Foosball Tables > Cleaning & Maintenance
Table Cleaning & Maintenance
Keeping your foosball table clean and maintained is important to protecting your investment and playing a good, fast-paced game. Dirt, debris, black ball marks and spilled drinks are a foosball table's worst nightmare. It is recommended to clean your table once a week during heavy usage and at least every month during low to moderate usage. Additionally, we recommend having side tables for players to set their drinks on to reduce spills to help keep your table clean. A lot of tables have coasters on the corners of the table, but these will not prevent a can or glass from tipping over. Foosball tables can easily shift during game play or balls can fly off the top and spill your drinks. If a drink does happen to get spilled on the table surface, dry it with a towel immediately to prevent warping on the playing surface as this is the easiest way to prevent damage.
Materials Required to Clean a Foosball Table:
As part of our foosball safety recommendations, please make sure you keep your cleaning chemicals out of reach from small children. |
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How to Clean and Maintenance a Foosball Table
The first step to maintenance your table is to make sure that you wipe the table with a clean, dry cloth to remove any of the loose dirt and debris from the foosball table. Next, put a light amount of rubbing alcohol on the cloth and wipe the top surface down. The alcohol will not harm your table surface and it will evaporate quickly if used sparingly which is key because you don't want liquid to seep into the wood materials and cause water damage and warping. You may need to apply multiple coats on stubborn black stains. Also, do not use harsh cleaners such as floor or countertop cleaners as they can harm the surface.
After your table top surface is clean, you will need to take a separate cloth or cotton rag and apply a small amount of foosball silicone to the rods of your table. This will keep the rods maintained and slick for the best table operation. Do not use WD-40 on your rods! This will make your rods slick and move faster for a short period of time but will dry out your bumpers and bearings and make your table wear down faster over time.
The first step to maintenance your table is to make sure that you wipe the table with a clean, dry cloth to remove any of the loose dirt and debris from the foosball table. Next, put a light amount of rubbing alcohol on the cloth and wipe the top surface down. The alcohol will not harm your table surface and it will evaporate quickly if used sparingly which is key because you don't want liquid to seep into the wood materials and cause water damage and warping. You may need to apply multiple coats on stubborn black stains. Also, do not use harsh cleaners such as floor or countertop cleaners as they can harm the surface.
After your table top surface is clean, you will need to take a separate cloth or cotton rag and apply a small amount of foosball silicone to the rods of your table. This will keep the rods maintained and slick for the best table operation. Do not use WD-40 on your rods! This will make your rods slick and move faster for a short period of time but will dry out your bumpers and bearings and make your table wear down faster over time.
How to Clean the Balls
Just like the surface of the table, you can use the rubbing alcohol to clean the foosballs. This is critical to keep black marks and debris off the ball which can impact the play of the game. You may need to use a little elbow grease with the rubbing alcohol on your towel and roll it around in your hand to get them completely clean.
Just like the surface of the table, you can use the rubbing alcohol to clean the foosballs. This is critical to keep black marks and debris off the ball which can impact the play of the game. You may need to use a little elbow grease with the rubbing alcohol on your towel and roll it around in your hand to get them completely clean.
Glue Broken Parts
After years of ownership, sometimes small pieces such as trim will lose their glue from the manufacturer and will become loose. If you notice this, timing is important to make sure you glue this back down before it gets any worse. If you wait with loose parts they will only get worse and you run the risk of them snapping off if you continue to play on it. We recommend the Gorilla Glue Precise applicator that will allow you to use a light amount of glue with a lot of adhesive power. This glue bonds a variety of materials from plastic, wood, metal, ceramic, rubber, leather, paper, and more and dries in 10-45 seconds without clamping being required. Just make sure you wipe off any excess glue quickly since it dries so fast. |
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How to Straighten a Bent Foosball Rod
Bars will bend over time if the table is being leaned against or players push down on the rods during play, especially when they are extended far out where the weight on them has a lot of leverage. Though it can happen to all tables, this is typically seen on the lower-end models. Before buying a replacement rod, you can try to bend the rod back to its original position. In order to straighten the bar back out, find the origin of the bend and slide it into that table so the bend is at the exact point where it goes into the table. Make sure you spin the rod to where the bow in the rod is facing downward and the rod handle is going up towards the ceiling. Then slowly apply pressure to the rod in a downward position. Make sure not to apply too much pressure and do this in steps so you don't over bend the rod in the opposite direction or cause more damage. Make sure people are not leaning down on the rods so you don't run into this problem again in the future.
Bars will bend over time if the table is being leaned against or players push down on the rods during play, especially when they are extended far out where the weight on them has a lot of leverage. Though it can happen to all tables, this is typically seen on the lower-end models. Before buying a replacement rod, you can try to bend the rod back to its original position. In order to straighten the bar back out, find the origin of the bend and slide it into that table so the bend is at the exact point where it goes into the table. Make sure you spin the rod to where the bow in the rod is facing downward and the rod handle is going up towards the ceiling. Then slowly apply pressure to the rod in a downward position. Make sure not to apply too much pressure and do this in steps so you don't over bend the rod in the opposite direction or cause more damage. Make sure people are not leaning down on the rods so you don't run into this problem again in the future.
How To Level the Foosball Table
First, make sure that all of your adjustable foosball table legs are all the way screwed tight (clockwise) and your table is on a solid surface. This will ensure you are starting from an even point on all of the legs. Next, take the level and double check the actual playing surface going both directions. Once you know where the bubble within the vial is traveling towards, the goal is to raise this side(s) in order to center the bubble between the black lines. Remember to raise the side(s) from where the bubble is traveling toward to raise it back up. You can raise the adjustable legs by unscrewing them counterclockwise or slide shims under the legs for tables without this feature. |
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Cover Your Table
Unless you are purchasing an outdoor model, most manufacturers won't supply you with a free cover. However, we recommend that you find a universal cover that will go over your table when not in use even if you are storing it indoors. This will keep it from getting dust, dog hair and other debris on the surface over time and will reduce how much cleaning is required. A simple $25 investment could also prevent a spill from sitting on your table for a long time before you come back to it or other accidents that can cause damage. |
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