Tiling a kitchen or bathroom is a job that professional tilers do day in day out, but for DIY enthusiasts, it is not as easy as it looks. That being said, you can tile your own home with a bit of know-how and the right tools.
Life would be great if the room you were tiling was a perfect square with nothing on the walls to tile around and no need to cut any tiles to fit. Unfortunately, this is never the case and one of the most important parts of tiling is achieving a quality cut. Premium blades experts at Devour Tools say you can achieve this by using the correct tile blades.
When you use the right tools and the right blades, you can achieve a look that you will be proud of. However, without the right materials, your tiled room is likely to scream poor quality finish.
Preparation is Key
When taking on a tiling job in your home, you need to make sure that you have the correct tools to begin with. It is recommended that you have a saw capable of wet cutting and the right diamond-tipped tile blades if you are taking care of tiling an entire room. An electric saw will help you cut the tiles quickly and precisely.
You should always make sure to protect yourself when working with an electric saw. This means wearing long-sleeved clothing that is not too loose to avoid it getting caught in the machinery. You also need to wear protective gloves and protective eyewear as it is not unheard of for pieces of tile to chip away when being cut.
Other necessary materials will include a pencil and carpenter’s square for marking tiles, a rubbing stone to smooth off the cut tiles, and a glass cutter for cutting small sections of tile away to fit around tricky areas.
Take Care When Measuring
Have you ever heard the saying ‘measure twice, cut once’? This is vitally important when it comes to tiling because once you cut a tile, you cannot undo the cut or fix it if you have used the wrong measurements. If you make a mistake on the measurements and cut the tile incorrectly, you are likely to have to throw it in the trash.
Always measure and then measure again to be doubly sure that you have the correct measurement before you begin to cut. This is the easiest way to avoid making mistakes and wasting your tiles.
Getting a Clean Cut
When you are tiling a room, you will thankfully not need to cut every tile. But when it comes to cutting, you need to take care to achieve a quality finish. Once you have measured twice and used your carpenter’s square and pencil to mark the tile, you can cut using either a glass cutter or your electric saw.
If you are using a glass cutter, you score the tile along the mark you have drawn. Once you have done this, you can use the notches on the tile cutter to hold onto the tile before you snap it off.
A wet saw with a diamond tile blade will enable you to cut effortlessly through the tile. The tile should be placed on the bed of the saw and then the blade will be moved precisely through the tile, helping to achieve that quality finish you want and the tile deserves.
After cutting tile with either a glass cutter or an electric saw, you should use the rubbing stone to smooth the edges for a professional finish.