Pool Table Refelting and Recovering in Portland, OR
When your pool table's playing surface shows signs of wear (fading colors, visible tears, or balls that don't roll quite right), it's time for professional pool table felt recovering. NW Billiard Services specializes in pool table felt replacement throughout Portland, Vancouver WA, Salem, and across Oregon and Southwest Washington.
Whether you're refreshing a home game room table or maintaining equipment for a commercial space, we bring the expertise and quality materials needed to restore your table to like-new playing condition.
What Is a Pool Table Felt Replacement?
Pool table felt replacement, also called refelting, recovering, or cloth replacement, is the process of removing worn or damaged fabric from your table and installing fresh, new cloth. The work involves carefully removing the rails from your table, stripping away the old cloth from both the rails and the playing surface (the bed), and then installing new cloth of your choosing across the entire table.
The terms "felt," "cloth," and "fabric" are often used interchangeably in casual conversation, though technically, most modern pool tables use a woven cloth rather than true felt. Regardless of what you call it, this playing surface is what makes the game possible. It protects the slate underneath, provides the smooth roll players expect, and defines the look and feel of your table.
When Do You Need Pool Table Felt Replacement?
Several signs indicate it's time to replace your pool table cloth:
Visible wear and tear. Tears, rips, burns, or fraying around the pockets are clear indicators that replacement is overdue. Even small damage can affect ball roll and worsen quickly with continued play.
Fading or discoloration. Sunlight, age, and use can fade cloth over time. While this doesn't always affect play quality, it impacts the look of your table and can signal that the cloth's fibers are breaking down.
Ball drag or inconsistent roll. If balls slow down unexpectedly, veer off line, or don't respond to spin the way they used to, worn cloth is often the culprit. The fibers compress and pill with use, creating friction that affects gameplay.
Stains that won't come out. Spills, chalk dust buildup, and other stains can become permanent over time. While light cleaning can extend cloth life, some stains penetrate too deeply to remove.
It's been 5+ years. Even with careful maintenance, most pool table cloth needs replacement every 3-7 years depending on how heavily the table is used. Recreational home tables on the longer end of that range, frequently-used commercial tables on the shorter end.
Most homeowners realize they need felt replacement when they notice the table doesn't play the way it used to, or when they're preparing to move the table and discover the cloth is more worn than they thought.
Our Pool Table Felt Replacement Process
We've refined our felt replacement process to deliver consistent, high-quality results while respecting your time and home. Here's what you can expect when we arrive:
1. Assessment and preparation. We start by asking all of the questions and gathering as much information about you and your table as possible. Size of the table, how much pool you play, how much use your home table gets, and what you are looking to get out of the fabric. From there, we make our recommendations on cloth, get your approval, and show up stocked and ready.
2. Rail removal. We carefully remove each rail from the table, taking care not to damage the wood, pockets, or slate. Rails are the pieces of wood sitting above the slate that contain the cloth-covered rubber cushions that allow the balls to bounce and make the game itself possible.
3. Recover the Rails. We strip the old cloth from the rails and inspect everything underneath. If the rails need extra work beyond the recover, this is where we would talk about that and find a course of action. If no extra work is needed, or everything can be done there on site, the rails get wrapped in fresh cloth and are set aside for re-assembly later.
4. Slate inspection and cleaning. We clean the slate surface and check for levelness. If anything needs to be re-leveled in any way, this is where that happens. The slates get re-seamed and sealed, locked in, and everything is guaranteed to stay level for at least 1 year.
5. New cloth installation on the bed. We carefully stretch and staple or glue (depending on your table's construction) the new cloth across the slate bed. Proper stretching is critical. Too loose and you get ripples, too tight and the cloth can pucker or show tension shadows. This is where professional experience makes the biggest difference.
7. Reassembly and leveling check. We reinstall the rails and inspect the entire surface to ensure everything is aligned and plays correctly. Pockets are re-secured to the table.
8. Quality check and cleanup. Before we leave, we roll test balls across various areas of the table to confirm proper play, and we clean up completely—removing all old cloth and materials.
Timeline: Most felt replacement jobs take 2-4 hours from start to finish, depending on table size and complexity. We'll give you a more specific estimate when we schedule your appointment.
How to Choose the Right Pool Table Felt
One of the most common questions we hear is: "What kind of cloth should I get?" The answer depends on how you use your table, how much you want to spend, and what kind of playing characteristics you prefer.
Standard vs. Worsted Pool Table Cloth Explained
Pool table cloth falls into two main categories:
Standard (Napped) Cloth is the traditional fuzzy-textured fabric most people picture when they think "pool table felt." The fibers are raised, giving it a softer feel. Standard cloth is durable, affordable, and works well for most home recreational players. It plays a bit slower than worsted cloth, which some players prefer for control. We typically recommend standard cloth for family game rooms where the table gets moderate use. Standard cloth also comes with a Teflon coating, allowing liquid spills to be cleaned up without ruining the cloth.
Worsted Cloth is tightly woven with combed fibers that create a smoother, flatter surface, feeling like a suit jacket. This is the cloth you'll find on professional tournament tables. It plays faster, allows for more precise spin control, and tends to last longer than standard cloth. Worsted cloth costs more, but serious players often consider it worth the investment for the difference in play quality.
Trusted Pool Table Cloth Brands We Use
We only install cloth from manufacturers we'd use on our own tables. Some of the brands we regularly work with include:
Championship offers both standard and worsted options at competitive price points, making them a popular choice for home tables.
Gorina Basalt is by far our favorite Premium, Worsted Cloth option. It edges out every other company out there in terms of durability and playability, and is very competitively priced. It’s all we use on our personal table and in the pool rooms we frequent.
Simonis is still the name a lot of people think of, have heard of, or find first with a google search online. They make a quality product that we can always get our hands on.
The important thing to know: we won't sell you cloth we wouldn't play on ourselves. If it's not good enough for us, we don't offer it to our customers.
Pool Table Felt Color Options
Cloth comes in dozens of colors, far beyond the traditional green you might expect. Tournament blue, burgundy, black, tan, camel, and gray are all popular choices. Some players choose colors to match their game room décor, others stick with traditional green or blue for optimal ball visibility.
Color doesn't affect play performance, though some colors show wear, chalk marks, and spills more readily than others. Lighter colors tend to stay looking cleaner longer, while darker colors can show fading and wear more noticeably over time.
How Pool Table Cloth Choices Affects Cost
Pool table felt replacement cost varies significantly based on cloth selection. Standard cloth for a typical home table runs considerably less than premium worsted cloth. When you contact us for a quote, we'll walk you through options at different price points so you can choose what makes sense for your playing needs and budget.
For a detailed breakdown of cloth types, brands, and characteristics, visit our Pool Table Cloth Guide.
Pool Table Felt Replacement Cost: What to Expect
The cost to replace your pool table felt depends on several factors. We believe in pricing transparency, so here's what influences the final cost:
Pool Table Sizes and Options
This is the primary cost factor. Larger tables require more cloth and the installation work takes longer:
7-foot tables are common in many homes and use the least amount of cloth
8-foot tables are the standard for most home game rooms
9-foot tables are tournament size and require significantly more material
When you contact us, we'll help you determine your table size if you're not sure. The simplest way: measure the playing surface (not the outer rails) from cushion nose to cushion nose. A table with a 100" x 50" playing surface is a 9-foot table, 88" x 44" is an 8-foot table, and 78" x 39" is a 7-foot table.
Pool Table Cloth Grades and Brands
As mentioned above, standard cloth costs less than worsted cloth, and different brands have different price points. Your cloth choice will have the single biggest impact on total cost.
Pool Table Types Explained
Most residential pool tables, about 80-90% in our experience, fall under standard pricing. However, certain table types require additional time or special techniques:
Antique tables may have unique construction or delicate components requiring extra care
Tables with ball return systems sometimes need extra disassembly
Tables with damaged or deteriorating cushions may need bumper work beyond just cloth replacement (separate service)
When you describe your table to us, we'll let you know if any factors might affect pricing. With a picture or two, we can tell you everything you want to know about your table and how much everything is going to cost over the phone.
What's Included in Our Pool Table Service
Our felt replacement service includes:
Complete cloth removal and replacement on bed and rails
Slate leveling adjustments
Table leg leveling if needed
Professional installation with proper stretching and finishing
Quality inspection and test roll
Complete cleanup of old materials
What Costs Extra for Pool Table Repair and Replacement
Any major slate issues we find underneath the cloth can add cost. It is rare to find, but if a slate has a large crack that needs to be repaired, that takes a lot of extra time to do correctly. Bumper replacement is the other thing we will discuss if necessary. Cushions are made of rubber, and as such deteriorate from being exposed to oxygen. Some cushions age faster than others, but they are usually good for 15-20 years from most manufacturers.
Pool Table Cloth Availability
We keep standard cloth in the most popular colors stocked in our van, which means we can often complete felt replacement on short notice or even same-day for standard cloth requests. We also stock all of the colors for the Gorina Basalt premium cloth as well. 9’ cuts of cloth, as well as Simonis or other brands usually need to be ordered and take 3-4 days to get here.
Service Area: Portland Metro and Beyond
NW Billiard Services provides professional pool table felt replacement throughout:
Portland metro area including all neighborhoods and suburbs
Vancouver, Washington and surrounding Clark County communities
Salem, Oregon and the mid-Willamette Valley
Oregon Coast communities
Southern Oregon including Medford, Ashland, and Grants Pass
We're willing to travel throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington to serve our customers. Distance affects scheduling and may involve a travel charge for locations significantly outside the Portland metro area, but we're flexible and happy to discuss your specific location.
Why Choose Us for Your Felt Replacement?
When you hire NW Billiard Services, you're working with professionals who genuinely care about pool tables and the people who play on them.
We only use quality cloth. If we don't play on it, we don't sell it. That's our standard, and we stick to it. We work with trusted manufacturers and can explain the real differences between cloth types so you can make an informed decision.
We bring expertise to every job. We've worked on hundreds of tables—antiques, imports, high-end customs, and everything in between. We know how different tables are constructed, what problems to watch for, and how to deliver results that last.
We're transparent about pricing. Most felt replacements fall within our standard pricing structure. If something about your table or situation might affect cost, we'll let you know upfront.
Education comes first. We believe information is free, which is why we take time to answer your questions, explain your options, and help you understand what's involved. We're not here to pressure you into premium options you don't need. We want to make sure you get the right solution for how you use your table.
We respect your time and home. We show up when scheduled, work efficiently, protect your space, and clean up completely when we're done.
Ready to Refresh Your Pool Table Felt?
New felt transforms your table. The playing surface becomes smooth and responsive again, colors look vibrant, and every shot feels right. If you're tired of fighting worn cloth or just ready for a fresh look, we're here to help. Contact us for a free quote or schedule an appointment today!
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does pool table felt replacement take?
Most felt replacement jobs take 2-4 hours depending on table size and complexity. We work efficiently while maintaining high-quality standards, so you can get back to playing as soon as possible.
How do I know what size pool table I have?
Measure the playing surface (the flat part between the cushions, not including the rails) from end to end. An 8-foot table has a 44" x 88" playing surface. A 9-foot table measures 50" x 100". A 7-foot table is 39" x 78". If you're still unsure, we can help you determine the size.
How often should pool table felt be replaced?
With normal home use, pool table cloth typically lasts 5-7 years. Tables that see heavy daily use or commercial play may need replacement every 2-3 years. Light recreational use might extend cloth life beyond 7 years. The best indicator is how the table plays and looks—if you notice visible wear, staining, or changes in ball roll, it's probably time.
Can you match my existing felt color?
With good photos, we can usually tell you what brand and color you have on your table currently. From there, we can show you our color options and help you choose. Many homeowners take the opportunity to try a new color when replacing felt.
What's the difference between felt and cloth?
In casual conversation, people use "felt," "cloth," and "fabric" interchangeably. Technically, modern pool tables use a woven cloth (either napped or worsted) rather than true felt. The term "felt" has stuck around from earlier materials, but when you hear professionals say "cloth," they're referring to the same thing.
Do you provide the cloth, or do I need to buy it separately?
We provide the cloth as part of our service. We'll discuss your options—standard or worsted, brand preferences, colors—and order or bring what you need. This ensures we have the right amount for your table size and that it's compatible with your table type.
What if you discover damage when you remove the old cloth?
We perform a visual inspection of the slate and rails when we remove the old cloth. If we find issues like cracked slate, dead cushions, or significant problems that need attention, we'll discuss your options before proceeding. Minor issues are often addressed as part of the work, but major repairs are separate services we'll quote for you.
Can I use my table right away after felt replacement?
Yes. Once we've completed installation, quality checks, and cleaned up, your table is ready to play. The cloth doesn't need a "break-in" period—though playing conditions will change as the cloth starts to wear in. New cloth plays significantly different than worn out fabric.
Do you offer any kind of warranty on your work?
We stand behind our work. If you experience any issues related to our installation (loose cloth, improper stretching, level problems we should have caught) we'll come back and make it right. If you aren’t satisfied in any way for the first year, call us and we will make it right. Period.
What should I do to maintain my new felt?
Vacuuming the table is the best thing you can do for it. With a handheld vacuum attachment, hit all of the rails as well as the slate bed. This gets all of the old dirt and dust out of the cloth in a way that a brush or towel ever could. Cover your table when not in use if possible. Clean spills immediately by blotting (never rubbing). Avoid placing objects on the table that might snag or stain the cloth. With proper care, your new felt will stay looking and playing great for years.
