The main challenge is whether to follow the TILE LINE or the PLUMB LINE. So we make a series of measurements.

This is the working wall. And the mirror has to be fitted above the brown glass tiles but not so high as to catch the pitched roof line. Also central.

Measure, Measure, Measure.

Above are two areas of masking tape “in the general area of the fitting lugs”

First we measure above the tile line then put a level on. The fittings are drawn round on the tape. Is everything the right way up? We draw eyelets on the tape.

The first holes are drilled.... Always nerve racking to start.. Above you can see that we have finished one hole. And started the next.

Lets get rid of the tape to check our work

tile drills

Looking perfect! - You can see that once we start drilling there is a dimple or ring which the drill bit will seat into.
diamond drills

The drill cant slip now that pit has been formed.
Just remember to add water by holding a sponge under the drill bit

holesaws

Fit your rawl plugs. I always throw away the supplied plugs and fit my own. Red for 6mm and Brown for 8mm. That way I know for sure I get a secure fit. Buying a lot of rawl plugs in bulk is cheap and saves you time.

drilling porcelain

Now is the moment of truth.... Did all that measuring make for a spot on job? The tape is pulled back. The screws are tight.. And we have a mirror!

Diamond drilling of any tile in 6mm or 8mm is guaranteed not to split your tile.

Used with a battery drill will ensure a SLOW and CONTROLLED start. Once you are in - then speed up if you want.

FACT: Shower glass at 10mm is heavy and need a number of fixings to hold that weight!

At some stage you will need to install your shower glass panel and door. Most units come as an assembly pack that make use of
1) Large screws
2) Metal channels to secure the glass
3) Extra lugs or wall braces.
4) Glue
5) Foam Strips
6) Mastic.

tile drill bits

And here it is.... This is our wall. We need to drill it twice
1) To fit the frame.
2) To reinforce the frame with lugs.

diamond drill bits

First we mark out the wall to the area where the metal bar will fit. (Sorry the photo is faint) Look to the second tile in and you will see the dots for the scews. In this case the metal bar has holes pre-drilled to accept the screws. You have to match the holes in the bar to the tile. Remember to lift up the bar a little if it has a 45* angle at the bottom. Thats because you will slide a second bar along the shower tray.

porcelain drills

We’ve made a start... This is one of four 8mm holes we are forming into the porclelain tiles.
porsadrill

Now we fit the metal bar to the wall. In this case its glued and screwed.

Now we mark out for the lugs. You can see a lug fitted to the shower glass just in shot on the right hand side. We have fitted the glass into theat channel and then drawn the screw holes on the wall (heavy work)

drilling large tiles

The template is used to hold the drill steady on the porcelain and prevent wander or drill slip.
tile drill bits

Drilling begins...

hard tiles drills
A perfect set of holes...

holesaws diamond

Closeup of those holes. Ready for brown plugs

365drills

Now all we do is lift this glass sheet and place it into the channel.

__________________
Richard Hazell
t: 01992-410636 24/7 (mobile: 0777 366 4519)
e: richard@365drills.com
w: http://www.365drills.com
w2: http://www.365drills.net
Drilling Tough Tiles - PORSADRILL

1) Oh you want to get your product into Screwfix because they will sell loads of them.
2) I tell you what. You wanna go on that BBC Dragons Den program. They are always looking for ideas like yours.

Well we keep knocking on Screwfix’s door as well as B-n-Q, Topps-tiles, Right-price-tiles, Jewsons, QVC and a muliple of chains, shops, catalogues, retailers and others. Its hard work. I cant tell you how many miles I have been up and down the UK. I have knocked on more doors than I care to mention.

So one day the manufacturer of my packaging rings me up. “Richard I just took a call from BBC. Their producers assistant ***** (name removed) is ringing about to see if there is anyone with good investable ideas. You should go for it”

That was last June 2007 and so I decided to go for it.... I filled in the forms and sent them off to the BBC in London.

Within days researchers called me up for an interview. I went up on the train and then did my pitch in front of the cameras.

Four shots to camera and they told me that the best pitch was about me as a person and how I developed the product. Not me selling the product.

So I spent the days with them and got the interviews “in the can” and went home. They told me 5000 people had applied and not to bother ringing to see if I made it through. and if I had made the finals they would let me know.

well blow me down with a feather because TWO DAYS later they called to say that I had made it to the show....

EEEEKKKK.

Next followed a month of “Due Diligence” The reasearcher (we will call her Hannah) spent a month with me and my wife going through every document, criminal record checks, company records, sales, debts, loans, patents and background checks.

Hannah had to check every single word and fact to make sure that the words said on air were backed in fact.

With due diligence over and all lights going green came the day of filming.

The Beeb put you up at the local hotel to Pinewood Studios. In this case a Travel Lodge. OK no glamour but it had a bar and we wernt moaning.

So day of filming comes along. We are shown to a “green room” which is not exactly green in colour but a place where they put you prior to You get to mix with five others who will all pitch that day.

Everyone is nervous. Pacing up and down. Hannah sticks with me and helps me rehearse my pitch. We go through it a number of times. food is plentiful and the usual stodge of cakes, sweets, coffee.

There are newspapers about. We can watch videos. Chat. Or pace. Most choose to pace about... Phones are banned. Computers are banned.

As the day rattles on more and more go through. I am the last one of the day. At 4pm I am called to go in and do my thing.

I get in, give my 3min “quick pitch” or intro and then open to questions. First hour is a disaster as they lay into me big time and rip me to bits.

Relief comes when a cameraman shouts out that he has run out of film. They stop breifly and I am allowed some water. I have been standing under a 500w light for an hour and am getting dehydrated.

In hour number two the lights are back on. The questions continue but the break seems to have changed my fortunes.

Peter Jones is up. He tries it. He likes it. He applogises for the first hour of shouting and then agrees its not a bad idea.

Deborah Meadon is close behind and offers support and help. At the end of the second hour the common thread is that they like the idea and think it will do well. But (and here comes the crunch) they tick me off for asking for too much money at £100,000k

I’m gutted but think oh-well at least the publicity of broadcast will be some kind of help.

July comes and goes and then we move into winter. The series is set over nine weeks and Hannah tells me she will ring to tell me my week. I wait. I wait. I wait.

Deborah is on the phone and arranging meetings with suppliers.

In week 8 with one more week to go Hannah calls.

So Sorry. They had so many pitches this year that you didnt make broadcast. We only really show the ones that get investment and the idiots.

So I go mental (as you would) and she tells me. To be honest drill bits are just not intersting enough for TV. If you got investment its a go. But sorry thats just how it is.

As soon as the BBC pull the plug - guess what happened to the suppliers that Deborah put me in contact with..... Yes they ran for the hills.

No broadcast = No interest.

Tough break. So the lesson is - dust myself down. Dry my tears and move on with life.

I dont blame anyone. The BBC are making good tv. The dragons can choose to invest their own money.

But It did P*** me off that they didnt show it. And it was mighty embarassing to have to explain to family and my mates..

And that... was that !

Richard

The boring facts about porcelain

Porcelain tiles are growing in popularity in both the domestic and commercial market. Producers are now able to replicate a range of natural stones, finishes and designs but with the additional benefit of being durable, strong and easy to clean. Current production methods can produce porcelain to resemble Marble, Slate, Limestone, Granite, Travertine and Quartzite.

The main reasons to choose porcelain are set out below:

1) Larger tiles can now be produced up to 2mx2m to provide an elegant uncluttered finish with simple lines and a contemporary and spacious feeling.

2) Wet rooms and showers are perfect for porcelain because it is impervious to water penetration.

3) It is highly resistant to chipping and scratching and lasts for many many years. The tile is a homogenous mix so damage just blends in.

4) It is frost resistant so may be used outdoors. In colder countries it is the external material of choice.

5) Once installed it is very low maintenance, easy to clean, resistant to mold grown, stains and bleaching and does not need sealing.

6) It is even stronger than granite. Granite is considered the benchmark when comparing very hard stone. Porcelain is 25% stronger than granite.

“The growth of the hard tiles market continues unabated: Consumption of porcelain tiles alone is predicted to double in the next 10-15 years. And not only is the demand for hard tiles growing, the trend for ‘floor to ceiling’ tiles is equally strong” c4carbides

Tilers and plumbers report installation difficulties because until now there has been genuine difficulty drilling porcelain tiles. Some tilers and plumbers avoid jobs using porcelain fearing the cost of breaking the material, the perceived complexity of installation, larger sizes plus the cost of cutting it. And so decent tilers able to work with such materials are much in demand and able to charge a premium. Its a shame more tilers do not embrace the material because with a little knowledge the cutting process can be shown to be quite straight forward. In contrast DIYers are keener than ever to “give it a go” and so are looking for good tools to tackle the task.

Cutting material such as granite or porcelain is in fact not that difficult. Providing of course that it is only in a straight line. For example a cheap tile cutter with a decent diamond blade is able to cut porcelain fairly easily. The problem starts when trying to drill or bore holes into it. Putting holes into porcelain stone has until now been a bit of a dark art...

There are now two methods to cut holes which are described below

1) Drilling rigs: In this method the hole is cut using an electric drill fitted with equipment consisting of a pilot drill bit, an arbor and a diamond crown . Prior to making the hole the installer selects the correct sized crown. He attaches a pilot drill into the center plus an arbor connected to a source of water. The arbor, the crown and the pilot are fitted into the chuck of the drill. To make the hole the rig is then placed at the drilling site.

Water is switched on to feed the pilot. The pilot first bores a small hole into the material and once complete the crown follows through. The pilot drill locks the crown in place from the inside while it bores the hole into the tile.

2) Drilling kits:

In this method the hole is cut with an electric drill and a diamond crown. Prior to making the hole The installer selects the correct sized crown and locks it into the drill chuck. He selects a drill guide containing a range of pre-formed holes.

To make the hole he pushes the drill plate onto the material.

The crown is placed into one of the pre-formed holes. The guide plate locks the crown in place externally while it bores the hole into the tile.

Both methods embrace similar priciples to bore the hole. For example each uses a crown fitted with diamonds to do the cutting work. Each uses a method to steady the crown and of course they both need water. But its here the similarities end . In fact the system which holds the crown internally has some obvious disadvantages over the external method.

There are about ten major disadvantages:

1) Pilot drills cost money to buy and money to replace. They wear out and must be replaced and paid for. Pilots cost about £20 plus

2) Pilots are only made of carbide not diamond so must continuously be kept cool. They also have a short life.

3) To cool the pilot a special rig or “arbor” must be attached to feed water continuously. Arbors add cost to the initial purchase price.

4) To supply the water to the arbor a special pressurized dispenser must be used which adds further cost to the initial purchase price.

5) To be able to be fitted together the component parts must be of sturdy construction and precision machined again adding to the initial purchase price.

6) Spraying water constantly onto the material is wasteful.

7) Spraying water constantly is messy. And a problem for sites still under construction and not yet water tight.

8) The extra energy involved in creating a pilot hole is wasteful and an unnecessary additional operational step.

9) Drilling a small pilot hole into a tile may accidentally pierce unseen electrical cables or water pipes hiding behind the drilling surface.

10) The initial outlay for the kit may be a barrier to purchase. And once purchased attractive to thieves.

In contrast the drilling kit does away with all of the drilling rigs disadvantages.

1) It requires no pilot drills so there is no initial outlay. So there is nothing to replace.

2) There are no carbide elements that require constant cooling. And so there is nothing to wear out.

3) There is no need to fit extra items to the drill to deliver water. This reduces costs. A simple sponge is fine.

4) No need for pressurized vessels to pump water. This again reduces costs.

5) No need to machine hard metal components. A plastic drill plate will provide robust support.

6) No need to continuously spray water. Cooling the drill bit via a sponge periodically is acceptable.

7) The location remains almost dry as the required water can be held in a bucket with a sponge. A tablespoon of water at the drilling site is all that’s required

8) Removing the pilot reduces the drain on batteries by lowering the electrical energy required. Less drag on equipment and so lower maintenance.

9) No danger of piercing cables or pipes. The diamond crown slowly grinds out the minimum of material to form its hole. Does not penetrate any deeper.

10) Reducing parts reduces costs to give financial value to customers. Simple kits are less attractive to thieves and easy to replace if stolen.

And finally

The good news is that drilling porcelain is now easy. Along the way there have been two surprising extra benefits. The first is the kits are able to drill softer tiles and in fact they actually do it really rather well. When using diamond on soft tile the results are near instant and the drill never wears out. The other exciting benefit is that the results are perfect. Holes are now so neat that many tilers prefer using diamond kits for all their tile drilling.

We should not assume porcelain will be with us forever. It may just be a passing trend. We don’t know. But one thing must be obvious. “Perfect holes” will never go out of fashion!

Perhaps then the real legacy will be perfect holes formed with diamonds as the byproduct of the porcelain tile era.

Expert advice for professional installers on drilling porcelain tiles. By Richard Hazell of 365 Drills
Richard Hazell

Richard Hazell standing outside the house at 7am. Its freezing cold with no natural light in this British winter so a fluorescent light is carried in.

Background: Recently I was asked to drill 150 holes into very hard porcelain tiles in four bathrooms over a weekend. This was an excellent opportunity to test our kits to destruction so I looked on it as a live exercise. Below are my experiences:

I decided to road test our product under the harshest of test conditions to make sure you - a professional tiler - can be totally sure I have experienced the worst a job can throw up. I also did it for myself because often I meet trade buyers in warm comfy rooms who want to pick holes into our kits. I want to be prepared. No surprises.

Property: The site was a new build with four bathrooms on four floors. One in the basement, One by the front door, one on the bedroom floor and one in the roof space.

General Conditions: The weather was bitter cold with sleet and rain.. There was no heating. Windows were fitted but external doors, garage and basement were open to elements and so working in freezing conditions meant thick layers of clothing. T-shirt. Jumper. External jacket and hat which obviously restricted my movement.

Diamond drills

Most pipes can be bashed through in a less than elegant way

Working conditions: There were a mix of guys from chippies, electricians and plumbers competing for space, materials and basic utilities such as electric and water. In addition to the internal fitters there were guys outside working on a concrete pour with routine deliveries from cement trucks and others. Inside the rooms were dirty, poorly lit and had multiple power cables running from room to room. Each room had a mix of tools, materials, packaging and rubbish from old newspapers to unwashed coffee mugs. There was one outside portaloo but no tea or coffee facilities. A Dewalt radio played in the background and at certain times a loud sporadic burst of singing could be heard from one contractor to certain songs. His most popular “She’s so lovely” By artist “Scouting for girls”. shouting : “She’s flirty, turned thirty Ain’t that the age a girl gets really dirty?” (repeat). and insisting the song was written about Ulrika Johnson.

365 drills

Fixtures of mirrors, first fix electric’s onto very hard porcelain tiles

Morale: Was low from some of the thirteen people as they were working the weekend, it was dark with a lack of natural light and everyone was keen to be gone by 2pm each day. Morale was affected because the project was running at a loss for the contractors due to problems with the basement.

My timing estimate was that 150 holes would be 3 mins per hole or 450 mins of drilling or 8 hours of actual drilling times. This worked out to be accurate and equated to four hours of drilling per day. I was originally informed all areas would be pre-marked for me and I would simply drill the holes. However on arrival I was told contractors would mark the holes as I went. I asked if they could mark at least 12 holes per time.

porcelain tiles

First problem (for the contractors) was the drill noise. So they went off and marked holes in different bathrooms while I continued to drill. This meant following them from bathroom to bathroom so I had to travel light and carry everything from one room to another. This proved to me that equipment should be as portable as possible. I used a small paint kettle for water with a small sponge and put drill bits in my pocket. The heaviest item was the battery charger so I left that in one spot and went back to it for a recharge when I got a flat.

They were also keen to ensure the holes I drilled first were for heavy stuff like shower doors, sinks, cabinets and toilet pans so that they could do their job of fitting them. The problem (for me) came later because access to other holes was restricted by the fittings. So I had to take them back off the wall. For example I had to remove the loo pans, sinks and cabinets. It was easier to remove the items. Of course this added to (my) time on site. In hindsight it would have been more efficient to drill all holes first and then fit.

drilling porcleain tiles

In order to test the durability of drills I did the opposite of the advice we give on site. I Drilled fast, applied pressure and used a minimal amount of water. Under the heaviest load the 8mm lasted about 5 to 6 holes before giving up. This is in line with our quoted pack life. So I am now confident that there is some redundancy in the drills if used correctly. But at least we can back up the 2-6 hole life with real field tests.

On the left is a clean hole that was drilled without breakage. On the right the hole has just started. In the middle the hole is being formed

After 150 holes I feel qualified to comment on drill tequnique. Over the weekend I adapted my technique The best way to drill is in bursts. Apply pressure to the drill bit then back off. Keep the sponge under the drill and withdraw it from the hole to cool it then push it back in hard against the tile for a few seconds. I found pulling the tip back until it was just at the edge of the hole but not completely out was the key to keeping it cool. Another must is not to break the core. This is the delicate part in the middle of the hole. If you snap it off its a bugger to poke out the core fragments. If you do manage to drill without snapping then it pulls out nicely in one smooth action. Word of warning is the core has a tendency to snap at about 90% into a tile. So you eject a broken plug then drill the final 1mm. But its this that gets stuck in the barrel and is a pain to poke out. The secret is not to move the drill too much. Hold as steady as you can. Believe me after 150 holes fatigue sets in so I found myself holding it in some funny ways. For example at waste height I pushed the drill with my hip and pushed the trigger with my wrist not finger. At the end of two days every bone in my body ached from cold, bruising and bumps. I think I had the equivalent to tennis elbow on my thumb from holding the drill for so many hours

Fitting items can restrict movement. This loo pan stopped the fixing of a loo brush on to the left tile. So it was refitted to the right tile

Final thoughts: At the end of the experiment I have a number of suggestions. If you drill aggressively change the cores every five holes because you can waste time getting the maximum life out of a core. It takes ages on hole 6. Try and stick with 8mm which give much more bite than 6mm. Its better to dump the rawl plugs supplied with the fittings and change to your own rawl plugs which are cheap enough to buy in bulk from many retailers. If you are going to drill that many holes then perhaps use a drill that has a button to keep it on. My figures were raw from the trigger. Dont be afraid to start off the holes dry. I used an old knackered core to start off most of the holes. Just dip it on a wet sponge to cool it.

Most fixing come with a cap to disguise hole drilling. If you are good enough then the caps can be removed...

I actually enjoyed my weekend and the guys on site were all good people. Having experienced the pain and the concentrated conditions myself I really appreciate what goes on in a job. One thing I was surprised at was the drill plate. I had put nice little thumb groove into the plate to indicate where to press it. But to be honest the plate can be held in any area. It was interesting to discover how little tile the plate needed to grip. I had that plate in all sorts of angles and working heights.

Richard Hazell

365drills.com