Complete novice (and simpleton) needs to drill into two kitchen wall tiles to put up a magnetic knife rack. The tiles are ancient, and if i crack them or drill out of level tiles could not be replaced with matching ones.
It's also right near the sink where 'she who must be obeyed' will see it all day. If i mess up, i'm dead or worse.
I've seen a workman drill into kitchen tiles and initially his drill goes 'all over the place' until it 'bites'. He's probably had a lot of experience at this, i'm guessing that for me it would bite in the wrong place.
Grateful for any tips on the 'safest' way for me to drill the tiles. Thanks.
Get a proper tile drill. Parallel shank with a trangle shaped tip with a sharp point. Go slow and use that to go through the glaze and most of the tile, then see what lies beyond - you might then need a conventional masonry drill.
Have a go. You may be successful and there are ways to stop a drill skidding.
The last time I did this was to start with a small 3mm new masonary drill, switch the hammer action off, apply light pressure - and get close in tight with the wall so that there was no axial wobbling about. Then when the glaze was glowing (from friction) then broken, I swapped up to larger drills. But I ain't no pro.
In case of no success, plan B. Cover the afflicted area with a plank of wood and screw the rack to that. Pub food for the next week ain't that bad....
These multi material drills have a very sharp point, unlike a normal masonry bit. Position it, push hard & you will hear & feel the bit penetrate the glaze on the tile. Now it won't wander about.
Now start the drill on low speed, no hammer, and slowly drill through the tile.
Once through the tile speed up & use hammer action if required.
Use wall plugs 'without' a lip like these:-
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sure the plug goes behind the tile, the end can expand as the screw goes in & crack the tile.
Two methods I've used: Gentle tap tap tap with hammer and nail punch to chip through the glaze, even the smallest dimple will reduce drill bit skidding.
Or, masking tape stuck to tile and start gently drilling through that
It would be a nightmare even for a professional to drill two holes in exactly the right relative positions. Don't even try this unless the rack design has already made provision for correcting for this, typically by its own holes (through which the mounting screws go) not being circular but elongated into ovals, one horizontal, the other vertical.
One alternative option might be to mount the rack on a wooden plinth. Then you can drill the wall holes first, probably about an inch or two further apart than the rack's own holes. Expect the wall holes to be out of kilter, you can correct for this by drilling the plinth to match the wall holes (use a piece of tracing or greaseproof paper, cut to the shape of the plinth, aligned to lie exactly parallel to the tile edges, to transfer the holes to the back of the plinth). Countersink the front of the holes, mount the plinth to the wall, then mount the rack to the plinth.
Option two: Consider using adhesive instead of screws. In fact, consider screwing the rack to a wooden plinth as above, but then using adhesive to fix the plinth to the tiles. You need to give the tiles a decent clean first, and use something like Sikaflex to stick it on.
Option three (I think this is by far the best): Throw away the magnetic rack and store the knives where they belong: in a drawer. To persuade her of the wisdom of this, you could point out that in the drawer the knives will stay clean, whereas if out in the open 24/7, they will catch all the damp and grease you expect to be flying about in a kitchen, and in turn dust will stick to them, etc.
Stick a piece of insulating or masking tape on the tile where you're drilling; that will stop it wandering. May need a couple of layers to make it thicker.
I used to use an expensive tile drill bit until someone (here I think?) years ago told me that standard masonry bits work fine.
That's what I've used ever since - and have never broken a tile by drilling it.
The only time I *did* once come to grief is by not drilling a hole large enough, so once the wall plug was inserted and the screw tightened... CRACK! Be warned ;)
Gordon Henderson (gordon+ snipped-for-privacy@drogon.net) wibbled on Sunday 23 January
2011 11:00:
If she whines, tell her to do it herself!
+1
Yep - I have had quite a few "one chance" holes to do.
Take the tile drill, press it gently into the glaze until you get the faintest of "crunchy" noises - that's the tip biting the glaze. Now it should not wander. Start the drill on slow with the lowest of pressures and allow the drill to grind its way in. Do not use hammer obviously. Go as far into the plaster as possible so the hole in the tile has parallel edges. Now you can go through with a masonry drill to deal with the brick if any. If it's just a plasterboard wall or celcon "cheeseblock" the tile drill will manage.
Also, it is best IME to use a rawlplug that does not expand at the top - or one that can be pushed past the tile (ie a plug that does not have a top lip). You do not want the screw (more so with big screws) to expand and crack the tile. Probably won't be an issue for the little screws the knife rack needs, but worth remembering for bigger jobs.
One further thing - if the screws can be put in a grout line, it reduces the risk to the tiles, but also if the rack is removed and the holes grouted over, the repair is nearly invisible.
Ronald Raygun ( snipped-for-privacy@localhost.localdomain) wibbled on Sunday 23 January
2011 11:36:
I don't agree - I have not been in the habit of drilling tiles untilrecently, but with a bit of care and the right tile bits, I got mine spot on to the mm. I had several brackets that needed fairly precise mounting. It's getting the tip to bite the glaze before starting the drill that makes the difference - once that is done, I've had no problems with wander.
Yep by far the best way to get the drill to start. Not a nail punch that is blunt, use a center punch or sharpened round wire nail. You can position the tip of the punch/nail exactly where you want the hole and very gently break the glaze and enlarge the pit to take the tip of a tile drill or one of those Bosh multimaterial drills.
Never had much success with that the drill still wanders a little.
I use the tape method (several layers) As you havent done this before get an old tile and practice a couple of times. This will give you a feel for how the drill reacts on the tile.
Others have said what to do, but my thought is before doing it on the important one, why not practice somewhere else? Ok, not necessarily trivial to set up, but would mean you know what to expect when you get to the real thing.
Definitely use masking tape. This wont stop wander but will reduce it usefully. Also use a tile bit, which is somewhat sharp, unlike masonry bits. The key point I find is to put the drill on max speed before the bit even touches the tile, if you dont do that it wanders. Use your hand on the drill to control the initial driling position. Once the hole's started it shouldnt wander. So now you've got just about all the methods offered, most of which contradict each other.
I used to use tape but have't done so for about a kilofortnight.
Using a tile drill or small masonry bit, I start with the bit in a whell brace, hold the wheel instead of the handle and just rock the wheel a little bit. The bit can't wander because it does only part of a turn then goes back. With sufficient force it grinds into the glaze quite quickly.
With cheap tiles and a sharp tile bit, I've done the same but just by holding the bit by hand. Once put a 5mm bit through a tile just by hand - not recommended for good tiles!
This method has never failed for me. I use a narrow masonry drill bit, held in my hand (with a bit of cloth to protect my fingers) and just start the hole by hand to get through the glaze. Once that is done, I switch to the drill, with the right size bit and the job is easy. Tried once with tape but it was more nuisance than it was worth - haven't used it again.
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