Hi, laying about 10m of granite floor tiles. All the edges will be covered by skirting etc. Is possible ( or sensible ) to use an angle grinder with dry type diamond or could i use an ordinary stone cutting disc. Also can the tiles be laid with a tight butt joint. If not what width 2m or 5m ???.
Regards, DBM

Wet cutting is preferred but you could use a diamond wheel. It will be VERY dusty though and noisy.
3mm is preferred for joints.

hi DBM yes you can cut granite tiles with a dry diamond disc it will chip top edge stone disc may struggle granit very hard best to use wet saw. id recomend a 2mm joint as butting together leaves no room for expansion of the tile also gives you some play if tiles vary in size

As above....but what is you substrate? Timber needs a bigger grout joint than concrete or screed!!

You can get away with cutting granite with a dry cutter but its not as clean as a wet cut, but it does the job if the tile is on the floor edge and the wall tile is comming on the top
You need a 10mm wheel in your cutter and scribe with real heavey pressure creating a fault line, break about an inch from the top with a quick sharp snap, takes a little practice to catch it right, too hard a snap and it crumbles, too soft a hit and it shears off 3 quaters of the way down the tile, practice on some of the off cuts after you have wet sawed them

these tiles look great when done properly! tend to wet saw them mostly! at anything up to £90m2 there a bit expensive to waste even 1 or 2! always use a 2mm joint if they are on solid concrete floors and 3mm on ply! dont use bal charcoal with them in case it turns out patchy!

You can allways pipe the grout into the joint with a grout bag or a mortar gun if your ever unsure about staining a tile to be on the safe side

Would have to agree with David - wet cutter for me as the tiles are too expensive to waste. Mapei nero/black gives a good even coloured joint.
In 35 years I,ve never tried to cut granite with with a wheel cutter but I,ll give it a go if its been tried and tested at a training course!
John.

If you only have a grinder you can use it with water but be careful dry cutting your blade wont last long and you cant use the same blade as a ceramic tile dry cutting them can work but any wastage is expensive there will be some also you can try a dark grey grout with black brick color from wicks its the cheapest and best i have found unless you are baking a cake lol try a area out of the way first but i cant see a problem :Pete

Hi
I need to cut some galaxy granite tiles for my kitchen which is 4m by 3m. Once I've done that job I'll want to cut travertine or ceramic tiles for the shower room, and then probably never use the machine again.

So I'd like to find out what the cheapest tool to do this job effectivley.
I know there are a lot of wet cutters at about £100 that would probably do such as the Norton Clipper TT200EM, Rubi ND-180-BL and the Vitrex Versatile Pro 750, but do I need to spend this much or would any of the £40 -£50 cutters do the job?

Thanks for any help

Originally Posted by Fractalien

Hi
I need to cut some galaxy granite tiles for my kitchen which is 4m by 3m. Once I've done that job I'll want to cut travertine or ceramic tiles for the shower room, and then probably never use the machine again.

So I'd like to find out what the cheapest tool to do this job effectivley.
I know there are a lot of wet cutters at about £100 that would probably do such as the Norton Clipper TT200EM, Rubi ND-180-BL and the Vitrex Versatile Pro 750, but do I need to spend this much or would any of the £40 -£50 cutters do the job?

Thanks for any help

Just hire one...

Yes i thought about hiring one but our local hire place charges £38.80 for the weekend so by the tim I've hired it for 2 weekends for the jobs it is more than a cheap cutter and getting on for the price of a £100 one, which I'd be able to stick on ebay if I can't find another use for it.

So I'd rather get a £30 - £40 one if it is up to cutting the granite

Thanks

Daves advice above is the best one if its a one off job for you.
You have to know what your doing with the 10mm wheel dry cut method, i demonstrate it on the natural stone course i run with granite tiles but still advise wet cutting to the classes, like said above as well, expensive if you get it wrong, its all down to the way you flick snap the breaking bar, not for the inexperienced

Also you could buy a cheap wet cutter and the blade might not cope with cutting those tiles....thats worth checking as well...

I appreciate the advice but I am reluctant to hire kit for more than I could buy it for.
For instance I could pick up a Norton clipper TT180BM for £60, or a Topps one for £35.
Two weekends hire is going to come in at £77, so I'd be saving cash if a cheap wet cutter can handle the granite.

On a related point, can I put a wood cutting blade in one of these machines and use it as a normal table saw?
Sorry if I'm missing the point somewhere - I've never done tiling before.

Thanks again

Buy the norton one and then sell it on...

Thanks for the useful advice Dave. I'll order a Norton.

Originally Posted by grumpygrouter

As above....but what is you substrate? Timber needs a bigger grout joint than concrete or screed!!

Hi, old timber floorboards all screwed down. Not level so SLS about 30mm to 12mm. I would prefere a the smallest joint possible, but will take wise advice !!!. I remember many year ago in the trade marble and granite tiles were laid with a tight but joint, so whats altered ???.
Regards, DBM

I remember many year ago in the trade marble and granite tiles were laid with a tight but joint, so whats altered ???

The substrates that we tile to have altered....a lot more thermal expansion...