Humidity and the pool table

Matt Stockman

Matt Stockman

give me the 7 & a whiskey
Silver Member
Was hoping you learned individuals could give me some quick advice.

I have a GCIII in my basement, and despite the dehumidifier I keep running 24/7, these soupy Chicago summer days seem to be slowing my table.

Is there anything I can do? Should I run 2 dehumidifiers? Fans to increase airflow on the table?

Will higher humidity do any long term damage to my cloth, and or Slate?

Thanks in advance,
Matt
 
Humidity will make the cloth slow.

One thing you can do (aside from another dehumidifier) is to add some heating coils under the slates. Get the slates 3 degrees above the temperature of the room, and the humidity will find some other place to occupy.
 
Matt Stockman said:
Was hoping you learned individuals could give me some quick advice.

I have a GCIII in my basement, and despite the dehumidifier I keep running 24/7, these soupy Chicago summer days seem to be slowing my table.

Is there anything I can do? Should I run 2 dehumidifiers? Fans to increase airflow on the table?

Will higher humidity do any long term damage to my cloth, and or Slate?

Thanks in advance,
Matt
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No, you need what worry about it damaging the table. You will also notice besides the table being being slower, the rails will bank sharper. I would suggest using the higher level humidity as a learing experience, so you can compensate for this in humid environments.
 
Jason Koopman said:
No, you need what worry about it damaging the table. You will also notice besides the table being being slower, the rails will bank sharper. I would suggest using the higher level humidity as a learing experience, so you can compensate for this in humid environments.
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Just in case you get action in Equador or the Brazilian Rain Forest.:D

I play in Florida, humidity in the upper 90's right now. I know Basements up north are hot and humid in the summer, difficult to get the same game you would in a climate controlled room. I suggest you continue to work on your humidity issue or you will have to make several adjustments moving to a pool room for a tourney, league, or whatever you play outside your home.
Now, if your only playing at home, don't "sweat" it
Good Luck!
 
Humidity over 65 % will slow the cloth down. I'm no table mechanic but I know that the type of cloth you have and how loose it is can add to that bigtime. Most in the Mechanics Forum. There are a lot of guys that will walk you through what to do about the humidity. JT
 
Thanks

Thanks for the help guys.

I think I might try another dehumidifier, and I think Im going to place both of them right next to the pool table when Im not shooting.
 
I worked on basements for years, there's a simple device to help with it all. Everdry calls it an EZ Breathe system. I think they charge something like $3,000 for it. But Here's all you need to make it.

A fan about 6 inches from the floor, laying sideways, pushing the air up. some sheet metal to keep the air flow channeled to the top of the basement wall, and a dryer vent going out the house. Kinda hard to explain in writing but it's a lot easier to replicate than it sounds. PM me if you want and I'll try to draw up a better diagram to email you. It works wonders for removing moisture (I live in Milwaukee, I feel your pain).
 
MilwShooter said:
I worked on basements for years, there's a simple device to help with it all. Everdry calls it an EZ Breathe system. I think they charge something like $3,000 for it. But Here's all you need to make it.

A fan about 6 inches from the floor, laying sideways, pushing the air up. some sheet metal to keep the air flow channeled to the top of the basement wall, and a dryer vent going out the house. Kinda hard to explain in writing but it's a lot easier to replicate than it sounds. PM me if you want and I'll try to draw up a better diagram to email you. It works wonders for removing moisture (I live in Milwaukee, I feel your pain).
Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestion Milwshooter. Unfortunately I'm not what most would deem: "Mechanically inclined" . Even a simple undertaking like you've suggested would likely end up costing me a fair amount of vulger outbursts, bodily harm, and a hole in the wall of my house id have to hire someone to fix.

I think im going to have to tough it out with the dehumidifiers. And on the bright side, after a few summer months of practicing on my sand trap table, I ought to be able to draw the ball like Larry Nevel come fall :D
 
Matt Stockman said:
Was hoping you learned individuals could give me some quick advice.

I have a GCIII in my basement, and despite the dehumidifier I keep running 24/7, these soupy Chicago summer days seem to be slowing my table.

Is there anything I can do? Should I run 2 dehumidifiers? Fans to increase airflow on the table?

Will higher humidity do any long term damage to my cloth, and or Slate?

Thanks in advance,
Matt
Click to expand...

I know its your house and you want a great playing table I TOTALLY get that.. I am the same way.. but

you can only take it so far

if all the pool you will ever play in your life is on that one table... then Yes get obsessive and keep a pristine table to play on for the rest of your life....

but... if you plan to play on more than one table... you need to learn how to adapt to conditions....

A game on the TV table in Manilla in august.... will play significantly different from ..a game on a TV table in Vegas the previous July... even if you used the SAME table for both events....

you can only do so much...

don't get locked into the I can only play on my table frame of mind... pool is like golf... you have to have skill AND the ability to adapt that skill to fit the conditions,,

I see where you are coming from but be careful not to over do it..

Have a Nice Day:thumbup:
 
softshot said:
I know its your house and you want a great playing table I TOTALLY get that.. I am the same way.. but

you can only take it so far

if all the pool you will ever play in your life is on that one table... then Yes get obsessive and keep a pristine table to play on for the rest of your life....

but... if you plan to play on more than one table... you need to learn how to adapt to conditions....

A game on the TV table in Manilla in august.... will play significantly different from ..a game on a TV table in Vegas the previous July... even if you used the SAME table for both events....

you can only do so much...

don't get locked into the I can only play on my table frame of mind... pool is like golf... you have to have skill AND the ability to adapt that skill to fit the conditions,,

I see where you are coming from but be careful not to over do it..

Have a Nice Day:thumbup:
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I second that idea.


When I got my metro, I was obsessive about temp and humidity and cleaning and polishing the balls and brushing the cloth often.
But it hurt my game when I went out to the pool hall. The slightest imperfection with the balls or the table or the enviroment (smoke, humidity, tempeture etc etc.)would shark the crap outta me. Learn to adjust to any table itll only help your game.

Its nice to have things perfect at home but dont get obsessive about it.
 
Thanks for the thread. I recently set up my table and the first day I noticed that it was slower than expected and banked shorter than normal (noticeably). I didnt care about the speed as much since I plan on changing the felt before fall, however the banking short bit irritated me and I was annoyed. Since then the conditions have evened out and it plays normal with the banking. This makes sense after reading some of the things mentioned in this thread.
 
Matt Stockman said:
Thanks

Thanks for the help guys.

I think I might try another dehumidifier, and I think Im going to place both of them right next to the pool table when Im not shooting.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't worry too much about the humidity, especially since you already have one dehumidifier.

In fact, long term use of powerful airdryers can affect the table itself, drying out the wood parts. I believe I speak from experience on that.
Screenshot_20201022-195629.jpg
 
Matt Stockman said:
Was hoping you learned individuals could give me some quick advice.

I have a GCIII in my basement, and despite the dehumidifier I keep running 24/7, these soupy Chicago summer days seem to be slowing my table.

Is there anything I can do? Should I run 2 dehumidifiers? Fans to increase airflow on the table?

Will higher humidity do any long term damage to my cloth, and or Slate?

Thanks in advance,
Matt
Click to expand...
I learned a lesson with my boat, between water sloshing around in the bilge, carpeting and fabrics in couches, bunks etc... a boat is a nightmare for humidity. A single 100w incandescent light bulb in the salon kept a 40' sport fish mildew free and smelling normal. The lightbulb puts out a lot of heat and also creates convection currents to keep the air circulating. I was amazed how well it worked. In addition to what you are doing and some of the other suggestions a couple of lights left burning might help.
 
Lots of great stuff here. I’m fighting this same situation (Midwest) having just moved into a new duplex and putting my pool table in the garage and turning it into a ManCave.

I bought an expensive dehumidifier and on “comfort” mode it keeps the humidity at around 50% consistently. I can also manually set the level if I wish.

My question is….is 50% too low? What is an “ideal” humidity for a pool table?
 
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