Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
If your home billiard room is in a basement, there is a good possibility that you are dealing with support poles or beams near your pool table. These are usually load bearing beams and thus, there is not much you can do about them.
Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
Unfortunately, these poles will occasionally obstruct normal play. There are, however, a few design ideas you can incorporate in to your home billiard room that should mitigate the inconveniences that are caused by the poles or beams near your pool table.
The first design element to consider when working with a pool table near poles or beams deals with placement of the table. If there is a beam, you must make sure that the hear of the table is positioned away from the pole or beam obstruction. This is the end of the table that you would break from. If the home billiard room is really tight, you can position the table so that the pole is located near the middle of one of the side rail.
Other than strategic placement, there is not much more that you can do to a room for a billiard table near beams or poles. Most billiard room owners implement a "house" rule concerning the pole which outlines what can and can not be done with regards to shots involving the pole. Usually a ball may be moved if the obstructed shot is the only reasonable shot.
With this said, you could get away without any rules, since the beam or pole near the billiard table would conceivably affect each player or team equally.
Ideally there would be no need to put your pool table near a pole or a beam, but sometimes your space and/or financial constraints force you to do so. With strategic placement and rule adjustments, you should still be able to enjoy your table.
Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
- Title: Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
- Author: billiardsforum (Billiards Forum)
- Published: 7/30/2007 6:02:07 PM
- Source: Internet
Pool Table Near Poles or Beams
The Pool Table Near Poles or Beams article belongs to the Home Billiard Room Design and Layouts category. Articles related to the layout and design of the home billiard room.
Pool Table Near Poles or Beams Comments
MrPhilHarmonic from Freehold, NJ on 1/11/2009 2:59:21 PM
I currently suffer interference from two supporting poles in my basement which only affect shots from the one side of the table and then, approximately one in thirty shots. Still, it is annoying when they interfere with what would otherwise be 'perfect position'. I deal with it at present by implementing the 'house rule' where the person in play may move the cue ball 1" either way to facilitate the shot.
However, when I can organize the time, I plan to have a steel "C" joist 'laminated' to the existing wooden beam which would be supported in turn by a heavier duty 'end beam' further away from the pool table, and of course the end supporting wall too. I would then be able to remove the two interfering beams which are currently near the pool table and, presto, end of problem. The only 'downer' is the cost. I have been quoted between $2,500 and $3000. But, considering that it would turn the basement into a proper 'pool room' area, I think it will be worth it.
Kia from Mount Holly, NJ on 1/25/2009 6:50:31 PM
Hi Phil, I live in Mount Holly, NJ. I have a bar size pool table in my basement.
I have a support pole and a heating duct interfering with my table but not every time. The pool table is positioned so the pole is in the middle of the table and there is about three feet from the pole and the edge of the table. The heating duct runs over the top of the table so it isn't a great big deal. Also I have a 48" stick on stand-by for those tight corners. Over all we enjoy the pool table very much and the interference is just a small trade-off we make to be able to have the pool table in our basement.
Good luck with your construction project. I would be interested to hear it works out for you.
Jim,
Thanks for your reply. I too have a short stick for those shots which are just impossible with a standard cue. I find it's a poor compromise though as the weight of cue, type of tip etc. is nothing like my regular cue. (Forget any force-follows!) The occasional touch shot is OK but not much more.
I would imagine your heating duct running over your table is kind of an advantage as it will dry the cloth out and make for a very 'fast' playing table. I use two dehumidifiers to dry the air in my basement out. They work very well and provide me with distilled water for my Bonsai trees!
I'm going to get the columns removed this Summer though. I just hope it doesn't cost a fortune! Thanks for your good wishes. Much appreciated!
Cubme from WI, United States on 3/18/2010 6:32:54 PM
Jim and Phil,
I am looking at buying a 4' x 8' pool table for our basement which is wide enough to provide plenty of room at each end of the table. However, I have a support pole in the center of the room 11 feet from the wall.
Where would you guys recommend placing the pool table for optimal playing area?
I'm guessing in order to avoid cramped shots along the wall I would have to put the table about 2 feet away from the support pole. How badly would this affect play? Would the pole be best in line with the side pocket or off a bit? Maybe I just don't have enough space?
Thanks for your help.
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