Pool Table Care

G

grobbs

Greg R
I recently bought a table. It's a nice, 9ft Olhausen. Got a great deal on it, and had it re-clothed with the best the movers had... Championship Tour Edition. I really want to take good care of it and make it last.

I had to put it in my garage, as my girlfriend said having a pool table in my living room "doesn't exactly scream I'm mature and ready for marriage" haha. Unfortunately, I live in Dallas/Fort Worth area with high humidity. After major rainstorms, humidity skyrockets and cloth gets real loose.

I've bought a device to monitor the humidity, I have two dehumidifiers (albeit cheaper ones) running 24/7, and insulated the garage door to help with temperature and humidity swings. Also, I regularly clean and carefully vacuum the table. I've also lightly ironed the table a few times to help keep it dry.

Anything else I'm missing/should be aware of/could do better/should stop doing? For example, I've read about trying to heat the table as they do with snooker/carom tables, is that worth doing? I've attached a picture of the cloth beginning to be bunched up near the side pocket. That bunching hasn't gotten worse over the past month, and it's fine for now as the rail stops a ball before it impacts the balls movement, but worried it will get worse in time.

I know this post is similar to many others, and I did read them before posting. I've also read many other Just wondering if there are any specific suggestions for my situation in particular, and further advice/experience in general you might have gained with having your own table.

Thank you!

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Looks like cloth may have not been stretched correctly when installed. Hi-humidity shouldn't cause that. Table heaters are designed to make 3c table play consistent not act as a table dryer for cases like yours. Is the room a/c'd? That will remove a lot of moisture as well. Might get cloth re-stretched at some point. Is your vacuum low/med suction? Hi-power vacs can make situations like your's worse.
 
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You have Olhausen pocket splits- the inside of those pockets are steel and they will scratch the pool balls mercilessly until you replace them- these splits happen over time on all Olhausen pockets and are an indication of prior heavy table use - normally by the time those pockets split- the cushions are on their way out too in terms of effective rebound response.
 
mikemosconi said:
You have Olhausen pocket splits- the inside of those pockets are steel and they will scratch the pool balls mercilessly until you replace them- these splits happen over time on all Olhausen pockets and are an indication of prior heavy table use - normally by the time those pockets split- the cushions are on their way out too in terms of effective rebound response.
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Good catch. I didn't notice that split.
 
I think Garczar is right about your cloth not being stretched properly. Get that fixed, new pockets and get you a mini-split heat-pump A/C installed and you should be good to go. If you can put some more insulation in the walls and ceiling joists that would really help to.
 
New pockets will run from $200-250 for a set. Classic Billiards has them with the Olhausen logo if that's important.
 
I gotta agree with the others, the cloth was not properly installed. I have a Gold Crown in my basement, it regularly reaches 60%-70% humidity in the summer with the dehumidifier on and it gets very, very dry in the winter when its cold and the forced air heat runs 70%-90% of the time and I do not have issues like this.
 
HNTFSH said:
Agree on the stretch, ouch!! That looks terrible! How long ago was it installed?
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Oh man that isn't good. It was setup less than 2 months ago (March 3rd).

Thanks for the advice, I wouldn't have thought it would be a problem with the moving company that set it up and re-clothed it for me!
 
garczar said:
Looks like cloth may have not been stretched correctly when installed. Hi-humidity shouldn't cause that. Table heaters are designed to make 3c table play consistent not act as a table dryer for cases like yours. Is the room a/c'd? That will remove a lot of moisture as well. Might get cloth re-stretched at some point. Is your vacuum low/med suction? Hi-power vacs can make situations like your's worse.
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Ok thanks for that info on heaters.

I do have an AC in there, but it hasn't gotten hot enough yet to use it yet.

I use low power on a handheld vacuum and make sure it's not pulling the cloth by tilting it at an angle while using it. That's what I was referring to when saying I do so carefully, as I read that could be a problem.
 
mikemosconi said:
You have Olhausen pocket splits- the inside of those pockets are steel and they will scratch the pool balls mercilessly until you replace them- these splits happen over time on all Olhausen pockets and are an indication of prior heavy table use - normally by the time those pockets split- the cushions are on their way out too in terms of effective rebound response.
Click to expand...
wow thanks! I wouldn't have thought or noticed that. Good catch from seeing only the edge of a pocket in the picture! I'll look into getting that fixed, as I bought a decent set of balls a couple weeks ago as well
 
I am not an expert on cloth. I have a low power cordless dustbuster. A horsehair brush. And I keep it covered.
 
grobbs said:
I recently bought a table. It's a nice, 9ft Olhausen. Got a great deal on it, and had it re-clothed with the best the movers had... Championship Tour Edition. I really want to take good care of it and make it last.

I had to put it in my garage, as my girlfriend said having a pool table in my living room "doesn't exactly scream I'm mature and ready for marriage" haha. Unfortunately, I live in Dallas/Fort Worth area with high humidity. After major rainstorms, humidity skyrockets and cloth gets real loose.
Click to expand...

Well that's too bad she said that, what does your new girlfriend think about the table in the living room?
 
fastone371 said:
I gotta agree with the others, the cloth was not properly installed. I have a Gold Crown in my basement, it regularly reaches 60%-70% humidity in the summer with the dehumidifier on and it gets very, very dry in the winter when its cold and the forced air heat runs 70%-90% of the time and I do not have issues like this.
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I really appreciate everyone bringing that to my attention, as I figured it just was due to humidity.

As an update, I called the company who moved the table and put the cloth on, they apologized instantly and coming out to fix it on Monday. So it seems it was an honest mistake and awesome to see they care!

Thanks again
 
grobbs said:
Ok thanks for that info on heaters.

I do have an AC in there, but it hasn't gotten hot enough yet to use it yet.

I use low power on a handheld vacuum and make sure it's not pulling the cloth by tilting it at an angle while using it. That's what I was referring to when saying I do so carefully, as I read that could be a problem.
Click to expand...
A/C not only cools but also lowers humidity. Set it on 75-77deg when not in the room. Won't cost much elec. wise but will help dry the air.
 
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