I'm going to need to drill quite a few holes in porcelain wall tiles for bathroom fittings. So it looks like I'll have to get one of those expensive diamond drills. They seem to range from about 8-25 quid, with the most expensive requiring a water cooling kit in addition.
What would be the best value for perhaps 20 6mm holes?
=A0 London SW
Are porcelain harder than "normal" tiles? I've had a bit similar to the erbauer set of three on that linked page for about 10 years and it has gone through many tiles without difficulty. 20 x 6mm holes doesn't sound a big deal; why not plump for the set at =A35.99 and if you break a bit, just buy another one!
Matt
In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
I'd use one of those heart shaped drills - ISTR the last one I bought cost about a fiver worked with tiles and 6mmm glass
On the hardest tiles you can probably get no more than a dozen holes using the solid carbide Armeg bits - and you will also need to be prepared to take your time drilling them (10 - 15 mins per hole).
The diamond core drills are probably the best solution:
Yes, much much harder!
Ordinary clay backed tiles are a world apart from the hardest porcelain ones. Ordinary tiles bits will give up all pretence at cutting before you are even through the glaze.
You are right it sounds easy - but it can be surprisingly difficult.
One solution that can work in some applications where the mounting "hole" will not be seen, is to cut a slot big enough to get a screw through in the tiles using a good diamond disc on a small angle grinder.
Yes - they look similar to other carbide tipped drills which I've tried with little success.
The tiles I bought for our main bathroom are apparently made of some kind of kryptonite. It took me over an hour to drill 4 small holes for a shower soap-dish.
Very much so - think normal bricks against granite.
Time factor. Took me about 1/2 hour to drill one hole with a combination of 'tile' drill and universal one.
Porcelain tiles are something else.
I've never had to drill porcelain but I've read enough to know that it can be a challange. Do the holes have to be in an *exact* position or can they be plus/minus a cm or three? It doesn't really matter where the the loo roll holder is within a few cm.
I'm thinking that drilling the tiles before fixing to the wall is something to try. Set up suitable bit in a pillar drill, lightly center punch or otherwise damage the glaze where the hole should be, surround this with a bit of plastecine, blue tac or WHY, to make a well. Clamp the tile and a bit of backing scrap timber to the drills table. Start the drill on slow/medium speed and get the bit centered and running with just a drop of water as lubricant/coolant. Once going fill the well with water and gently rest ones hand on the feed and wait...
With thought and careful measurement even holes for the fixing of a towel rail could be pre-drilled. Might be harder for those required for a radiator as there is less flexabilty in their location.
It is important to check the point - it needs to be a good crisp edge to cut through - many drills get a bit rounded off and will only create heat.
I used a cheapo diamond. Yes you need to stop and wet sponge it halfway through each hole, but it works.
=A0 London SW
For small holes, go for one of the spear-shaped diamond drills, you'll get much more wear out of them in really hard porcelain if you drill them before installation. After going through a couple of drills on some really hard porcelain just using water spray to lubricate, I ended up getting a big shallow plastic storage container from a pound shop. I use it as a water bath on a pillar drill, propping the tile up on some plywood to prevent it going through the plastic, and immersing the tile completely. The humber of holes per drill went up massively (10x).
If you have an assistant, icecubes held against the bit provide cooling and a "solid" source of water for lubrication /cooling .
Drilling the grout instead is another option if the tiles are not too tightly spaced.
There is porcelain, and porcelain. With all but one of the porcelains I've used (which was Turkish made unlike the other 5 or so which have all been Italian or Spanish), you'd go through a drill bit for every hole if you did it that way.
Not an option for a neat job - the tiles are 450 x 300mm.
Right - I have a sort of answer. Bought this diamond coated cutter from Screwfix:-
And it's not exactly fast but worked. You need to get a centre first for it - I used a multi-purpose drill bit for this, or one of those flat head tile drills would probably work too. I used a slow speed - about 200 rpm - and dipped it in water frequently. Took about 5 minutes for a 6mm hole in
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