How do you cut combination marble and glass tiles when they are both on the same mesh backing? When I tried this, the tiles move and the glass shatters.
Tile – How to cut glass and marble tiles when they are on a mesh backing
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Wire lath has been used as a base for plaster walls and stucco for decades.
It is made from an expanded mesh of metal. You should be able to:
- cut a piece that is the size of your mosaic
- check to make sure that the lath + thinset + mosaic will be flush with the remainder of your tiles
- attach it to your backerboard (or whatever the substrate is for the rest of the tile) with screws or staples
- cover the mesh completely with thinset, making sure it fills the gaps under the mesh and adheres to the backing material
- place your mosaic on the thinset.
The wire lath should be available at tile stores and possibly home centers. See, e.g. this
Alternative idea.
Test the sealer on a piece of left over tile.
Let the sealer get onto the glass and wipe it up shortly thereafter.
Compare the before/after -- if you see no notable damage, just put the stuff on and have someone clean up the glass right behind you.
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Best Answer
Ahhhhh no wet saw for small glass mosaics. First it will bounce all over when cutting and second you might get a nice chunk of glass in you.
You will be cutting everything one mosaic tile at a time. Take it off of the mesh.
#1 Make sure when laying out your tile that your cuts are in the corners or in less seen areas.
#2 If you need to cut the corner of a tile or odd shapes use glass nippers.
The nippers are not a precision tool. With a little practice you can get close to what you want. Luckily doing mosaics breaking a couple of squares is relatively cheap. If you have a weird corner cut on a tile or a circular cut and you can get it done in 2-3 tries the great job.
#3 For straight cuts you use a wheel scorer. The picture I have below is a double sided. Often you will just see a single wheel. Just like cutting drywall it is most important to get a good score on the glass side. With a little muscle you should only have to roll an area 2-3 times.
#4 Once you have a line on the top of your tile we are going to move it over to the tile cutter. You are going to place this faced up with the edge right on the cut line. This takes practice and is a little different with each cutter. You will gently (do it to hard and cut may not be clean) bounce the lever to put pressure on the tile. If it is lined up right eventually it will break clean on your scored line. If your cut isn't clean then you may need to score a little deeper or line it up better on your cutter. Also do one tile at a time. I know it seems a PITA but you can do 2-3 tiles in a minute once you get it down. Also do your cuts before you start applying thinset or have a helper.