Useful tips for using tile nippers

Q: What are tile clamps?

A: They are a tiling tool that is primarily used to make circular cuts in tiles that are difficult to complete with your tile saw.

Circular saws and Snap Cutters are excellent at making straight and angled cuts. Although you can also use a tile saw to make circular cuts, there is a technique when making circular cuts. 

Mark the cuts you want to make with a crayon, make a bunch of straight cuts in the tile that match your marks, and then use the saw to hold the 'fingers' you've created. You'll end up with a tile that you can rub off the edges of with a rubbing tile. When you perform this technique with your tile saw, you end up with a lot of cuts, a lot of blade wear, and a result that is similar to what you would get with a tile clamp.

Depending on the round cut you want to make, a tile vice becomes a necessary tool that produces less mess than making the same cut with a tile saw. In most cases, you can make a few angled cuts with your wet tile saw to get close to your circular mark and then clamp the rest with the ever handy tile clamp pliers.

Pliers tip #1: Make your mark and keep the score.

Trace your mark with a crayon, then score the mark with a glass cutter. Scoring your tile will help the tile break over your mark rather than crossing it.

Pliers Tip 2: When using pliers, take small 'bites' and take your time.

As long as your spouse sees that you are working hard ...... Everything is fine. If you go too fast, you risk breaking the tiles and you will have to settle for a bad job, or start again. And what we are looking for here is absolute perfection! Leonardo da Vinci spent years creating his masterpieces and you can too, although you may have to struggle with your spouse to get things done before the weekend.

Pliers Tip 3: Once you've bitten and nibbled, bite and bite. Now it's time to wipe, wipe, wipe!

Use a rubbing tile, the special stone used by tile installers, to smooth out the edges of the tiles. You'll want to pay particular attention to wiping down cuts that may be exposed to objects, such as shower drains. Biting tile edges can be very sharp unless they are wiped down.

Pliers tip 4: Don't use tile pliers to cut straight pieces, instead use a wet circular saw, wet tile saw or snap cutter

Each tool has its niche and using a tile cutter to make straight or angled cuts is not one of them.

Note: As modern porcelain gets harder, we recommend using pliers with replaceable teeth, as older pliers tend to break frequently on porcelain.