What You Should Know When Moving A Pool Table

Packing up everything you own and moving to a new home can be an exciting endeavour, but there are many difficult and tedious jobs that you might underestimate… until you actually have to do it.

One of those jobs particularly is moving a pool table. Having a pool table in your home is a great way to entertain your family and guests, but if you ever have to move it to a new home, you’re in for some heavy-duty removal work. Pool table removal is one of the hardest removal projects a homeowner can undergo, as pool tables are one of the heaviest and biggest objects you can personally own (weighing on average up to 500kg!).

If you want to do it yourself instead of hiring a team of professionals, here are some of the key insights you need to know for this process.

1. Get Everything You Need

Unlike the majority of your items, picking up and transporting your pool table will take more than just some big muscles and elbow grease. As you most likely won’t be able to move your pool table throughout the house in one piece, you will need several tools and some moving blankets to keep everything safe and together.

This generally includes:

• Screwdrivers
• Power drill
• Socket wrench
• Several moving blankets
• Staple remover (for the felt)

And remember: put a label on everything. One mistake we see with a lot of DIY pool table removal projects is the homeowner tossing all the pieces in a single pile, and then spending hours and hours trying to remember where everything is supposed to go. We recommend getting small pouches or bags where you can store the small bits and pieces with their own labels.

2. Prepare Your Path And Measure It

Before any of the heavy lifting, make sure you know exactly where you’re going to go and how much space is available to do it. While disassembling the pool table will mean you don’t have to manoeuvre a giant 500-kg pool table through your doorways, you will still have to carry some pretty big and hefty pieces.

If you are dealing with a lot of corners and edges (staircases, twisting hallways, multiple doorways), then you might want to consider baby proofing the sides of your pool table with baby-proof bumpers or by wrapping them with thick towels. This ensures that you won’t end up with a chipped and battered pool table in y our new home.

3. Recruit Your Movers

Now that you’re ready for the heavy lifting, it’s time to get some muscle onboard. Recruit some friends, family, or even willing neighbours to help you out with the entire move. Instruct everyone to wear clothes that they can easily move around in, like shorts and some steady boots or sneakers.

As for the number of people, you should have a minimum of 4 or 5 movers on your team.

4. Disassembly Time

If you don’t have the manual for your pool table with you, no worries—we’ll give you a step-by-step disassembling guide that should work for most pool tables out there.

• Ball pockets – Use the staple remover to pull out the staples holding them up. If your ball pockets are screwed in, use a screwdriver instead. Store all these pieces in marked bags or pouches.
• Side rails – Your socket wrench should be able to do the trick, unscrewing the bolts and letting the side rail come loose.
• Felt – The felt is generally stapled onto the table, so you will have to use the staple remover to undo each staple. Remember: be very gentle, as the felt can be incredibly delicate and easy to damage.
• Slates – A one-piece slate generally weighs over 200-kg, so this isn’t something you want to try carrying alone. Start off with a power drill to unscrew the slates, and then have your team pick it up and move it together.

With those pieces out of the way, you should be left with the legs and body of the pool table. Depending on the size of your doorways and corners, you might also need to remove the legs. Feel free to turn the table sideways or upside down while doing this.

Tip: After the table is disassembled, wrap every piece individually in material that will keep it safe, such as moving blankets and/or bubble wrap.

5. Moving It

Now comes the actual move. With the pool table disassembled, you should have little trouble moving the majority of the pieces to the truck and into your new home. As for the slates and the body of the table – the heaviest pieces involved – be sure to have movers at the front and the back, and another person guiding the team along the way. When placed in the truck, you want to make sure that the heavy pieces have been properly separated, or else you will end up with everything banging on each other over the trip. Reassembly should be easy – just do the disassembly process above in reverse!

Ready For The Work? Why Not Hire The Pros?

If you’re still thinking about doing your pool table removal on your own and with a group of friends, then get ready for a full day or two of backbreaking work. But if you want to focus on other parts of your move, then hire us at Giffen Furniture Removals. We’ve done it all before, and have the equipment, manpower, and expertise to make sure your pool table moves from one home to another in pristine condition.

Interested? Call or message us today at Giffen Furniture Removals, and ask us for your free quote for any of your moving and storage needs!