Special tips for drilling ceramic tile

Posted on 2009-11-24, 00:30, by Ricky, under Home Improvement.

The drilling of ceramic tiles requires quite a lot of expertise and concentration. The main area of concern is that the ceramic tile that will be holding your towel bar should not break. For this, read the special care and tips that you should keep in mind while drilling ceramic tiles.

The first thing to check is to make sure that you either have a carbide drill bit or a diamond drill bit . The two are the best ones when it comes to ceramic tile drilling.

After this comes the real challenge. Let me explain this is a bit. The ceramic tile is very, very hard and you have to be careful when you are drilling through it. If you are drilling too fast or are using a wrong drill bit, then in most cases you will have a smoked drill bit. Porcelain tiles generally have a high silica content as well as they are heated at higher temperatures in the kiln when they are being made. That is why they become very hard. Another thing is that the ceramic tiles are polished with silica, which becomes very hard when heated in the kiln.

The trick is always use a new masonry drill bit, which is either carbide tipped one or a diamond drill bit. Then use the variable speed rotary drill and never use the hammer drill. Always keep the speed at about 100 or 200 rpm. Drill slowly and always make sure that you mark the spot where you want to drill the surface with tape. That way it avoids slippage of the drill and you avoid any drill marks on the tile.

Stop every 20 seconds and cool the drill bit by dipping it in the oil based lubricant. Also, if you need to drill large holes then go for the hole saws as opposed to drill bits.

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