1 – Wearing Protective Eyewear
Before you start your sanding project, make sure that you are wearing protective eyewear as a precaution for your health and safety. This should be done in order to avoid sanded ceramic tile pieces from entering your eyes.
2 – Sanding The Tiles Manually
Sand the ceramic tiles with 220-grit sandpaper. Sanding should be done especially if the tiles were installed more than 50 years ago. You can choose to paint the ceramic tiles after you sand them as well. Remember that your goal is to sand away the superficial glaze but let the tile retain the smoothness of its surface.
If you decide to sand your ceramic tiles manually, keep in mind that the rougher the surface of the tile, the lower the grit of your sandpaper should be. In case you find a chipped tile, it is a much better idea if you utilize 60-grit or 80-grit sandpaper to smoothen the sharp edges. After you have sanded the edges, you can refine them a bit more with 400-grit sandpaper. Make sure that you go up the grit scale slowly. Do not use 400-grit sandpaper immediately after you have used 80-grit sandpaper.
Keep in mind that sandpaper should be used to sand the surfaces of ceramic tiles, as well as to smoothen any sharp edges than the tiles may have. However, if you need to change the size and shape of a ceramic tile, you are advised to make use of a diamond wheel or a tile saw because they are more appropriate tools than sandpaper.
Sand the ceramic tiles with 220-grit sandpaper. Sanding should be done especially if the tiles were installed more than 50 years ago. You can choose to paint the ceramic tiles after you sand them as well. Remember that your goal is to sand away the superficial glaze but let the tile retain the smoothness of its surface.
If you decide to sand your ceramic tiles manually, keep in mind that the rougher the surface of the tile, the lower the grit of your sandpaper should be. In case you find a chipped tile, it is a much better idea if you utilize 60-grit or 80-grit sandpaper to smoothen the sharp edges. After you have sanded the edges, you can refine them a bit more with 400-grit sandpaper. Make sure that you go up the grit scale slowly. Do not use 400-grit sandpaper immediately after you have used 80-grit sandpaper.
Keep in mind that sandpaper should be used to sand the surfaces of ceramic tiles, as well as to smoothen any sharp edges than the tiles may have. However, if you need to change the size and shape of a ceramic tile, you are advised to make use of a diamond wheel or a tile saw because they are more appropriate tools than sandpaper.
3 – Using Power Sanding Tools
If you do not want to sand your ceramic tiles manually, you can still obtain excellent results if you utilize power tools. Remember that the type of sanding tool you should use depends on the type of edge that the ceramic tiles have. Keep in mind that a rotary sander should be utilized if the edges are curved, whereas a belt sander should be used if the edges are flat.
You need to be much more careful when you sand ceramic tiles with power tools. This is because the tools will sand the tiles at a greater speed than when you are sanding them manually. Hold the tools with gentle hands and inspect the edges regularly. After you see that the edge of the tile has been smoothened completely, you can finish with 200-grit and 400-grit sandpaper, either through the use of power tools or manually.
4 – Using Handle-Mounted Files
If you choose to use a handle-mounted file, you can put your mind to rest because these files give you more control over the job than if you are using a power sanding tool. Use a handle-mounted file in case your ceramic tiles have curved edges.
Source: www.DoItYourself.com
