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With an tiling project (especially for kitchen and bathroom tiles) there’s going to be some obstacles in the way that you have to deal with. Whether they are a toilet or a wall edge, the best way is to cut around them.
As hacking away with scissors won’t cut it, getting clued up on the tools and techniques to handle the ceramic stuff is the way forward. This is where we come in to give you the headlines on what to use and how.
If you’ve not found us before, we have a whole series of blogs to get you on your merry way to tiling heaven that you can find here.
Now, without further ado, here’s the important stuff:
Equipment list:
As the last thing you want when DIYing is a trip to A & E, we cannot stress enough the importance of covering your vulnerable bits appropriately.
To prevent low flying ceramics from lodging themselves in your eyes, safety goggles are a must. As you also will be working with blades and sharp things, you will need to invest in a pair of protective gloves. Trust us when we say sneaky shards will try to pierce you any way they can so you'll definitely want to have a barrier between your digits and anything with a cutting edge.
Once you’ve got these safety features in place, you’re good to go.
The best cutting tool and technique are dependent on what you are cutting; it’s a different horses for different courses type of thing. Find a quick reference below:
Type of tile | Type of cut | Tool for the job |
---|---|---|
Ceramics, 15mm thick or less | Straight | Tile scorer, tile cutter, tile-cutting machine |
Porcelain and natural stone | Straight | Diamond blade wet-saw tile cutter |
Curved | Tile nippers, wet-saw tile cutter, hacksaw with tungsten carbide rod |
For most straight cuts on ceramic, a manual tile cutter which snaps the tile for you is the best choice but there will be times when you just can’t get the right angle to make the score and snap. This is where the tile scorer comes in and this is how you use it.
You will need:
Like the tile scorer, this is great for cutting straight lines and is usually used for wall edges and sides. These are great for cutting ceramic tiles and for cutting floor tiles. As the lever does most of the hard snapping power for you, you can get away without having Pop-eye arms.
Porcelain tiles can be cut with normal manual tile cutters, providing they are 15mm or under in thickness. If your tiles are over 15mm thick, these machines just won’t cut the mustard so it’s best to get the big boys out and go electric.
The T-Rex of the cutting world is a blade covered in lots of small diamonds which make it hard enough to take on the tough stuff. The electric tile cutter is usually called a wet-saw and as the name suggests, there’s water involved so it can get very messy. Picture water spinning and spitting in your face and all over you; this is why we recommend you clad yourself in waterproofs and goggles.
small electric cutter
Electric wet cutter with diamond tipped blade for cutting porcelain tiles
In terms of how to use an electric tile cutter, each product has its own instructions, so we recommend you stick to those after you have marked up your tile as per for other methods.
You can use an angle grinder too, but more care needs to be taken as they can be dangerous and not as precise.
Tile nippers are a great little piece of kit but like anything that nips, can be painful if you’re not careful.
Following the manufacturer’s instructions on this is a definite must; think delicate hand skin trapped between tight metal and you know where we're going. That said, wear protective gloves, go carefully and slowly and you should be fine. You may even start to love them!
The design is very similar to pliers and they are used mainly for the little cuts it would be difficult to do with anything else. They are also good for curved cuts if you cut little and often.
This is slightly trickier to do than a straight cut but it can be done! As most obstacles tend to come in curved shapes (think bathroom pipes, toilets etc), the best place to start is getting that curve right. For that, you will need to make a template or use a contour gauge. Both are simple and we’ll walk you through it.
You will need:
Now you have your template, it’s time for the main event. If you’re working with ceramic tiles, a manual tile cutter and some tile nippers are a great choice.
If you’ve got porcelain, thick tiles or quite a tight curve to cut, you’ll be better off with a wet-saw tile cutter. Just follow the manufacturer’s instructions on how to curve that cut and (with a bit of practise) Bob’s your uncle and all that jazz.
As always, we at tile.co.uk love a bit of show and tell so if you’ve found this blog useful and want some unashamed praise, post your pics on instagram or facebook to share with others.
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