WHY the"TileBit"?

IDENTIFYING THE PROBLEM

The need to drill holes in tile, range from mounting a grab bar or a shower door in a tiled bathroom or installing a towel rack on a tiled kitchen wall to drilling hundreds of holes to bolt down pews on a newly tiled church floor.

There is a common misconception that almost any masonry drill bit can drill any tile (it just takes a little longer to drill hard tile). This is still the advice you might get in some tile stores and home improvement centers. But with the increasing popularity of tile, there are now many more types of tile available, some being 30% stronger than granite and impossible to drill with carbide or masonry bits.

Based on the number of inquires we have received on how to drill holes in tile over the last few years and the reports of many disappointing results with "masonry" bits, we undertook a drilling study to evaluate the existing tools available and determine if there was a need for a new tool specifically designed to drill all types of tile.

After drilling thousands of holes in hundreds of different types and makes of tile and testing every bit that was recommended to do the job by the knowledgeable people in the field, we came to the following conclusions which led to the development of the 'TILEBIT'.

CONCLUSION

Tiles that are marked, identifying their durability or class/PEI rating normally are difficult or impossible to drill with masonry bits. (Tiles made for applications not requiring a high rating are normally not labeled.)

In general, the drillability of tile decreases as the tile's hardness, breaking strength, and abrasive resistance increases and its water absorption rate decreases.

1. Masonry carbide insert bits, including the spear point - "Glass & Tile" bits and "Hammer Drill" bits perform only marginally in drilling...

A. Class/PEI III tile.
B. Tile of Mohs hardness 5.
C. Tile with a Water Absorption of 5% and
D. Tile with a breaking strength of 200 lbs.

2. These masonry bits perform unsatisfactorily in drilling...

A. Tile Class/PEI IV and above
B. Tile of a Mohs hardness 6 and above
C. Tile with a water absorption of 4% and below (Which includes all vitreous and impervious tiles)
D. Tile with a breaking strength of 275 lbs and above and
E All porcelain tile.

3. Because there was no universal bit to drill all types of tile, Barrett Diamond Products developed the 'TILEBIT' designed to drill ALL TYPES OF TILE "faster-easier-cheaper".

HOW TILE IS RATED

Tile is rated by how well it performs in a given application. The AMERICAN NATIONAL STANDARD INSTITUTE (ANSI) has established standards and has set forth their standard specifications ANSI A 137.1 for 8 categories.