Cutting and Drilling

Glass tiles can easily be cut using a hand glass cut¬ter or a wet saw. The cut edges should then be sanded using sanding pads, to minimize the risk of injury. First, mark out the piece which needs to be cut out. Where the mark-out lines intersect, drill a hole with at least 5mm diameter. The cutting should then be done using a water-cooled glass saw. The saw should thereby be positioned at right angles to the tile.

HOLES

Holes with a smaller diameter can be drilled using a dia¬mond drill suitable for drilling glass, while constantly using cooling water. When drilling holes starting from a 10 mm dia¬meter, care must be taken to drill on both sides. First drill on the colored side halfway through the tile, then drill on the glass side. This is necessary to avoid chipping the color and potential breaking due to stress. It is advisable to use a rabbet or similar aid. While drilling, it is essential to use cooling water.

POWER OUTLET HOLES OR OTHER DETAILED CUTTING

When two cuts intersect it is crucial to drill at the intersecting point. Using a wet drill bit designed for drilling glass tile, drill half way through the tile from the front, turn it over and then drill half way through from the back, meeting in the middle. This is necessary to avoid chipping and stress fractures once the tile is set. These types of cuts can be difficult and water jet cutting is an excellent option. A good result is often achieved by holding the glass tile at a 45 degree angle while cutting with a wet saw. Be sure to use a blade designed for use with glass tile. This helps minimize chipping during the cutting process. To prevent rough edges, glass tiles must be cut extremely slowly.

WATER-JET CUTTING

Water-jet cutting – A water jet machine is an excellent option for cutting Villi products, especially for more difficult cuts. There is a difference in cutting glass versus stone. The water jet machines are set to 50-60,000 psi. For glass, it must be reduced to 18-20,000 psi. Also, there should either be a change to the metering disc to restrict the amount of sand that is used or a vacuum assist pump should be used. The water jet company can contact Villi for any further questions.

WET SAW CUTTING

When using a wet saw (may result in chipping top and bottom of tile causing an irregular edge and some color loss) only recommended when cut area will be covered by more than ¼: of switch plate or molding. Wet saws, generally are not recommended for cutting VILLIglas. Most wet saws cannot cut the tile without excessive vibrations, which cause chipping. If you do, use a Glass Blade 10” wet saw blades are made specifically for glass. In addition to that the tile has to be cut extremely slowly: Example: One piece of 4x4 glass tile should take approx. 1-1/2 to 2 minutes to cut. Use masking tape or blue painters tape all the way around the tile when the cut is being made and cutting the tile upside down will prevent the backing from chipping as much and will put the worst edge on the front of the tile. Sand the edges after cutting and re-polish them if needed.

RELIEF / DECO STRUCTURED RELIEF / FOSSIL

Please note that tiles in the Deco Structured Relief and Fossil series must be wet-cut (Rubi Tools brand or GEMINI brand wet saw performs well in cutting Villiglas).

If you have any questions, please contact us by phone at
1-866-724-5836 (toll free) or by Email.

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