question for you guys with pool rooms in your home

m79a

m79a

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
What size is the abosolute smallest size a room could be to comfortably shoot if you had a Diamond bar box? I'm looking at new houses with rec rooms and one of my must haves is a room big enough for a bar box and not having to jack up your cue because the cue ball is on the rail and you are too lose to the wall.
 
m79a said:
What size is the abosolute smallest size a room could be to comfortably shoot if you had a Diamond bar box? I'm looking at new houses with rec rooms and one of my must haves is a room big enough for a bar box and not having to jack up your cue because the cue ball is on the rail and you are too lose to the wall.
Click to expand...

Well if your table is 3 1/2 by 7 and you play with a standard length cue which is 58 inches add 5 feet on each side of the table

17 feet long by 13 1/2 feet wide should do it
 
17 x 13 1/2 would work but you would actually need a litle more to be able to get a good stroke and stance for many rails shots. Plus you also have to allow for other things that will be in the room such chairs, and etc.

To see how much space you would need set up a card table 5 ft from a wall, and place 2 x 6' around the edges to serve as a cushion/rails. Place a CB against it and get down as if you were to do a rail shot. The minimum distance for you is when you can have a comfortable stand and stroke without crowding. I am 5-11 and have 5 ft around my 9 ft table along 2 walls in the basement. The other sides are open. A few more inches from the wall would be ideal for some straight across rail shots. Doesn't come into play very often but it would be nice to have the extra space when it does.


.
 
I refuse to live in a home without atleast one room that is at least 20'x20'. It allows for table and spectators. I have 24x24 right now and LOVE it. I'd like a little more so I could put another table in, but the boss put the K-bosh on that so I'll stick to my modified bar box for now. Diamond 9' to come soon I hope.


best,

justin
 
I have a 7ft Diamond Pro Am, their web site has a calculator or list showing the room size for different tables. Factor in your cue length
 
I currently have a 9ft Brunswick in a room that is 16 x 25. Yes, there are a few spots where a person using a wide stance may have some issue when stuck up against the rail, but for the most part, the table is plenty playable. Rule of thumb is to have at least minumum 5ft. of space on all sides of the table...MINIMUM. But I would like a few more feet just to be on the safe side.
 
m79a said:
What size is the abosolute smallest size a room could be to comfortably shoot if you had a Diamond bar box? I'm looking at new houses with rec rooms and one of my must haves is a room big enough for a bar box and not having to jack up your cue because the cue ball is on the rail and you are too lose to the wall.
Click to expand...

If you're looking at new houses why not find one with a 2 car attached garage and have it made to a room. That's what I did and I have a 26x26 room with a 9 foot table. When you have the bare minimum its no fun because you feel too enclosed plus you have no where to sit and watch football. :)
 
You need 14 x 17. I put a garage in my backyard specifically to house a Diamond barbox. The dimensions were 14x24 and I thought it would be plenty big until I finished it and the inside dimensions came in at 13x23. I thought it would be ok and I bought a couple of 52" cues for those occasions where I was on the long rail shooting across the table. It was a great pool room in every respect except the 13' wide issue. Every time I had to pick up the shorty it was a bitter disappointment.

A year after the pool room project was complete, we moved. My primary criteria was a room big enough to house the Diamond. I found it and my pool room is a dream. Plenty of room for friends and no wall or support pillar or any obstructions of any kind. The room is 17x28 (or so) big enough for a 9' but the room would feel crowded with friends over. I shoot on that table daily but it isn't a game unless you're playing with someone...

:cool:
 
m79a said:
What size is the abosolute smallest size a room could be to comfortably shoot if you had a Diamond bar box? I'm looking at new houses with rec rooms and one of my must haves is a room big enough for a bar box and not having to jack up your cue because the cue ball is on the rail and you are too lose to the wall.
Click to expand...

Why Bar box table, i highly recommend full size table, not much $$ difference.
 
TheBook said:
To see how much space you would need set up a card table 5 ft from a wall, and place 2 x 6' around the edges to serve as a cushion/rails. Place a CB against it and get down as if you were to do a rail shot. The minimum distance for you is when you can have a comfortable stand and stroke without crowding. I am 5-11 and have 5 ft around my 9 ft table along 2 walls in the basement. The other sides are open. A few more inches from the wall would be ideal for some straight across rail shots. Doesn't come into play very often but it would be nice to have the extra space when it does.
Click to expand...

I did something similar quite a few years ago. This approach worked better for me than relying on minimum measurements. When I was looking for a home to buy, the problem in unfinished basements was the width much more often than the length. Support poles are typically at about 13.5' or less. Like others on this thread, I found that I needed a bit extra beyond the minimum. I chose to leave three sides clear by setting up the table a little closer to the poles. I also set up the table so the poles were in the middle of the side rails. The impact of the poles was pretty minimal and having three clears sides was great. I don't live in that townhouse any longer and I don't remember the distance exactly. But IIRC, I set up the table adding 58" to the outside dimensions of the table rather than adding to the inside of the playing surface. Real estate sales people try to convince you that the poles can be replaced with an I-beam. I looked into the concept twice and both times, the builder/architect told me I was nuts. There was no place on the floor that would support that much added weight. It isn't always a matter of money.

If I had to deal with the situation like the Seinfeld video, I would rather use the rec room for something else. My current house has a room that is 46'x26' with 10' ceilings and no poles. About as close to heaven as it gets. I play every day.

Good luck
 
naji said:
Why Bar box table, i highly recommend full size table, not much $$ difference.
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For the table--No...but for the house it can be quite a bit depending on the area. If your looking for a home prior to a table definatly go bigger than the 5' min recommendations. I have had the room with a bar box with the minimum and the play was fine when your alone. Its even ok when there is one other person with you. However the moment 2 people come to play the room sucks and feels awkward as someone is always in the way. If you can do it, get one of the dimensions longer than the minimum so you can have seating/space for people to come over. Even though 80% or more of your play will be by yourself, it is nice to have the extra space.
 
pool room

My wife and I are avid house hunters. We have found that ranch style homes are more conducive for large open rooms or basements. My current home had a 24×24 room in the basement with a pole right in the middle. I did some research and found a structural engineer that could move the pole over to give me the clearance I needed for a 9' table. It cost me about 2500. Well worth it in my opinion, we have lived in the house for ten years.
 
I'm a contractor and had a customer looking to put a bar box in a small room. He was asking about pricing for a bump out room addition to gain a couple of feet. I talked him into putting in a bigger bay window to get about 18'' more space for cue sticks. :smile: Much cheaper when it's tight quarters.

Best,
Mike
 
Mikjary said:
I'm a contractor and had a customer looking to put a bar box in a small room. He was asking about pricing for a bump out room addition to gain a couple of feet. I talked him into putting in a bigger bay window to get about 18'' more space for cue sticks. :smile: Much cheaper when it's tight quarters.

Best,
Mike
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Along the same line, when you look at a house bring a tape measure. Room dimensions listed aren't always accurate. I passed a couple of potential houses up because the room that was big enough on paper wasn't big enough in reality.



:cool:
 
"Along the same line, when you look at a house bring a tape measure. Room dimensions listed aren't always accurate. I passed a couple of potential houses up because the room that was big enough on paper wasn't big enough in reality."



The rooms are measured from the outside of the wall to the outside of the wall. It's good to know this if you are building a new house with a pool room in mind.
 
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m79a said:
What size is the abosolute smallest size a room could be to comfortably shoot if you had a Diamond bar box? I'm looking at new houses with rec rooms and one of my must haves is a room big enough for a bar box and not having to jack up your cue because the cue ball is on the rail and you are too lose to the wall.
Click to expand...

I researched this quite a lot before I got my 9' table. For me it was either a 9' commercial table or nothing. I checked all of the suggestions on different websites about room sizes (using a 58" cue) and found that everyone had different size suggestions.
I knew that my room (lengthwise) might be a little close to be able to shoot without worrying about breaking windows or bumping walls on rail shots.
So I plum-bob'd the exact center of my room and then measured out 50" from center in both directions... placing a marker at each point on the floor. The distance was 62" from the inside "cushion" edge <--(the only point that really matters) to the wall (not the baseboard). This told me that the tightest stroke that I would ever have would be 5" if the cue-ball was on the rail and I was hitting across the top of the ball, (most shots of this type you will hit down on... thereby lifting the butt of your cue stick and adding a few more inches to your stroke). You also aren't likely to use a long stroke on a rail shot (but some do). I even tested this with my cue by setting up a 30" height sofa-table with a marker placed at 62" from the wall. I had decided it would work well, but if the room had been 3" shorter I wasn't going to own a table (without buying another house).
Using my 62" rule of "cushion to wall" I found play to be comfortable with a 58" cue. I'll bump a wall (on very rare occasions) before I set into a rail shot, but it's because I get used to the extra swing room at the pool halls and sometimes get too loose before a shot.
Basically the 62" distance is perfect and not ever a thought or concern as I'm taking my shots.

Go and measure the inside "cushion edge" dimensions on the type of table that you are going to get and add 124" to that. Anything less I would advise against. Also plum-bob for the center of the table (AND MAKE SURE THE INSTALLERS GET IT EXACT!!!)

PS... Every suggested size chart that I have seen online is smaller than my room. But they are usually from places that want to sell you a table!!!
 
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