There nothing better than indulging in a game of pool with your guys on a holiday. As exciting as the game is, having a pool table in your living space is even better.
A clean pool table is an elegant piece of furniture to keep in your game room, man cave, lounge, or any other place in your living space.
A pool table is a source of fun for people of all ages.
But just like any furniture, a pool table is likely to get dirty. Specially, you may need to clean the felt on the pool table.
In this article, I will cover what you need to do (and the things you need to consider) when cleaning the pool table felt.
Dealing with a Dirty Pool Table Felt
Sometimes, with a bachelor party in full swing, things can get a little wilder. In a hypothetical situation, your best pal is having a great time, and by mistake spills some jack on your new pool table felt.
Upon knowing what has gone down, you desperately want to knock your friend out, but manage to stop yourself. Now, the only thing on your mind is how to get rid of this big filthy stain on the pool table felt.
The real panic kicks in when somebody tells you that the felt will have to be replaced with a new one. Right now, the worst thing you can do is succumb to what people tell you.
The good news is that the pool table felt can be cleaned if you play your cards right.
However, the pool table felt needs to be cleaned a certain way, or else things will go bad. The tips mentioned below will help you clean your pool felt, without making a mess.
Let’s break it down.
How to Clean Felt on a Pool Table?
If you are planning to clean your pool table felt, the things you will need are as follows.
- At least 1-liter hot water
- A bowl
- A bottle of vinegar
- A lint-free or microfiber cloth
If the Stain Is Still Fresh
If it hasn’t been long since the spillage took place, chances are that the stain is still fresh and moist. If such is the case, the following tips will help you on the way.
- Use a dry clean cloth to blot the area, where the spillage took place. Remember, your job here is to blot gently and not wipe. Refrain from wiping, or else you will push the moisture deep into the fibers, and that is something that won’t make you too happy.
- Now, repeat the process with a different cloth. Take a clean dry cloth and rinse it lightly under cold water from the tap. The cloth should only be damp, and not wet. Blot lightly, and try to get as much of the stain as possible.
If the Stain Has Been There for Long
Chances are that the spillage and staining took place while you weren’t around.
If this is the case, follow the below-mentioned tips to clean your pool table felt.
- Now is the time to bring in the vinegar we talked about in the initial paragraphs. Mix a tablespoon of white vinegar into some cold water, and mix thoroughly in a bowl. Now, take your cloth in one hand, and lightly dip it into the water and vinegar mixture. Remember, the goal here is to dampen the cloth, instead of drenching it completely. With firm and even strokes, blot the felt. Make sure not to blot the surface of your pool table.
- The stain on your pool felt can be stubborn. If the stain is too hard to remove, repeat the process. Continue to repeat the process, until the stain has completely vanished. Felting a pool table is an expensive process, so try your best to clean the felt, for replacing it would exceed your budget.
- After a few cleaning sessions, remove the pool felt to air dry. After the felt has dried, and there isn’t any moisture left, take a look to make sure if the stains are there or not. If the stain persists, prep up for another blotting session. Use the same cloth and water and vinegar mixture to blot the area. Remember that your job is to blot and not rub.
Some Other Easy felt Cleaning Tips
Up until now, we have talked about cleaning your pool table felt.
Here are some unlikely felt cleaning tips that will keep your pool table felt clean and good as new, for an extended period.
Let’s break it down.
No Food Policy Around the Pool Table
Let’s think about this for a moment. There are three obvious ways food and drinks can be spilled on your pool table felt, which are as follows.
- You were standing by the pool table watching a game or hanging out with a food item or beverage in your hand. You might spill your food and drinks on the pool felt out of pure negligence.
- In the second scenario, the person playing pool was trying to balance a drink with one hand and playing with the other hand. This is one of the most foolish things to do especially when you are playing pool at somebody else’s place.
- The most common cause of food and drinks spilling on the pool felt is by placing it on the side of the pool table.
To make things easy for you, refrain from eating and drinking around the pool table.
To seal the deal, pin up a slogan “no food and drinks in this area” to make people refrain from taking food items and drinking near the pool table.
Use a Pool Table Brush
Pool tables with red felt on them look amazing. However, on them, dust becomes prominent. The best way to clean the dust of your pool felt is by using a customized felt brush.
Make sure not to use any other brush, or you will ruin the felt. Poll table bushes have soft bristles on them and get rid of dust more effectively.
Refrain From Over-Brushing
It is perfect to have a pool table brush, but it’s pointless to have one if you don’t know how to use it. To begin with, start brushing the center of the felt.
Very gently, start to work your way towards the side of the table. Whatever you do, please refrain from over-brushing the felt. By applying too many firm strokes, you are going to destroy the table felt.
Hand Vacuuming
Consider yourself lucky if you have a vacuum cleaner that can be turned into a hand vac. A hand vacuum is a great way of cleaning the felt on your pool table.
Turn your hand vacuum to the lowest setting, and gently run it on top of the pool table felt. To clean the edges and the sides, you can use a crevice tool, if you have one.
If you are serious about your pool table and want it to last long, you might as well purchase a hand vacuum cleaner.
If you want to keep your pool table felt clean and last long, the aforementioned tips will help you along your journey.
Mistakes to Avoid When Cleaning a Pool Table Felt
Here are some mistakes to avoid when cleaning a fool table felt.
Don’t Use Warm Water
When you notice a big ugly stain on your felt, the first impulse would be to apply loads to hot water, which is fine.
Unfortunately, hot water isn’t the best solution, in this case. Hot water will only make things even messier, and make the stain reserve a permanent spot on your pool table felt.
Don’t Apply Heat to the Surface
Another mistake to avoid when cleaning the pool felt is heat application. Heat is just as bad for the pool felt like hot water.
Not only will heat worsen the stain, but it will also damage the felt in a very major way.
Don’t Allow the Stain to Stay
A majority of the pool tables are destroyed because people tend to leave the unsightly stains for a later cleaning session.
Most regrettably, leaving the felt stain for a future cleanup isn’t the best idea, in this case. If something has spilled on your pool table, you need to get moving straight away.
Furthermore, you need to be extra careful, when some dark-colored substance like soda or chocolate has spilled on your pool felt.
Up until now, we have talked about the mistakes to avoid when cleaning the pool table felt. Now let’s shift the gears, and get right down to business.
The following tips will help you clean your pool table effectively, without making a mess.
Other articles you may like:
- How Much Does It Cost to Refelt a Pool Table?
- Pool Table Felt 101: A Guide To Difference Between Felt Types
- What’s the Cost of Leveling a Pool Table?
- How To Maintain Your Pool Table
- Can You Wash Pool Table Felt?
- How to Clean Chalk Off Pool Table Felt
