How to Choose Either a Vertical or Lateral File Cabinet ?

Answer 1

Let's face it, you have to have a file cabinet to keep papers organized. If you don't want them scattered across your desk or kept on your kitchen table, then a file cabinet helps you know exactly where papers are when you need them. You save time and money by having an organization system and depending on the amount of space, you can choose between vertical and lateral cabinets for your home office.

1. Plan where you want to place the file cabinet. Use a tape measure if needed to determine how much space you have available. This will qualify whether you need a vertical or lateral one. Lateral cabinets take up more room horizontally, while vertical cabinets will take up smaller space and can still hold plenty of papers because they extend up the wall. Write down the dimensions of space you have available so you will know what size cabinet to choose.

2. Decide how much you need to file. If you have just a few categories of important papers you have to file, then a small two-drawer file cabinet might be ideal. However, if you are organizing an entire office or business, you might need more drawers especially if you have procedures, billing, employee paperwork and much more to file. In this case, a lateral filing cabinet would improve your filing system because of the amount of room you receive.

3. Select a style. File cabinets come in wooden and metal styles today. The wooden styles come in different colors that can match your office furniture.

4. Find out if you need portability. Many of the file cabinets come with wheels if you need to move them around your office space. This is helpful during the day when you have to organize files or need to find a document. Instead of getting up to look for it, simply roll it over to where you are sitting. You can then put it back where it belongs on the wall when you are finished. If you don't need portability for your files, then just skip the styles that come with wheels.

5. Buy already made or build it yourself. One thing about file cabinets is that some come in a box and you have to put them together. If you do not intend on doing this, check with the online company or local stores to see if they will put the file cabinet together for you. They may charge a small fee, but it can save you an hour or two.