Cutting sqaure 'holes' in porcelain - Tile Advice

[White Room]

It what comes first - the sockets or the tiles!

There is no way I would set up all the kitchen tiling just to accommodate the sockets.
You've got to many factors with so many different tile types even to think it can be done.
However - you can move the sockets if there is enough cable (not that I would - I'd get an electrician) to make the cuts more even.
After all how many times do we have to straighten sockets etc.

John.

Hi John
They did on my kitchen, the fitters were going for 150mm tiles. They told the sparks where they wanted the sockets, 150mm of the worktop to the bottom of the sockets, laid 3 tiles high then put the wall units on top of the last tile.

 

[kaharrison9]

Hi p-a-s
Would agree with Daves way.
I recently did my first Porcelain 600x300 that had it's fair share of sockets and had to work out quickly how to go about it.Tried the plunge cut and stuggled,found i wasn't going to be accurate.
Purchased a quality wheel for the angle grinder and cut the 4 sides then turned over the tile to get into the corners.
As well as watching the wheel cutting be aware of the back of the wheel is not cutting into the tile as well
kev

 

[doug boardley]

http://www.tilersforums.com/tiling-tools/16388-cutting-hole-tile-jigsaw-doug-boardley.html
ok not posted a link sucessfully yet, but this method works well with ceramic tiles

 

[Alberta Stone]

Sockets are no trick at all.
Mark the front first, then turn over and mark the back, but draw the lines extra long.
Use the angle grinder (4") with a good turbo blade and cut the face first to the corners.
Flip over and finish the cut and if necessary you can go a bit past the corners to complete it.
If the edge is a bit thin you can cut an x pattern from the face from corner to corner, then do the rear and lightly tap the bits in the middle and then use the grinder to clean the corners up.
If it is less than a 1/4 inch don't bother trying to cut it as you can fill the void with grout and the cover plate will conceal it.
I also use a dremel with a coarse electroplated diamond tip (cone shape) to do any detail work like the little notch on top and bottom where the screw holes are.
(do they have that style of box in the UK or is it just a rectangle?)

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Whitebeam - There's always one!
As a tiler I usually get called in to quote for wall tiling after the kitchen is fitted and the customer is asking my opinion on tile type/colour etc.
In this case my original post is the scenario I would recommend - set the tiling out to the units and let the plugs take care of themselves!
This thread was originally about cutting around sockets and it was a post from a retail outlet that suggested setting the cuts to fit the sockets!

Happy days!

John.

 

[tommyzooom]

:welcome:
You may find an angle grinder (dry cutting) will heat up and break your porcelain, especially near an edge,
jigsaw blades will be no good for porcelain.
You need to plunge cut with a wet saw,or, as I do use a makita cordless tile saw,some hire shops have these

 

[Alberta Stone]

True.
Sometimes a grinder has too much vibration and will break fragile or brittle tiles.
But there is the possibility that they will break on the wet saw as well.
I will cut them with a wet saw at times also, same with vent holes.
If they are heating up, then you need a more aggressive blade.
I bought these cheap chinese 4" grinder blades and they just wouldn't cut, I worked at a piece for quite a while (with sparks flying and pieces of melted stone shooting everywhere), then realized the blade was junk and switched it back to my turbo blade which cut through the granite like butter.

There is no rule of thumb that you must follow.
Each different material will also have different characteristics, and so, as a tradesman, you need to develop a feel for what works best for you (and what tool is the most efficient) and gets the job done properly, which, at the end of the day, is all that matters.

 

[Ramag]

Angle grinder with a turbo blade....is better if you have not done plunge cuts before....

Plunge cutting next to a tile edge can be fatal for tile if you get the tile skew wiff and it grabs on the wheel causing it to break away...

A controlled cut with a grinder through the face of the tile then turn over and finish from the back the last bits that the grinder wheel didn't get to..

Lay the tile on a bench/platform and clamp it down this will leave both hands free to steady the grinder..

Thats the correct answer and the easy way to complete the job

 

[Alberta Stone]

I have never seen anyone in the trade ever clamp down a tile to cut it....ever.
I use a scrap of plywood to set the tile on and hold the tile with left hand and the angle grinder with the right.
Works great and is very safe....that is, if you have strong wrists and are familiar with a grinder.
If not, then find a different job, or practice up so you can keep up.
This isn't office work after all.

 

[doug boardley]

I have never seen anyone in the trade ever clamp down a tile to cut it....ever.
I use a scrap of plywood to set the tile on and hold the tile with left hand and the angle grinder with the right.
Works great and is very safe....that is, if you have strong wrists and are familiar with a grinder.
If not, then find a different job, or practice up so you can keep up.
This isn't office work after all.

here's a vid I did, granted it's ceramic, not porcelain:smilewinkgrin:[ame=http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0i45Y1o-8Hs]YouTube - jig saw cutting[/ame]

 

[DHTiling]

I have never seen anyone in the trade ever clamp down a tile to cut it....ever.
I use a scrap of plywood to set the tile on and hold the tile with left hand and the angle grinder with the right.
Works great and is very safe....that is, if you have strong wrists and are familiar with a grinder.
If not, then find a different job, or practice up so you can keep up.
This isn't office work after all.

well now you have in dougs video...:lol:

 

[Alberta Stone]

Yes, Now I have, but it was only ceramic, after all.
I have those jigsaw blades and they just don't work on porc's or hard stone.
They do, however, work really good on soft slate and soft ceramics like saltillo pavers and wall tiles.
I have not used clamps though, but do what works for you.

 

[doug boardley]

true that they don't work on porc, but they work on slate, trav, marble

 

[hillhead]

on most jobs i set up an old bucket and fill it with water for weight,then i use this for setting tiles on for grinding,works a treat and it doesn't matter if you cut into it,its plastic.

 

[jimmy495]

hi all does any one cut plugs out the way i do.mark the plug to be cut on the front of the tile score the four lines on my snap cutter. then cut a cross from corner to corner then tap the four points of the cross one at a time and they drop out then you only do two cuts with the wet cutter instead of four cut on the wet cutter:8: