How to Cut Holes in Porcelain Tile

by Sarabeth Asaff

Porcelain tiles are extremely hard, dense clay-based tiles. They consist of compressed dry clay dust fired to an extremely high temperature. This can make them more durable than ceramic tiles, but also more difficult to cut. In many porcelain tile installations, you need a hole to accommodate screws, plumbing pipes, toilet waste drains or outlets. Making these cuts in porcelain is possible if you use tools with diamond bits. These help to drill through the dense tile quickly, before it heats up.

Drilling a Hole for Wall Hangings

After installing porcelain tiles on a wall, you often will need to cut a hole for a wall hanging or a bathroom accessory such as a towel rail. Accomplish this using a drill with a diamond bit and some cooling oil. Place a piece of masking tape where you want the hole in the tile to give the drill bit something in which to bite. Dip the bit into cooling oil to keep it from overheating as you drill. Start drilling slowly until the bit bites into the porcelain, then increase the speed until you complete the hole.

Cutting a Hole for Pipes


Cutting Large Holes in the Side of a Tile

You might need to cut parts of a large hole from the sides of two tiles for a sink cutout, a toilet waste pipe or other large plumbing. Each of the two tiles will have half of the large hole cut from its side. When placed together, they will have one, large hole stretching across them. Sketch the shape of the circle you want to cut out across the tiles with a grease pencil. This should create an arc from the side of each tile into the center. Make multiple, parallel cuts from the side of each tile down to the curve mark using a tile wet saw. The result should look like several teeth or piano keys in the shape of a curve on the inside of each tile. Use tile nippers to bite off each of these teeth, and then grind down the interior edge of the hole with a tile wet saw.

Cutting Square or Rectangular Holes

Porcelain tiles are often so large that when you install them on a wall, an electrical outlet may land in the center, rather than on the edge. This requires the cutting of a square or rectangular hole at the center of the tile. Trace the shape of the outlet onto the tile with a grease pencil. Using a tile wet saw with a plunge-cut option, put in the appropriate sized blade and raise the arm of the saw. Set the tile on the plate of the saw with the pencil mark lined up with the saw blade. Push the arm of the blade down into the tile to make a straight cut. Lift the arm, turn the tile so the next pencil mark lines up with the blade and repeat. Make the final two cuts using the same method to complete the hole.

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