Can you sit or stand on a pool table

If it’s not mandatory, you should never sit or stand on a residential pool table. Although a pool table seems strong enough to take the load of a human body, the fragile nature of the slate won’t support the weight. Ultimately, there will be several damages on the table surface or the whole table.

Honestly speaking, if you don’t want an addition to the pool table cost, you shouldn’t think of sitting or standing on a pool table. However, you might be thinking about how the professional pool table players stand on the table after winning the game? Don’t worry; we will go through this as well in this article.

Are you allowed to sit on a pool table

Nope, you should never sit on a pool table unless you are worried about the consequences. When someone sits on a pool table, the whole pressure stays on the pool table slate. And there’s a huge difference between professional and residential pool tables.

The slate of the pool table isn’t strong enough to take the load of a human body. When you sit in the middle of the table, it will do similar damage as it would have done after standing on it. Even when you sit on the side rails, it could disturb the balance of the table.

Why is it bad sitting on a pool table

There are some serious reasons, which proves sitting on a pool table is bad. So before you use the pool table as a couch, take a look at these reasons.

When you sit on the rails of the pool table, it can damage the balance of the table. It puts pressure on one particular side, and thus the balance is disturbed.

The table has a balanced structure, and that’s why the ball runs through the surface swiftly. But the playability will be affected because of this imbalanced structure.

It doesn’t matter what pool table felt color you have used on the slate, unusual sitting or pressure could damage the felt.

While sitting on the side rails, you can create several scratches on the felt by your clothing.

Is it OK to stand on a pool table

I hope that guys who are asking such questions might be kidding. Because where sitting on a pool table is not allowed, how could one imagine standing on a pool table? If you want to keep your home pool table safe, you should never stand on a pool table. 

It’s never OK to stand on a pool table as it will damage the whole table. The pool table slate isn’t made to withstand the load of a human body. It doesn’t have any support underneath to take the load. Although the legs of a pool table are study enough, the pressure of a human body is immense on it. 

Why one should not stand on a pool table

Like I already said, it’s not a good idea to stand on a pool table. But some curious guys might be still thinking why one shouldn’t stand on a pool table? So, here are the reasons.

1. Most residential pool tables of made of MDF slates, which doesn’t provide enough support to take human body load.
2. Although a pool table can weigh more than 500 pounds itself, there isn’t any support underneath the slate.
3. After standing on the thicker pool table slate, it has every possible chance of sudden cracking.
4. The legs are supposed to get damaged due to the immense load.
5. It will affect the floor where the table is standing.

How can professional players stand on pool tables

You might be thinking, if I can’t stand on my pool table, how could the professional celebrate their victory standing on the tables? There are some crucial differences between commercial or professional pool tables and residential or recreational pool tables.

1. The main difference between professional and recreational pool tables is the thickness of the slates. Professional pool table slates are 1 inch thick, whereas recreational ones are ¾ inches thick.
2. The slates used on recreational tables are comparatively fragile than professional ones.
3. The reason why professional pool table players can stand on the table is the wooden backing support underneath the slate.
4. The MDF materials used to construct recreational pool table slates are cheaper and likely to break.

How much weight a pool table can support

The weight carrying limit typically depends on the type of pool table weight, you are using. And there are mainly two types of pool tables, one for commercial use and the other one is for recreational use.

Commercial pool table: Commercial pool tables have a heavy-duty and thicker construction. The slate used on the tabletop is 1 inch thick and can withstand more than enough weight. Moreover, there is a heavy wooden piece situated underneath the slate to support professional players’ weight even after standing on it.

The felt on the slate won’t get easily damaged. This thicker and heavy-duty pool table itself weighs more than 800 pounds. Undoubtedly, it can take more loads.

Recreational pool table: Recreational pool tables have MDF slate with a thickness of ¾ inches. The main downside of these slates is that there isn’t any wooden backing available underneath. So it is only good to take a load of normal things, not the human body. A recreational pool table itself weighs up to 500 pounds.

How much damage it will cost standing or sitting on a pool table

Whether you sit or stand on a pool table, it will cause some damage to the table in either situation. After knowing about the consequences of your actions, you might think of not doing the same again.

1. Sitting on the side rails of a pool table will damage the rails because the cushions will pop up conveniently.
2. Sitting on one side of the table will put pressure on a particular spot, which could disturb the balance of the table.
3. Table slate without wooden backing underneath could collapse as soon as you stand on it.
4. Both sitting and standing can create scratches on the felt and damage the quality.
5. Having a crack on the table itself is a common consequence of sitting or standing on it.

How to protect your pool table

To make the pool table durable and long-lasting, you must protect it. And there are some superb ways, which you can follow to protect your pool table.

1. Never stand on a table slate after the game or in any situation.
2. While leaning on the table, try not to touch any sharp thing touch the rails. It could create permanent scratches on the rails.
3. To keep the balance and rail cushions like before, you should keep yourself away from sitting on the side rails.
4. Keep the table in a climate-controlled environment to increase longevity.
5. Don’t keep any food and drinks directly on the pool table slate or rails.
6. Keep the table away from direct sunlight, as it could damage both felt color and quality.

How fragile is a pool table slate

The simple answer to this question is yes, a pool table slate is fragile. Although it can withstand the hard shots during the game and even the professional players celebrate their victory going on the slate, it is still fragile. Due to its fragile nature, users need to be cautious about the pool table slate.