Some people might look at a pool table as just another piece of furniture. But for your movers, it’s one of the most challenging items to handle safely. A pool table isn’t like a heavy couch or bulky dining table. It’s designed to stay in place—not get carried all the way to another basement on the other side of town.
That’s why if you’ve got a pool table as part of your upcoming move, you’ll want to know what to expect from your local moving company. It takes a little planning, but that’s important because it will help you avoid delays. What’s more, it can protect your investment.
Why Pool Tables Are So Difficult to Move
Movers are used to picking up heavy things. So the problem with pool tables isn’t exactly the weight, it’s how they’re built.
A quality pool table tends to have a slate playing surface. That alone can weigh several hundred pounds. But then you’ve got the frame, rails, and legs. All of that has to work together to keep that slate perfectly balanced for a fair game.
If someone tries to shift or move that table without disassembling it first, you could be looking at damage to the frame or even cracks in the slate. Worse, it can make it impossible to get the table level after the move. That’s why pool tables require a different approach. It’s not like standard household furniture, so you need to treat it right.
Professional Movers and Pool Table Specialists Have Different Jobs
Some people assume that their moving company can handle every aspect of relocating a pool table. After all, they’re tackling other heavy items in the house! But taking a pool table apart to move it and then putting it back together is a different story.
Moving companies and pool table specialists offer unique services, and if you own a pool table, hiring an expert is key. Your movers just won’t have the right skill set.
At Colt Moving, we train our movers to safely transport all types of belongings. But when it comes to pool tables, the moving has to happen after it’s already been professionally disassembled. So make sure your pool table pros can come out first. Then you can have them come back out after our team moves the parts to get everything reassembled in your new home—and ready to play.
Why Disassembly Matters
For us, it’s not about avoiding work—it’s about protecting expensive equipment. Pool tables are built with detailed specifications, and they need someone with knowledge and experience to dismantle them appropriately and then piece them together correctly after a move.
Disassembling a pool table is about more than removing the legs. Depending on the type of table you own, the technician may need to:
- Remove the rails and pockets
- Carefully separate the slate sections
- Label and organize hardware
- Re-level the table at the new location
- Reinstall or replace the felt, if necessary
Even a slight mistake can affect how fair and balanced the table will be. That’s why professional disassembly and reassembly happen with pool table experts—not a standard moving company.
What Colt Can Handle
Once your pool table has been properly disassembled, our movers can take care of the heavy lifting. We know how to manage the transportation safely, but since pool tables come with additional weight and some risk, they’re considered specialty items.
A $100 specialty item fee applies to pool tables, along with other items that our crew moves, including gun safes, treadmills, ellipticals, hot tubs, and interior appliances. The fee works to cover the additional care and liability involved.
Please let your scheduling manager know about your pool table ahead of time. That way, we’ll be able to confirm that your crew arrives fully prepared.
Don’t Wait Until Moving Day
One of the biggest reasons why moving days can get delayed is from pool tables that haven’t been disassembled by the time the movers arrive. When that happens, people often have to leave the table behind until a specialist can come out to prepare it. Then you’ll be dealing with coordinating your movers all over again.
A little coordination helps everything go smoothly on moving day. When you arrange for disassembly in advance, before the movers come out, they can take care of the transport along with everything else. Just let your moving company know the table will be ready for transport. Then they’ll do the rest.
Planning Ahead Makes All the Difference
Whether you’re moving across town in the greater Indianapolis area or planning a longer move within Indiana, Colt Moving is here to help!
Let us know what types of specialty items you have, and we can guide you through the process of getting everything ready for a streamlined moving day. If you have questions about moving a pool table or other logistics, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Clear expectations lead to smoother, more affordable moves.