Experience tells us that the favorite cutting machine of the professional ceramic floor tile installer is the high-functioning cutter. Its cutting speed, working in a clean and comfortable environment, and the low level of investment involved are the determining yardsticks in this perception. However, due to the increase in formats and the growth in the hardness of different floor tile materials, such as porcelain and stoneware, professional tile installers are beginning to look to an electric tile cutter for a new solution.
The different types of electric tile cutters offer a wide variety of possibilities when laying your floor tiles. Knowing how to distinguish between them will allow us to choose the most suitable model for our needs. For more cutting tiles DIY visit: www.familyhandyman.com/project/how-to-cut-tile-with-a-grinder/
HIGHLIGHTS OF ELECTRIC CUTTERS
Before explaining the different types of electric cutters that the market offers, I would like to highlight those aspects that an electric cutter will give us, compared to the traditional manual cutter.
Electric cutters allow us to cut a broader range of floor tiles materials. Not only will we be able to cut the same ceramic floor tile materials as a manual cutter, but they will also allow us to work with natural stones and other construction materials used in making floor tiles.
Another aspect is the great variety and versatility of cuts that an electric cutter will offer us. It is far beyond a manual cutter’s traditional straight, orthogonal and diagonal cuts. With the suitable electric cutter, we can make precise miter cuts or “L” or “U” shaped cuts to save corners or recesses in the partition floor. Don’t forget the possibility of making grooves or vertical cuts on your floor tiles if your cutter has the so-called miter effect.
Last but not least, it is vital to highlight the quality of the final finish offered by an electric cutter. We must not forget that these cutters work with diamond discs and, for the most part, these are water-cooled.
If we add to this combination the right blade, the quality obtained in the cuts will be very close to the original factory cut of the floor tile pieces.
Quality and versatility are the most critical aspects of an electric cutter.
MAIN GROUPS OF ELECTRIC CUTTERS
Now that we have seen what an electric cutter can offer us, compared to a manual one, it is time to know the market’s different types.
There are three main groups of electric cutters:
- Portable cutter
- Moving table cutter
- Moving head cutter
PORTABLE CUTTER
Portable electric slicers are self-defined. They are the smallest, lightest and easiest to transport.
This type of cutter is ideal for carrying out minor repair and rehabilitation jobs and the perfect complement to any manual tile cutter to complete those more special cuts such as squares, window or door corners, columns, etc.
One of the significant advantages of portable electric cutters, especially the wet cut ones, is that they allow you to cuts your floor tiles directly at the place of installation. That, together with their ease of use and safety, are the key arguments for choosing them over a grinder.
The ND-200 electric tile cutter and miter saw are portable, versatile, and powerful. Its small size and lightweight make it an ideal electric cutter for finishes and renovations. It has an adjustable stainless-steel table and can be set up to 45º to perform miter cuts, allowing you to cut your floor tiles neatly at all times in the same workspace, reducing displacements, corrections & downtime.
MOVING TABLE CUTTER
The second group is the moving table electric cutter. Due to their design and operation, the material to be cut is placed on a table generally moved by bearings. They are particularly suitable for cutting building materials.
Its main advantage is its speed and capacity to cut materials of a certain thickness, thanks, above all, to the cutting effect.
Although they can cut any material, electric cutting machines with a portable table are not the most recommended for cutting ceramic floor tiles due to their design, cutting system, and format limitation. The stability of the table and the risk, with time and use, of unwanted movements and vibrations will directly affect the quality and precision of the cut.
The DR-350 Cutter is an electric cutter with a moveable tale & plunge effect, making it ideal for cutting all types of floor tiles materials, from bricks & granite to porcelain & ceramic tiles
MOVING HEAD CUTTER
The third and final group is the sliding head electric cutters. Unlike the sliding table machines, this group is the most recommended for cutting ceramic materials and pieces of natural stone or any other type of cladding. The quality and precision of the cut are indispensable.
In the group of electric cutting machines with sliding heads, we must differentiate between those with and without a cutting effect. As we have already said, the most outstanding feature of the sliding head electric cutters is their cutting precision. However, suppose we add to this quality the cutting effect. In that case, we obtain the most excellent cutting versatility than any electric cutter can offer us.
Electric tile cutters with a mobile head and miter saw effect allow us to work with many different tile materials, including natural stone and building materials. They also allow us to make a greater variety of cuts, including grooves and vertical cuts.
On the other hand, if our interest is focused exclusively on the quality of floor tile cutting, above all on straight cuts and the possibility of making miters, we should pay all our attention to the models with sliding heads without the miter seeing the effect.
Finally
These cutters sacrifice the versatility of the previous ones in favor of cutting quality and precision. Apart from all these aspects, the last detail that must be considered is the motor’s power. But this point deserves its post.