Sizes and weights
Typical ranges for what we actually meet in Central London rather than one manufacturer's specification. Measure yours before you rely on them.
| Type | Size | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 6ft table | 183 x 91cm playing surface, about 200 x 110cm overall150 to 250kg slate, 70 to 110kg MDF | 150 to 250kg slate, 70 to 110kg MDF |
| 7ft table | 213 x 107cm playing surface, about 230 x 125cm overall250 to 400kg slate, 90 to 150kg MDF | 250 to 400kg slate, 90 to 150kg MDF |
| 8ft table | 244 x 122cm playing surface, about 260 x 140cm overall350 to 500kg slate | 350 to 500kg slate |
| Single slate section | roughly a third of the bed, 20 to 25mm thick60 to 100kg each | 60 to 100kg each |
For reference, a standard UK internal door is 762mm. Older Central London stock is often narrower. Full door and van measurements.
Will it fit?
Will a pool table go through a door assembled?
An MDF 6ft table, sometimes, on its side, since the width of about 110cm becomes the height and the depth of 80cm has to clear the door. A 7ft or 8ft slate table, no. It is both too heavy and too wide, and slate does not tolerate being carried at an angle.
What comes apart on a slate table?
The cloth is unstapled or the cushions come off with it, then the cushion rails, then the slate sections lift off the frame one at a time, then the frame and legs. It goes back together in reverse and the slate has to be shimmed level before the cloth goes back on.
Can the slate be carried on its edge?
Yes, and it must be. A slate section carried flat by two people flexes across its middle and can crack, and a cracked slate is not repairable in any useful sense. On edge, supported at both ends, is the only way it travels.
Will the floor take it?
A 7ft slate table is 250 to 400kg concentrated on four or six legs, and that is worth thinking about above the ground floor in a period conversion. Modern floors handle it. A Victorian first floor with the load sitting between joists rather than across them is worth a moment of thought, and we will raise it rather than assume.
How we move a pool table
- We establish slate or MDF before quoting, because they are different jobs at different prices
- The cloth is removed carefully where it is to be reused, or replaced where it is not
- Cushion rails come off, then the slate lifts in sections onto padded supports
- Each slate section travels on its edge, blanket wrapped and strapped upright in the van
- The frame is reassembled and levelled first, then the slate goes back and is shimmed true
- The cloth is refitted and the table checked with a spirit level along both axes
When this stops being a routine job
An 8ft slate table, anything above the ground floor, and any table where the room it is going into has an uneven or suspended floor. All of those we do, and all of them want a week of notice, three or four crew and a proper look at the route first.
Slate or MDF, and how to tell
Slate beds are found on anything sold as a pub, tournament or full size table, and on most 7ft and 8ft home tables. MDF beds are found on cheaper home tables, folding tables and most 6ft models under a few hundred pounds. If you can lift one end of the table on your own, it is MDF.
The difference in the move is total. An MDF 6ft table is two people and an afternoon at £290 to £410. A 7ft slate table is three or four people, a full dismantle and rebuild, and £520 to £740. Quoting one as the other is how a job goes wrong on the day.
The re-level, which is most of the value
Getting the table to the new room is the easy half. Getting it playing properly is the half people underestimate. The frame is levelled first, then each slate section is shimmed until the joins are flush and the whole bed reads true along both axes with a long spirit level.
On a period floor that can take an hour on its own. It is inside the quoted figure rather than an extra, because a pool table that is not level is furniture rather than a table.
Before we arrive
- Find out whether the bed is slate or MDF, which is usually in the manual or under the table
- Clear a route wide enough for a slate section carried on edge by two people
- Have somewhere for the table to go that is genuinely level, or accept the shimming will do more work
- Order a new cloth in advance if the existing one is worn, since it is far cheaper to fit during the rebuild
- Tell us the floor at both ends, because slate above the ground floor changes the crew
What tends to go wrong
Moving a slate table whole
It is the reason slate tables get cracked. The bed is not fixed rigidly to the frame and it is not designed to be carried as one unit. Anyone offering to take a 7ft slate table out in one piece is either mistaken about what it is or planning to find out the hard way.
Reusing a cloth that was stapled
A cloth that has been stretched and stapled once will usually go back, but it is never as taut and any existing wear shows more. If it is more than a few years old, refitting a new one during the rebuild costs a fraction of doing it as a separate job later.
Assuming it will be level
A pool table is only as good as its levelling, and no floor in a Victorian conversion is level. The shimming is the slow part of the rebuild and it is what separates a table you can play on from a table where everything drifts to one corner. It is inside the price and it is worth the hour.
Pool table moving: common questions
How much does it cost to move a pool table in London?
Between £290 and £850 including VAT, most near £480. An MDF 6ft table is £290 to £410. A 7ft slate table dismantled, moved and re-levelled is £520 to £740. An 8ft slate table, or anything above the ground floor, runs to £850. The dismantle, the rebuild and the levelling are all inside the figure.
Does a slate pool table have to be taken apart?
Yes. The slate bed is in sections of 60 to 100kg each sitting on the frame, and it is neither safe nor sensible to move it assembled. Taken apart it goes through doors and up stairs; taken whole it cracks. Only MDF bed tables move in one piece.
How heavy is a pool table?
A 7ft slate table is 250 to 400kg in total, with each of the three slate sections at 60 to 100kg. The same size in MDF is 90 to 150kg. That gap is why the first question we ask is which one you have.
Will you re-level it at the other end?
Yes, and it is most of the work. The frame is levelled, then each slate section is shimmed until the joins are flush and the bed reads true along both axes. On a period floor that alone can take an hour, and it is inside the price rather than an extra.
Can I reuse the cloth?
Usually, though it is never quite as taut after being taken off and refitted, and existing wear shows more. If the cloth is more than a few years old it is far cheaper to have a new one fitted during the rebuild than to do it as a separate job later.
Can a pool table go upstairs?
A dismantled slate table can, section by section, and we do it. What is worth checking first is the floor it is going onto: 250 to 400kg on four legs in a period first floor room is worth a thought, and we will raise it rather than assume it is fine.
Other single items
Moving more than one thing?
This page is about a pool table on its own. The single item and furniture delivery page covers the service generally, and what a move costs prices a whole flat or house.
Across Central London
We move a pool table anywhere in the 37 areas we cover. What changes between them is the parking and the staircase, which is what decides where in the band you land.