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How To Drill Through Quartz (Full Guide)

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Quartz is a brilliant material for making worktops, floors, and walls. It can be just as strong and resistant to damage as a granite top, as well as being a fantastic-looking finish. Getting a beautiful finish for a kitchen installation is easy with quartz – it doesn’t require sealing and can actually look cleaner and sleeker when joints are made to it.

Learning how to drill through quartz and get a clean finish can be a challenge, however, you need to prepare carefully and gather the correct tools.

Failing to do so will cause a lot of damage to this material. Even though it is a reasonably priced material now, you still do not want to fork out a great deal of money because you chose the wrong drill tip.

When starting to drill, you will need to follow our instructions to get the best finish. Careful preparation, the correct tools, and a thorough setup will give you clean finishes that don’t cause damage to the quartz and won’t waste your money.

How To Drill Through Quartz


Gathering The Right Materials

Because you are dealing with quartz, you need to prepare the right materials. You are unlikely to cause damage to your drill from poor preparation.

You are much more likely to cause serious damage to the worktop. As quartz is made from resin, it is particularly prone to splitting and cracking if you use the wrong drill bits. Take care of the material and you will have a fantastic piece of work.

With a few small purchases, you can make sure that you reduce your chances of destroying your quartz. You will still need to administer the drill carefully for fear of chipping and breakages to your equipment, but correct equipment is the first step to success. To successfully drill through quartz without damaging your drill or your quartz, you need a diamond hole drill bit.

Normal metal drills will quickly become dull and increase the risk of destroying the piece of material. This is due to excessive heat and simply not being sharp enough to cut through the material.

If you do not know how to use a diamond head drill bit, you should practice on some scrap pieces of material first. Although quartz can be expensive, finding some small pieces to practice on with make your life easier in the long run.

You will need:

  • A piece of quartz
  • An appropriate stand for your quartz
  • A drill
  • A drill template
  • A diamond hole drill bit
  • Lubricant like water
  • A cloth to clean debris
  • Appropriate safety equipment, such as goggles and a dust mask

Make sure you understand how to use your drill – quartz drilling needs a very controlled technique and you will need to slow down and speed up your drill as you work.

This is key to successfully drilling through most materials, but quartz can be particularly difficult to work with if you do not control the drill bit.

Safety First

Proper safety needs you to prepare and understand your equipment as well as preparing a safe working environment. This includes setting up a work area that is free of tripping hazards and other potential sources of accidents. This includes moving all scrap pieces of material from your workspace and moving wires out of the way.

If you are using a drill that is wired, you need to make sure that it does not hang under your feet. One misplaced step and you could fall over. Falling over with power tools is bad news, so make sure your area is clean and organized. This advice goes for all other equipment in the area.

Drilling quartz can lead to a real mess, so you will need to set up with that in mind. As you will need to apply lubricant throughout the process, you will need to have something set up underneath the work surface to catch it. Common tools like a bucket are fine, but you can also use a towel if you don’t have a bucket to hand.

Quartz can splinter if you don’t drill through it correctly. Although this is a problem with your work, it can also be a problem with your personal safety. Proper safety preparations like goggles can protect your eyes from splinters and chips that fly off the surface.

As your drill will also grind the material as you drill through, you will also need to wear a dust mask. Inhaling quartz over a long period of time can lead to serious problems for your health, so this is no time for sloppiness.

Using A Template

You will want to use a template in order to make sure that you make the best hole. You should already have a drill template on hand, but if you don’t you can pick them up from any good DIY or hardware shop.

A drill template is generally not very large, so you won’t need special equipment to hold it in place. You can simply hold the drill with your weak hand. This will need to be a secure grip. If you need to use a small clamp, you can. Making sure that your clamp does not impede your workspace is obviously still important.

If you do not want to use a template, you can mark a hole with a pen. You won’t have the same level of security when you are starting, but it does save time. If you are new to using drills, you may want to invest in a drill template until you are certain how to start drilling holes.

Starting To Drill

This is actually a four-part stage, but it is simply administering the drilling. Your drilling process should be smooth and steady. Erratic and uncontrolled drilling leads to cracks, chips, and breaks. If you cause damage to your quartz, it can be extremely difficult or even impossible to rescue the material. Take your time and drill calmly.

Quartz look very good, especially on the floor. If you are thinking of cutting and making holes in the quartz then you need a saw and a drill.

Place your drill into the drilling template. This should fit comfortably with room for the drill to turn in. If it doesn’t, you need to use a different hole or template! Good drill templates have a variety of holes on them, so you just need to find the one that fits the bit you are using.

When your drill is in place, press gently on the trigger. This will start the drill bit to spin – this will need to be slow! If you start the drill spinning at top speed straight away, the teeth on the bit will pull on the quartz instead of boring into it. If you pull on the material, it will chip and splinter your material. This will ruin the material, waste your money, and probably ruin your day.

Your drill should slowly be fed through the quartz until you are about ¼ inch into the material. Apply as little pressure as possible and let the drill work through on its own. In order to stop the drill from heating up, you will need to apply a lubricant.

You don’t need to use a special lubricant if you don’t have one – a simple splash of water to the quartz and the drill bit will give you the desired results. We only want to make sure that all the equipment is cool throughout the drilling process.

When you are about ¼ inch into the quartz, remove the template. Continue to drill slowly and steadily – let the guide hole and the drill do the work. Pressure can cause the entire sheet to break under the drill, so don’t ruin the job now.

Related Read — How to Drill Into a Rock?

Maintaining Good Drilling Technique

Keeping your drill speed low and steady will guide it through the quartz easily. Taking your time to lubricate your drill bit and the material frequently will give you the best finish. As you approach the quartz, you should only be pressing the trigger lightly. As it makes contact, keeping the spin of the tip slow will bore into the quartz without pulling on the material.

Slow work stops sloppy work, so you need to be in full control throughout the process. You should slow down even more as you approach the other side of the sheet.

As this is the same as beginning the job, speed can cause the material to splinter and crack. As a rule of thumb, you should be slow on entry, fast through the middle, and slow on exit. This will reduce the chances of any damage to the material.

Taking your time to lubricate and open up the hole on the other side is key to getting a professional finish. If you go too quick, all the work has been for nothing. Slow and steady through the other side and stop the drill bit spinning as soon as it is out the other side.

Cleaning Up The Job

If you have followed our tips, you can get a clean finish on your quartz straight away with minimal need for cleaning up the product afterward. If you have slight chipping, you might want to take low-grade sandpaper to the edges of the hole to tidy it up.

It is important not to use sandpaper on the work surface – this will lead to damage you can’t undo to the quartz. As you won’t be needing to make any corrections if you have followed the steps correctly, this shouldn’t be much of a problem, however.

Conclusion

Drilling through quartz is a simple but time-consuming process. You don’t need to have professional-grade skills, but you will need professional-grade tools. Using anything but a diamond hole drill bit will cause the quartz to crack and ruin materials.

Taking your time to find the correct tools is most of this job. You need to find the right kind of drill tips to make the correct hole. If you don’t use one, the worktop will probably split and you will ruin your metal-tipped drill bits. This is more wasted money and avoidable headaches.

For the best finishes, drill slowly. Then drill slower. Then drill slower again. This process doesn’t require a great deal of skill, but you will need to be careful in your drilling. Getting a professional level finish all comes down to the care you give and using your tools appropriately.

Related Read — How to Drill Plastic?

FAQ About Drilling Into Quartz

Can I Drill Through Quartz With a Normal Drill Bit?

No, your drill bits need to be specially designed. You want to use a diamond hole drill bit to be able to cleanly cut through the material. If you use a metal drill bit, it will dull the bit itself and the quartz is more likely to crack.

What Speed Should I Drill Through Quartz?

Slow and steady is the best way to get the best results from your drill. You should start slowly and gently speed up towards the center of the material.

It should never approach full speed. When you approach the other side of the quartz, your drill should be spinning as slowly as possible while still boring through the material.

Is It Bad to Drill Through Crystal Worktops?

Drilling into crystal worktops like quartz can cause a lot of damage to the material if you do not work slowly and with the correct materials. It isn’t bad, but you will need a diamond drill tip and a drill that can turn slowly.

What Speed Do I Need to Drill Into Quartz?

You need to drill slowly, to begin with, and when exiting the hole. This will reduce your chances of pulling against the quartz and causing irreparable damage.

You can speed up in the middle of the quartz as this is where it is strongest, but you will need good speed control when entering and exiting.

Do I Need to Use Lubricant When Drilling Through Quartz?

Because quartz can be very resistant to drilling, you may need to use lubricants to cool the material and the drill bit down. This will stop the quartz from being damaged and the drill from dulling down.

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We’re a team of engineers, contractors, technicians, and woodworking experts who use power tools daily and share fact-based information, tips, and recommendations. At thetoolgeeks.com, we debunk myths about power tools and share methods to use them effectively.

The Tool Geeks Team

We're a team of engineers, contractors, technicians, and woodworking experts who use power tools daily and share fact-based information, tips, and recommendations. At thetoolgeeks.com, we debunk myths about power tools and share methods to use them effectively.

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