Pool Table Lighting

L

Lakewalker

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I'm finishing my basement right now and I'm trying to determine which lights to go with.

I was thinking about getting a Pool Table light but the cost and size are putting me off.

Some people I talked to have suggested pot lights.

Is this a good alternative for lighting the playing surface? How many would be needed?

Thanks for your time...
 
Lakewalker said:
I'm finishing my basement right now and I'm trying to determine which lights to go with.

I was thinking about getting a Pool Table light but the cost and size are putting me off.

Some people I talked to have suggested pot lights.

Is this a good alternative for lighting the playing surface? How many would be needed?

Thanks for your time...
Click to expand...
The most important thing is that you have the whole surface lit evenly. If you can do that then mission accomplished. There are many different ways to do it. Other posters have done it and will be able to give you more ideas but the bottom line is what I stated above. imo.

BVal
 
BVal said:
The most important thing is that you have the whole surface lit evenly. If you can do that then mission accomplished. There are many different ways to do it. Other posters have done it and will be able to give you more ideas but the bottom line is what I stated above. imo.

BVal
Click to expand...

It's also important to have enough total light. Lighting evenly with six 60-watt lights isn't the same as lighting evenly with six 100-watt lights. I've heard that you need at least 600 watts total (of incandescent lighting), but I've seen tables lit with only 400 watts that don't look too dim.

I have 300 watts of halogen lighting and it's a little too dim, even though I was told that it should be equal to 600 watts of incandescent lighting. Of course, this could be because the salesman didn't know what he was talking about and halogen isn't really twice as bright per watt as incandescent.

pj
chgo
 
I think flourescent is the only way to go for a pool table. Four 8 footers, or 8 four foot tubes, nothing less.
 
one of the pool halls I go to has about 12 watts total I think lighting each of their 9' pool tables. It's great after 3 hours of everyones eyes adjusting. It's a good way to make people afraid to leave until it's dark out for fear of going blind.
 
I thought about all different kinds of lighting for my table, even making my own.

I finally caved and just bought a Diamond light fixture.

BEST MONEY I HAVE EVER SPENT......

(except for that one time in Vegas, but that's a whole other story!!!)

Whatever you do, just get decent light.

Russ....
 
Lakewalker said:
I'm finishing my basement right now and I'm trying to determine which lights to go with.

I was thinking about getting a Pool Table light but the cost and size are putting me off.

Some people I talked to have suggested pot lights.

Is this a good alternative for lighting the playing surface? How many would be needed?

Thanks for your time...
Click to expand...

A simple double 8-foot flourescent fixture from Home Depot will do well.

If I was gonna spend some dough, I like the Diamond and Brunswick (big one) lights.

For more aesthetics, a lot of those fancy light fixtures look pretty good (RAM Lighting); however they do not light so well. If these fixtures took advantage of LED technology, they'd be tops on my list.
 
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I like the big lights too, like the Diamond and Brunswick. There arent too many shadows when the light comes for rdifferent directions
 
CrownCityCorey said:
A simple double 8-foot flourescent fixture from Home Depot will do well.

If I was gonna spend some dough, I like the Diamond and Brunswick (big one) lights.

For more aesthetics, a lot of those fancy light fixtures look pretty good (RAM Lighting); however they do not light so well. If these fixtured took advantage of LED technology, they'd be tops on my list.
Click to expand...

In price too... LED is prohibitive.

pj
chgo
 
yoyodude9000 said:
I like the big lights too, like the Diamond and Brunswick. There arent too many shadows when the light comes for rdifferent directions
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I love my Brunswick light. No shadows. The Diamond light is great too.
 
right now I use a 4 bulb florescent fixture from HD hung from the cieling.
It is not the best, but it is much better than incadesent and does not really bother me.

If I ever do anything, I am going to change out the ballasts and go with a T5 set up and use bulbs that have a kelvin rating of 6500.

normal T8 lights put out a kelvin in the 2500 or so range and has a much mor yellow color... when you get into the 6500k range it gets much whiter..
 
yeah i got a 2 bulb 8 foot light from home depot hanging over my 9 foot metro and it works fine. Once im done remodeling the house though im gonna go with the brunswick big light.
 
I hate florescent lighting over my pool tables! It feels like I'm playing in a department store!

I would avoid the florescent lights, but you definitely need to have a good lighting you enjoy looking at, so its really preference.

9' table equals 3 evenly spaced green shade lights for me!
 
I've heard a lot of good things about Diamond and I e-mailed them to see if they deliver to Canada.

They Do!!!

I e-mailed back what I'd like but haven't received back a response about availibility. So I'm anxiously awaiting that response.

I guess from what I'm reading I may just go all out and get the Diamond light fixture as well...

Still any other thoughts on pot lights or any other suggestions are much appreciated.

Thanks for going easy on a AZ newbie.
 
I use 300 watts of halogen light, the bulbs are a narrow flood and the fixtures are a type of track lighting and you can aim each one in the area of each pocket and the light blends well towards the center of my table. The light fixtures are all together in a group so there are no shadows.
 
LoGiC said:
I hate florescent lighting over my pool tables! It feels like I'm playing in a department store!

I would avoid the florescent lights, but you definitely need to have a good lighting you enjoy looking at, so its really preference.

9' table equals 3 evenly spaced green shade lights for me!
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I have a 3 lamp unit on my 8' Olhausen and it's ok. I've played on 9' with the same 3 lamp setup and it sucks. I'd definitely go with four lamps on a 9'.
 
here is our new Pool Table light, for a 9 footer. It is $650. The lights are LED, they last about 80,000 hours, they are cool to the touch & they use about 1/10th of the electricity.

The trim can be made to match your table or surroundings. The trim can be stained or painted.

NOTE: the owner of the Pool Room mounted these lights too high. They still look & work great.
 

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im not at home but ill take a pic of my setup.......i have 6 75 watt floods and its the best light ive ever shot in. They say you need at least 400 watts for a 9 foot table (researched all this just like you are now). I used recessed lites which look great, and it keeps the room from beiing crowded if you dont have alot of ceiling.
 
If you're on a budget, get the double eight foot (or four 4') fluorescents from HD. If you can find the skinny tubes, they last forever and put out a "cleaner" light. I used them in my last pool room for four years, and never changed one!

Make sure to get the HD fixture with the curved cover (shade) over it. This helps angle the light downward. Some people even use duct tape (or ?) around the edges to get more shading on the fixture.

If you are not on a budget the Diamond light is the triple nuts. But it will set you back around $500.

I've done it both ways, and they both serve the purpose. The HD set-up will definitely light up your table. I'd hang it 36-42 inches above the playing surface. Some people even put theirs as low as 30-32 inches. That's okay if you aren't too tall. Otherwise you'll bang your head on it when you lean over the table. :)
 
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