Baizewick guide
How to level a pool table
Check the table with a spirit level in several directions and adjust the levellers a little at a time. A level table rolls true. Leave slate levelling to a fitter.
Why levelling matters
On an unlevel table, slow balls drift off line, especially near the pockets. It is one of the most common reasons a home table plays badly.
On most MDF tables, it is also one of the easiest things to fix.
What you need
- A good spirit level, long enough to span a fair part of the bed
- A spanner, or the levelling tool supplied with the table
- A helper to lift a corner, if the maker allows it
- A ball for a final roll test
Step by step (MDF and non-slate tables)
- Check the floor first. If it slopes noticeably, the levellers may not be enough.
- Lay the spirit level along the length of the bed near one side cushion, then near the other.
- Repeat across the width at both ends and in the middle.
- Check both diagonals.
- Adjust the leg levellers in small amounts, starting with the lowest corner. Where you can, raise low corners rather than lowering high ones.
- Check every direction again after each adjustment.
- Roll a ball slowly along the length and across the width. It should run straight without drifting.
- Check again after a few weeks, once the table has settled on the floor.
Slate tables: call a fitter
Slate beds are levelled during installation. Fitters often use shims under the slate and adjust the frame carefully. Moving or re-levelling slate is heavy, skilled work.
If a slate table has drifted out of level, ask a table fitter to check it. Don’t adjust it yourself.
When the floor is the problem
Levelling systems can correct small variations. They can’t correct a significant slope, a soft spot or a floor that flexes.
Garage floors often slope towards the door. Suspended timber floors can deflect under a heavy table and the people around it.
If the table won’t stay level, get the floor checked. For an upstairs or suspended floor, ask a structural engineer.
Signs a table needs attention
- Slow balls curve towards one side or corner.
- The cloth has visible ripples or slack areas.
- Balls behave differently after the table has been moved or the room redecorated.