Drilling Quartz tiles

[monkeyhanger]

How hard is it to drill through resinous quartz tiles with something like a 365 kit or other diamond tipped core?

I've been told that these tiles are easier to cut with a saw than a porcelain tile, I thought the same might apply to drilling (quartz easier than porcelain), or can the resin in the quartz tiles clog up the bit end?

Are you likely to get more or less holes drilling Quartz compared to Porcelain before the bit is spent?

Am a little confused as Quartz is supposed to be parder than Porcelain (or is just quartz mineral is harder than porcelain, not quartz tiles?

 

[DHTiling]

The 365 drills will be fine on those tiles..

Are they the gulf stone ones from CTD..?

 

[monkeyhanger]

Dave,

Nope, these are starlight tiles in black, from Tiles HQ for £5 each in 300mm x 300mm (£55/m2). Got a whole tile sample from them, and was impressed with the thickness consistency across the whole tile - these are well calibrated (I checked thicknesses at numerous points with a vernier caliper). I'm under the impression that the true gulfstone ones are about £110/m2, I was only looking to pay about £50/m2, and these were recommended over some other suppliers selling a similar product for similar money.

 

[DHTiling]

Personally i would prefer a true stone over those resin ones... Have had feedback that some makes have blown from tile adhesive bed with moisture probs..that was gulf stone though..

The comp i get my stone from has just got some 300x300 granite in and one is pure black and the other is the star galaxy one ...

 

[monkeyhanger]

Dave,

I'd prefer granite, but the missus wants quartz. I see the quartz a lot on shop floors - the new Debenhams in Eldon Square, Newcastle, has a lot of the black quartz on the floors in between 1m2 format white porcelain tiles that cover 80% of the floor, and they look great when the light is shone on them.

I thought that true "gulf stone" was supposed to be the best of the best in quartz tiles.

Are these tiles a beggar to stick down?

I thought that if they were stuck properly (buttered backs and notched adhesive on the wall boards), with the right adhesive (keraquick, maybe with latex addition), to the right substrate (Aquapanel or similar, for water resistivity and weight load capability) that these would be fine.

The tiles themselves are supposed to be impervious (<0.02% adsorption) to water, so would any moisture issues stem from water ingress due to poor grouting and siliconing, or tiling onto plasterboard/marine ply instead of a cementious board with possibly a poor choice of adhesive as well?

The info above is just what i've gleaned from the forums, i'm asking if the above assumptions are true.

I'm a bit concerned now that even done properly, I may have trouble with Quartz tiles on walls.

 

[monkeyhanger]

Dave: Whats the going rate for the granite at your place, in galaxy granite? I'm still tempted by the granite, but the copper flecks don't "pop" like the quartz mirror pieces do (which is why the missus isn't so keen), although the rest of the tile looks better with glossy blacks and deep grain detail.

Isn't there supposed to be a big variation in granite quality as well, with zimbabwe absolute black and indian souced galaxy being the best, while there is some poor chinese granite about? I see granite tiles in black/galaxy from £22/m2 to £80/m2, do you get what you pay for with granite (better calibrated tile, more consistent granite with fewer flaws etc), or do some companies try it on with the price?

From an installation point of view, it's the cutting of granite which concerns me most, cutting the quartz is supposed to be far easier than granite, although I could hire a meaty cutter ( I don't think buying a £600+ wet bridge cutter is a sound investment for a DIYer).

 

[Deleted member 1779]

PORSADRILL will bore holes into anything stone based (including quarz tiles) and it will do it with accuracy and leave a chip free finish.

This is the effect of it going into a Zodiaq Quartz

This is it started into a mix of granule and resin

This is it well on its way through.
At the front of the shot you can see the quartz particles suspended in the resin

This is the final shot of the Quartz Resin which shows you that the
hole formed easily and that there were no chips or breaks!

The best selling kit is the BFKMX and my advice is to

GET IT BEFORE VAT GOES UP TO 20 %

PS: Your core should look like this during and after drilling holes.

Apply water so that the solution is a
milky and frothy mix. If your drilling
is producing spoil with the consistency
of toothpaste (ie quite sticky) then you
are not adding enough water.

 

[monkeyhanger]

Richard: Thanks for this. In your opinion, are quartz tiles easier to cut holes in than porcelain? Am I likely to get more or fewer holes per bit when cutting quartz as opposed to porcelain?

 

[Deleted member 1779]

They will be easier to cut than porcelain. But like all drilling - its a wear and tare exercise so remember to maximise lifespan its best to drill slowly use water and dont apply too much pressure on the drill as it powers the diamond crown through the quartz.

Over time you will get a feel for the drilling and will discover that you can break some of those rules but the golden rule is to keep them cool !

If you have a set of cores from the Bathroom Fitters Kit then you have given yourself every chance of a total success without breaking the bank.

 

[monkeyhanger]

Sold! Just put an order in for your 7 bit set.

 

[monkeyhanger]

365 drill kit received - work on the bathroom starts on Monday when the tiles, Aquaboard and shower tray should arrive. Pulling stuff out over the weekend.

 

[Dan]

Don't mind me while I bump up some of the old threads. I wont be doing this much more. Just the last few in the Tile Drilling forum - How to Drill Porcelain Tiles. Just one of the many tiling advice forums.