<p>The usual recommendation is to get a sheet of plexiglass (known as Perspex&reg; in the UK) and lay that across the board when you're playing.  It's an especially good solution for "board" games that don't actually have a board.</p>

<p>Well-made board-backed games don't really need any help, but many small-press games have the board printed on stiff card or even paper.  Paper gaming surfaces go back at least to SPI's foundation in 1969, and so do plexiglass coverings to prevent them getting ruined.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-29T03:29:54.660Z
I use this method and it works great for modular games like Mansions of madness. If you put the perspex over the game, people can't spill beer on it, and the tiles don't move around whenever someone gets a little too enthusiastic.
anber
CC BY-SA 2.5
2010-10-21T22:11:34.903Z
I was really hoping for something that would be more like a spray on adhesive instead of an additional piece of equipment (plexiglass). But, regardless... in your experience, do you just get a single piece and use it for all your game boards? Or do you get pieces to fit each board specifically? Just out of curiosity.
kchau
CC BY-SA 2.5
2010-10-22T07:33:50.007Z
I have a few pieces in varying sizes.  They don't need to be exactly fitted to the boards, but if you have a piece the size of a ping-pong table for a board the size of a sheet of A3 paper, then it looks slightly ridiculous.
Richard Gadsden
CC BY-SA 2.5
2010-10-20T00:25:50.187Z
2010-10-20T00:25:50.187Z
Richard Gadsden
<p>There are products like SprayFix, which cover paper with a protective varnish. It prevents dirt from attaching to paper surfaces. This is used often with games using counters, to protect them from wearing. I think you can apply it to board surfaces perfectly.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-04-14T13:34:29.903Z
This is probably a better solution than clear contact paper because you don't have a separate physical layer than the board material that will grow-shrink at a different pace than the board, might wrinkle over time, and might cloud/fade/yellow over time. I second this recommendation -- go to a good arts supply store and ask to learn about the various sprays that artists use to cover/protect their drawings and paintings.
Viktor Haag
CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-04-14T09:28:03.897Z
2011-04-14T09:28:03.897Z
Rogier
<p>You could always use the original plastic shrink-wrap that the game shipped in.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-s1p8Vnym0" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-s1p8Vnym0</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-29T03:26:26.733Z
2014-09-29T03:26:26.733Z
anber
<p>I found this on a <a href="http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/5709422#5709422" rel="nofollow noreferrer">BoardGameGeek thread</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>You can try this...clear wallpaper, avaliable at any home improvement store and even Walmart, if you're lucky enough to find it there; about $10 a roll and the roll will do the tiles and more. The clear wallpaper will have to be cut after application (it's self adhesive), will have to be trimmed with an craft knife. Hope this helps. I'll be trying this on my set and I've used the clear wallpaper on other games over the years to protect them and 20 years later a lot of them are still in mint condition.</p>
<p>Warning, don't buy the frosted clear wallpaper, you can't see through it.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>While I haven't tried it myself, it looks like it might be worth a try.  Maybe on a cheaper game first, so that if it doesn't work, you haven't screwed up you're favorite game.</p>
<p>I will go to the local Fred Meyer today and see if they have something like this, and if so, try it out myself.</p>
<p>You might also try <a href="http://www.contactpaper.net/clear-contact-paper.php" rel="nofollow noreferrer">clear contact paper</a>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-10-06T10:28:16.213Z
I'm not familiar with the wallpaper, but there's 'contact paper' in the U.S., which is a self-adhesive plastic sold to line kitchen shelves with to make them easier to wipe up ... it also comes in clear.  The only disadvantage would be in the size of the rolls -- contact paper rolls are typically 18" (45cm) wide, which will take more finesse when covering large boards (aligning the edges at a seam in the board).  I haven't used it on game boards, but I have used it to 'laminate' reference sheets so I can use wet erase pens on them.
Joe
CC BY-SA 4.0
2010-10-27T16:54:57.307Z
2021-06-18T14:20:41.010Z
2021-06-18T14:20:41.010Z
My Turn Yet
<p>Is there something anyone knows of that you can apply to the surface of a board game to protect it against wear so that it lasts longer?</p>

<storage>
Protecting the surface of your board games...
kchau
# Protecting the surface of your board games...

(Asked by: username_0 on 2010-10-20)

Is there something anyone knows of that you can apply to the surface of a board game to protect it against wear so that it lasts longer?

**Tags:** storage


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## 4 answers

### Answer by username_5 on 2010-10-27. Score: 15 | Accepted answer

I found this on a [BoardGameGeek thread](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/5709422#5709422):

> You can try this...clear wallpaper, avaliable at any home improvement store and even Walmart, if you're lucky enough to find it there; about $10 a roll and the roll will do the tiles and more. The clear wallpaper will have to be cut after application (it's self adhesive), will have to be trimmed with an craft knife. Hope this helps. I'll be trying this on my set and I've used the clear wallpaper on other games over the years to protect them and 20 years later a lot of them are still in mint condition.
>
> Warning, don't buy the frosted clear wallpaper, you can't see through it.

While I haven't tried it myself, it looks like it might be worth a try. Maybe on a cheaper game first, so that if it doesn't work, you haven't screwed up you're favorite game.

I will go to the local Fred Meyer today and see if they have something like this, and if so, try it out myself.

You might also try [clear contact paper](http://www.contactpaper.net/clear-contact-paper.php).

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: I'm not familiar with the wallpaper, but there's 'contact paper' in the U.S., which is a self-adhesive plastic sold to line kitchen shelves with to make them easier to wipe up ... it also comes in clear.  The only disadvantage would be in the size of the rolls -- contact paper rolls are typically 18" (45cm) wide, which will take more finesse when covering large boards (aligning the edges at a seam in the board).  I haven't used it on game boards, but I have used it to 'laminate' reference sheets so I can use wet erase pens on them.  

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### Answer by username_1 on 2010-10-20. Score: 16

The usual recommendation is to get a sheet of plexiglass (known as Perspex® in the UK) and lay that across the board when you're playing. It's an especially good solution for "board" games that don't actually have a board.

Well-made board-backed games don't really need any help, but many small-press games have the board printed on stiff card or even paper. Paper gaming surfaces go back at least to SPI's foundation in 1969, and so do plexiglass coverings to prevent them getting ruined.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I was really hoping for something that would be more like a spray on adhesive instead of an additional piece of equipment (plexiglass). But, regardless... in your experience, do you just get a single piece and use it for all your game boards? Or do you get pieces to fit each board specifically? Just out of curiosity.  
> **username_1**: I have a few pieces in varying sizes.  They don't need to be exactly fitted to the boards, but if you have a piece the size of a ping-pong table for a board the size of a sheet of A3 paper, then it looks slightly ridiculous.  
> **username_2**: I use this method and it works great for modular games like Mansions of madness. If you put the perspex over the game, people can't spill beer on it, and the tiles don't move around whenever someone gets a little too enthusiastic.  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2011-04-14. Score: 9

There are products like SprayFix, which cover paper with a protective varnish. It prevents dirt from attaching to paper surfaces. This is used often with games using counters, to protect them from wearing. I think you can apply it to board surfaces perfectly.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: This is probably a better solution than clear contact paper because you don't have a separate physical layer than the board material that will grow-shrink at a different pace than the board, might wrinkle over time, and might cloud/fade/yellow over time. I second this recommendation -- go to a good arts supply store and ask to learn about the various sprays that artists use to cover/protect their drawings and paintings.  

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### Answer by username_2 on 2014-09-29. Score: 0

You could always use the original plastic shrink-wrap that the game shipped in.

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-s1p8Vnym0>


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