“Why is the knob stuck?”

The usual answer is because the knob’s mechanism

is either very dirty or rusted or both.

To undo that then, you need to clean it out.

This requires a bit of disassembling since you want

to get to the mechanism’s housing.

First, remove the seat. For some office chairs, this

step isn’t necessary but it’ll make access to the
housing a lot easier.
Below the seat is the housing. Again, there are some
office chairs that have a covering for it, which you’ll
have to pry open with a screwdriver 

Inside the housing, you’ll see all the knob and lever
connections. Find the one that connects to the
forward tilt knob.

This is the one you’ll need to clean.

To remove all the dirt, grease, and rust, spray WD-

40 

on it. Or you can also use a grease oil, like Lucas Oil
Heavy-Duty Grease 
.

Once the dirt, grease, and rust are gone, the forward
tilt knob will be able to turn freely. Allowing you to
tighten it and get rid of the leaning forward problem.

3. How to Fix a Dislodged or Broken

Forward Tilt Knob
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-
full wp-image-45119"
src="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2
020/07/a-person-Fix-a-Dislodged-or-Broken-
Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg" alt="a person Fix a
Dislodged or Broken Forward Tilt Knob"
width="1000" height="563"
srcset="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/upload
s/2020/07/a-person-Fix-a-Dislodged-or-Broken-
Forward-Tilt-Knob.jpg 1000w,
https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/
07/a-person-Fix-a-Dislodged-or-Broken-Forward-
Tilt-Knob-300x169.jpg 300w,
https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/
07/a-person-Fix-a-Dislodged-or-Broken-Forward-
Tilt-Knob-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width:
760px) calc(100vw - 48px), 720px">

How do you know if the forward tilt knob dislodges

or breaks?

If you keep turning to tighten it but nothing happens,

your office chair still leans forward.

To fix this, you’ll need to open up the housing.

Again, remove the seat, pry open the covering if

there’s any, and find the forward tilt knob’s
mechanism. It’ll be easy to find since it has a
dislodged or broken pin.

During a dislodge, you can place it back yourself.

All you need to do is fit the pin into its section. To
avoid it getting dislodged again, you can put a clamp
or glue it.

Check this video to see how to do this:

Aeron chair tilt repair

<a href="https://youtu.be/go9yhXtHDxI"
rel="nofollow"><img
src="https://toergonomics.com/wp-content/plugins/
wp-youtube-lyte/lyteCache.php?
origThumbUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com
%2Fvi%2Fgo9yhXtHDxI%2F0.jpg" alt="Aeron
chair tilt repair" width="640"
height="340"><br>Watch this video on
YouTube</a>

If the pin is broken, though, you’ll need to replace it.

In this case, it’s best to address the situation to the

manufacturers. You can ask them for a replacement
pin. They can even do the replacement for you.

If you want to do it yourself, make sure you follow

their instructions carefully.

Conclusion
To summarize:
1 Tighten the forward tilt knob if it’s loose.
2 Clean the knob’s mechanism from dirt, grease,
and rust to free it.
3 Place the pin back into its section if it’s
dislodged. If broken, you need to replace it.
So these are the 3 ways you can fix an office chair
that keeps leaning forward.

If you’re facing this problem today, you can fix it

within a few minutes. Don’t let this problem counter
everything an office chair offers.

Tags
How-To
Office Chair
Post navigation
How To Keep Office Chairs From Rolling?
The 4 Most Effective Ways
How To Clean Soda From An Office Chair?
Divye Ruhela

Saturday 13th of November 2021

Facing trouble here! Once I tighten my knob, the
chair leans and tightens in that position. I tried
propping the base of the chair up using my hands
and then tightening, however, when I let it go, it just
comes down and tightens in its leaning state. Some
more information to debug this: 1) Was my forward
tilt knob loose? Yes, it was. Hence, my chair was
leaning. 2) Was my forward tilt knob stuck? No, I
could loosen and tighten the knob it easily. When it
tightens, the base fixes in one place only (movement
is eliminated). But this one place is the leaning
position!! 3) Was my forward tilt knob broken? I
don't think so, it does work, but there is some
malfunction in its mechanism. I think it is time to
update this post and introduce a 4th point! XD

Latest Posts

What Standing Desk Does Jacksepticeye Use?

How To Clean Ikea Strandmon Chair?
NOUHAUS Ergoflip Review: What To Expect?
Why Does My Office Chair Cylinder Touch the
Floor?
 Can Footrests Be Added to a Rollator?
• About Us
• Contact Us
• Privacy Policy
Search for:
Recent Comments

1Mary on Where Did the Phrase Sitting “Indian Style”

Come From?Seiza is not cross legged in Japanese. The
Japanese word seiza is sitting on your knees. Only Men sit
cross…
2Rick Jablonski on How to Cut Office Chair Mats?Is it
possible to cut a glass chair mat in half?
3Dare Devil on Can Office Chairs Explode? 3 Handy
Tips To Protect Yourself@AnduinX BYM, maybe the
average person sits on their office chair more than once in
their life, so that: the…
Copyright © 2023 To Ergonomics