Felt cleaning
- Thread starter Ak Guy
- Start date
Jerry Forsyth
Well-known member
I use the Simonis X-1 table cleaner and it works great.
Damp lint free cotton works just fine. Wipe the top rails first, then the play surface and last the pocket liners. I did this five days a week for seven years.
I take a damp clean terry cloth towel and pad the table down without horizontal movement.
No, not soaking wet, squeeze it out, you'll get the feel of it. Only concern using water I have, is if your table is three piece slate and the seams have filler/joining material that can be affected by water. Years ago and maybe still today, wax was used, but I'm sure a table mechanic will have more info on that.
Yep good info, but if it's a three piece slate, some fillers can loosen from the suction and cause bumps under play surface. If the OP has a one piece slate, this is of No concern. Damp wet cloth does not push it around. When I would recover the room tables annually, there was ZERO chalk on slate, but since it was a commercial environment, I used the vac every morning, which is Excessive for home play.
Hope this helps....rack em up :grin:
If you want to avoid extra expenses and maintain playability for as long as possible, you should use a vacuum as often as possible, cover the table every night, and if you play every day then wipe gently the playing surface twice a month (no more) with a wet towel, very well squeezed.
You may add some benzene without lead to the wet towel before squeezing it, it's a quite "innocent" chemical that you can find in supermarket stores, helps applying less moisture to the cloth.
Use a dry towel with a bit more pressure and clean towards one direction, wait for 10-15 minutes and the table is ready for play.
Clean the rail surface with a wet cloth and some wax polish every once in a while, use clean balls (you may use alcohol to clean a well used CB before applying a special cream), and if you can avoid chalk that leaves too much residue on the cloth.
Having the table in good conditions is essential, as well as using spots at break areas if you don't care about repeating 100% exactly tournament racking conditions. It's also good that twice a year you clean the ball return system under the table (if it has one), since dirt will be there too and is picked up by the balls after pocketing.
After some time you will notice that the rail cloth has picked up some dirt which doesn't come out by cleaning, making the rail reaction faster and closing in rebound angles.
You can use gently a 1000 grit sanding to take out the dirt from it, wiping it out with a dry cloth afterwards, restoring the rail's reaction to a more "normal" one for some time.
It is also essential that the cloth is well stressed when installed by a professional.
Keeping these habits will help you keep a well playing table for a long time, "a recipe for happiness" as the great Robert Byrne would say...
Petros
You may add some benzene without lead to the wet towel before squeezing it, it's a quite "innocent" chemical that you can find in supermarket stores, helps applying less moisture to the cloth.
Use a dry towel with a bit more pressure and clean towards one direction, wait for 10-15 minutes and the table is ready for play.
Clean the rail surface with a wet cloth and some wax polish every once in a while, use clean balls (you may use alcohol to clean a well used CB before applying a special cream), and if you can avoid chalk that leaves too much residue on the cloth.
Having the table in good conditions is essential, as well as using spots at break areas if you don't care about repeating 100% exactly tournament racking conditions. It's also good that twice a year you clean the ball return system under the table (if it has one), since dirt will be there too and is picked up by the balls after pocketing.
After some time you will notice that the rail cloth has picked up some dirt which doesn't come out by cleaning, making the rail reaction faster and closing in rebound angles.
You can use gently a 1000 grit sanding to take out the dirt from it, wiping it out with a dry cloth afterwards, restoring the rail's reaction to a more "normal" one for some time.
It is also essential that the cloth is well stressed when installed by a professional.
Keeping these habits will help you keep a well playing table for a long time, "a recipe for happiness" as the great Robert Byrne would say...
Petros
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This. Then you can use a vacuum to clean the X-1.
Vacuum the bed, then the tops of the rails. I have 3 piece
slate with bondo as a filler and have never sucked the filler loose.
And my vacuum really sucks.
After vacuuming wipe the playing surface, the cloth on the rails
and the rails themselves with a damp cloth.
Give it a few minutes to dry and you're ready to race!
Joe
slate with bondo as a filler and have never sucked the filler loose.
And my vacuum really sucks.
After vacuuming wipe the playing surface, the cloth on the rails
and the rails themselves with a damp cloth.
Give it a few minutes to dry and you're ready to race!
Joe
I brush the table, rails and under the rails. Then I vacuum the whole table. Then I wipe the table down with a microfiber cloth, wiping in the same direction. I used to use a damp cloth and it worked fine but, the microfiber cloth seems to attract chalk dust.
He was talking about a microfiber towel, not a cotton one. Microfiber holds it's moisture well compared to cotton.
I brush daily, vacuum weekly, and wipe the cloth down with a damp microfleece towel every so often right after vacuuming. My cloth is almost three years old and it still looks and plays great.
Second this. All in favor say "I"
Maybe innocent in Europe, but it is known to be quite toxic in the U.S.
Sorry, I meant in terms of use with clothes, it is used in cleaning wearing clothes so it's good for table cloth too, especially when applied with a wet towel.
It' still toxic in case of misuse (something really rare to expect here), anyway it's a very cheap liquid that can be used effectively as an alternative to other ones which cost much more.
Vacuum cleaner
I use a little red devil hand held vacuum with the rotating bushes for normal cleanup instead of a hand held brush, Works really good and its not hard on the cloth.
Please note I only use this vac on the pool table and I make sure nothing has been tangled in the brushes.
On bar boxes where allot of customers spill drinks on the cloth and stain it.
I use a automobile carpet cleaner in the spray can, I spray the whole can on then I rub in the suds with my hand, or I will us a very soft scrub brush the cloth.
after messaging the suds in and I think the carpet cleaner has loosened up the dirt and grim I use a wet / dry shop vac with a 4 in wide attachment .
I vacuum the table almost completely dry then I will set up a couple box fans
The only 9 ft table I have cleaned is in a bar ( its the only 9 ft table in 125 miles in any direction that is open to the public ) I am the one who set the table up and I used Bondo between the slates and I haven't had any problems with the bondo when I clean the table yet, Cross my fingers this was my first 9 ft set up.
I guess everyone has there different ways of cleaning a table but I never use a hand held brush on any cloth, I just don't believe bushing the dirt and grim into the cloth is the answer.
I have played in a few pool halls where the green cloth wasn't so green and in 15min of playing your hands would turn shiny black. It really was kind or gross.
My 2 cents worth
I use a little red devil hand held vacuum with the rotating bushes for normal cleanup instead of a hand held brush, Works really good and its not hard on the cloth.
Please note I only use this vac on the pool table and I make sure nothing has been tangled in the brushes.
On bar boxes where allot of customers spill drinks on the cloth and stain it.
I use a automobile carpet cleaner in the spray can, I spray the whole can on then I rub in the suds with my hand, or I will us a very soft scrub brush the cloth.
after messaging the suds in and I think the carpet cleaner has loosened up the dirt and grim I use a wet / dry shop vac with a 4 in wide attachment .
I vacuum the table almost completely dry then I will set up a couple box fans
The only 9 ft table I have cleaned is in a bar ( its the only 9 ft table in 125 miles in any direction that is open to the public ) I am the one who set the table up and I used Bondo between the slates and I haven't had any problems with the bondo when I clean the table yet, Cross my fingers this was my first 9 ft set up.
I guess everyone has there different ways of cleaning a table but I never use a hand held brush on any cloth, I just don't believe bushing the dirt and grim into the cloth is the answer.
I have played in a few pool halls where the green cloth wasn't so green and in 15min of playing your hands would turn shiny black. It really was kind or gross.
My 2 cents worth
My table was originally set up using Durham Rock Hard water putty. After the install the mechanic informed me that small pieces of putty could come loose over time, and just to mash them down into powder with a ball.
:shakehead:
Well, after the seams popped the guy came back and re-did them. Sure enough, there were some flakes of loose putty that had separated along the seams. I attributed this to the slates moving, so I had no problem with him redoing them with the same putty.
The slates kept popping and the manufacturer agreed to give me a new set of slates. When I removed the cloth there was putty powder and tiny chips everywhere. I told the guy I wanted to use Bondo on the new slates, and he said, "Go for it'" So I did them myself and the seams are sound as can be now.
Far as I know he's sticking to the putty.