Ceramic Tiles - How to Make a Hole in a Ceramic Tile

Quite often when tiling around plumbing such as in a shower or sink area it becomes necessary to make a hole in a ceramic tile to accommodate a pipe.
This might sound tricky but don't worry this article is an easy to follow guide on how to achieve this neatly and quickly.
Take the tile to be cut and place it against the pipe first from the side and then from below. On both occasions marking the tile with a mark that is in line with the centre of the pipe.
You then lay the tile carefully on a flat surface, take a steel rule and extend your two marks right across the surface of the tile. This creates two lines that intersect each other at the point where you need to create your hole.
The next step is to draw a shape of the hole. This can be done quite easily by either tracing round an off cut of pipe or a coin. Obviously it is important to ensure that whatever you draw around is the same size and diameter as the pipe on your wall.
Once you have done this you cut the tile in two along one of the straight lines you drew on the tile at the outset using your tile cutter (I prefer to always cut a tile vertically but you may need to cut it horizontally to accommodate your pipe).
Taking a tile marker you then score along the outline of the resulting semi-circles marked on each tile half. Be sure to penetrate the glaze and to score as deep as you can. Then take a tile nibbler and remove the part of the tile that forms your hole.
Finally you fit the two pieces together around the pipe and grout. I also normally apply some silicone sealant at this point to protect the surface with a water tight finish.
That is it you have successfully created a hole in a tile and fitted it around a pipe. All the tools mentioned in this piece can be purchased from a discount ceramic tile supplier along with your tiles.

Author - Jessica Hannah writes widely on a number of lifestyle topics including entertainment, health, nutrition, design and gadgets.
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