How to Mitre Tile for Beginners: A Complete Guide

[@Doodchillbro]

so helpful and indepth but still to the point. More DIY content creators should use your style as the golden format for sharing DIY projects to teach us interested viewers! new sub

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you! That was a kind comment, and thank you for subscribing! It's hard to find a balance, I know people want quicker videos but when there is a lot of needed info, I hate to leave stuff out that I needed when I was learning.

[@davidburke3507]

Thanks a million for this video, its just what I was looking for. Excellent!!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you for watching and commenting! I'm happy to help :)

[@Dagestan.Warrior.Alpha_1]

I am also a general contractor in Ontario, Canada! Your work is amazing, awesome attention to detail 👏 keep up the great work 😊

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you!

[@Dagestan.Warrior.Alpha_1]

Your welcome! Just wondering where you purchased the diamond polishing pad and adapter for grinder ?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@Dagestan.Warrior.Alpha_1 I think I got them from Calidad tools. They have a lot of great tiling tools.

[@colinmurphy1421]

thank you so so so so so much. Couldn't find a clear concise video on angle grinding outside miters and you knocked it out of the park. Thank you.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you for your message. I appreciate the encouragement! I’ve really been questioning if it’s worth posting these videos :)

[@colinmurphy1421]

@@YouCanDIYHome I started making tiktok construction content, so I feel your pain!!! Just know that you made a 31 yo carpenter in Boston, MA confident in his mitering abilities for a big scary niche!!! Thank you again!!! @cjmurphyconstruction

[@samuelm2811]

Keep making your videos!! I know you have it in you to go big. Very informative and detaild and do you know........ your very smooth in the approach when detailing information ❤

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you so much! I appreciate your kind comment!

[@100vg]

Your 1/16 inch miter edge is wise for two reasons: It makes for clean mitered edges and prevents sharp edges which could cut after installation. Your tip to over miter than angle is also great. I'll be mitering ~47° tiles inside and around the bathtub window, coming down from the 4 inch tiles at the top, around and back up, and sharp edges would be dangerous in the shower. I never thought about those sharp edges, so you saved me potential cuts, that mess and pain. The extra steps, time and trouble will be well worth it. The straight, square cuts and factory edges will have matching-painted molding to hide the unfinished edges. I'm using 4 foot by 8 inch wood-look porcelain tile about 4 feet up on all walls and around the tub surround and window as described. Thanks for everything, Emily!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@johnh6978]

Excellent video. I do mine on a saw. What I have found is if you place a tile underneath you can get your 1/16th edge. If it is to big, just run it through again like a grinder. Did a floor to ceiling fireplace like that.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Nice!

[@dianad4453]

Are you a contractor or you only do stuff for yourself? We need someone to install a big porcelain slab over our brick fireplace (of course, use cement board, etc.). And if you're a contractor, where are you located, which state?

[@johnh6978]

@@dianad4453 only my own stuff. Retired.

[@teresagudgel7214]

Such a great video. I'm attempting the beveled edge today and this video has been so helpful. Thank you.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I'm so glad! I hope it went well!

[@sarahwalters5694]

thank you so much for this video! Im getting ready to tile a shower with a huge long niche and also a window and I really want the high end look of mitered edges.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thanks for watching and commenting! I hope it turns out great!!!

[@urbanistic5]

😊 thank you so much , I was looking for this with my bathroom upcoming job, makes me happy and proud that is from girl like me 😊

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you! Good luck on your upcoming project!

[@kylechristensen8454]

This is a really good video! Lots of good tips compiled into one tutorial. I'm planning on trying miters for the first time today 😂. Keep up the good work!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you! Good luck on your first try!!!

[@coachBux]

wow been looking for a vid on how to do this - awesome guide - Thanks!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thanks for watching and commenting!!

[@ernestthebo5441]

Thanks!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you so much for the super thanks!!! I appreciate you!

[@robertreynolds3997]

Great video and explanation of what can be an extremely frustrating endeavor!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you!!

[@stevenlaake9975]

You're so way cool in many ways. You really helped, thank you. Hope all your dreams come true 😊.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you so much!

[@brucecurrie6913]

Thank you for a most informative video.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

You're welcome :) Thank you for watching and commenting!

[@dandiaz1663]

Awesome video Emily. Thank you

[@YouCanDIYHome]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching and commenting Dan :)

[@sukrusenemoglu]

A clear and successful video, thanks for your efforts Why do you use two separate grinding machines? Can't you use the same grinder for grinding after cutting?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

You for sure can! I think I probably just got sick of switching the attachment and I have a few so I just did it this way. If you only have one grinder, thats no problem at all!

[@antpearson9293]

Thanks a lot. This was a really helpful video. I'm just about to have a go at this and there were some top tips there. Wish me luck!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thanks for watching! You'll get it! I was a little baffled the first time I tried to figure it out and it just gets easier and easier the more you do it. Now I use mitres all the time just because they look so much better. Now the hardest part for me is the epoxy in the corners. Here's a video on that if you want a bit of help there: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5nXmnhmqrx1eLcsi=-bB1174EpaPYaDZJ good luck on your project!!

[@antpearson9293]

@@YouCanDIYHome Thanks Emily. I really appreciate you replying and sending me the link to the epoxy video. There's some great tips in there; I'm sure I wouldn't have thought to mix up enough colour at the start and use it in batches. That's a real pearl of wisdom! You have a new subscriber🙂

[@conradcoolerfiend]

10:35 flip your tile over and it will be easier!

[@nathanjames7987]

Great video , very helpful , thank you.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I'm so glad! Mitred corners make SUCH a difference to the design of a tile job!

[@MarloAranda]

From pearl of d orient sea..Philippines... Guuuudddd job

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you!!

[@MarloAranda]

Ur welcome madam .....

[@MarloAranda]

Hope more videos espclly ... cabinet making n laminate...thank uuuuuuuu

[@brianluckie1]

Do you have any videos or suggestions for using the epoxy resin on the corners and how do you colour match the tiles.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I tried to film it when I did this bathroom but it sets up so fast that I didn't get enough footage to make a video. How soon do you need this info? I could make a fake little video on a couple scraps.

[@charlottewarrington5629]

I would actually love to see this too ! Amazing videos thank you for sharing 🙏 x

[@ansontan7731]

Thank you so much for this video! I was about to give up on the whole mitered tile idea but I’ll give it another shot! I had a question though the example you did was on a factory finished edge but how do you clean up the cut you made with the big saw and get rid of those little microchips in the edge without chipping it more, does the polishing pad work for that?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

You can use a polishing pad on a grinder or a hand polishing pad. I have both sets in multiple grits. Depending on how prone to chipping the tile is or how different the color of the front is from the interior body, you can kind of tell which one seems to work better.

[@ansontan7731]

@@YouCanDIYHome Thank you so much got the ones you used in the video using the link ;) it worked amazing!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@ansontan7731 Woohoo! I'm so glad it worked for you!

[@MichelleCamfield]

So helpful, thank you!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Michelle, I'm so glad! Thank you for your comment!

[@seanmurray2904]

Great video. I have a question I hope you can help me with. I have a U-shaped cut around a niche that I’d like to mitre. Above the niche I have 2 L shaped tiles. I also would like to mitre those. I’m trying to figure out what is the best way to go about mitering them especially on the corner. Have you come across this? I’ve been looking for videos to try it and find somebody to explain how to do it but haven’t found anything. Would appreciate your help.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Can you email me a picture? I can see if I have any ideas. [e-mail]

[@GodGiveUsJustice]

This is very tricky…. to get the thickness right on the inside, I tape two 1/16” u spacers to the back of a scrap piece for the tile that will be inside the niche to account for thinset then I tape the tiles inside the niche. This is to get an exact measure of where the outer tile needs to come to. I would make a template out of construction paper or red rosin paper of the u shape you want to cut. Transfer the shape of the template to a scrap piece. cut out border first to line up and try it in the niche this way you can adjust straight cuts first. Then make your miters. Once your scrap tile is good, use that as your template and do the same on an actual piece. Good luck.👍

[@GodGiveUsJustice]

doubled up 1/16” spacers, so 1/8 thinset.. this is usually what I get with backbuttering

[@orangindonesiatinggaldiame6420]

great job Emily

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you!!

[@0liviero]

Thanks for the helpful video! Do you have any epoxy kits you’d recommend? Looking for something to match my soft sage subway tiles :)

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Here is a video I did on the epoxy process: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5nXmnhmqrx1eLcsi=gWzCKG8xIknOdYjr I have some links in the description to some of the more recent products I've been able to find on amazon :)

[@vinnyavella6397]

Great video

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you!!

[@RawH0tMess]

This is the best video I’ve seen on this, Ty!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you! Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@Rosskitchernew]

That was awesome thankyou

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you! And thanks for commenting!

[@Mike69-y9u]

Your skills are excellent. But i did confuse. Is correct to cut the edges directly with a 45 degrees driver or it's better to cut about 45 degrees by hands?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I like to make the cut a little bit tighter than 45 degrees and my saw can't do that so I have to do it by hand. Making the cut a little bit under 45 degrees give you more margin for error if your angle isn't completely square- and then you can backfill with epoxy or thinnest to reinforce it.

[@Mike69-y9u]

@@YouCanDIYHome Thank you very much. If you have a more practical video to suggest I will appreciate it. Thank in advance. Keep going with your excellent videos

[@DaMole008]

What size grinder do you use? Smaller the better?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

For the blade? I think these smaller cutting blades are usually 4 or 4.5 inches.

[@SDartie]

Awesome video!! For the polishing pads, the link you share is for the bundle with 50-3000 grit and with aluminum backer. Do you used all those grits or should I just purchase certain grits? Also, you use the aluminum backer/shoe thing, not the plastic one? thanks for the info!!

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I would say any option multipack would be fine. I don’t think the material for your backer should matter too much. I like to have a lot of options but I use these for a lot of projects. If you get a variety with less of a spectrum, you will probably be fine. I like to have a few of a lower grit, because I use those to take material off when I need to make a micro adjustment and don’t want to cut it/ so I go through those more. Then the finer/higher grit just cleans and pretties up your cut edge.

[@ThatsNotMyWife]

Any advice on ceramic cove base mitres? It astounds me that there is virtually nothing on the internet about this.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Can you email me a photo of what you’re working with (product) and where its going and explain what your goal is? It’s hard for me to visualize. I’ll see if I can help. My email is [e-mail]

[@wonton8983]

Thanks for a great video. After watching lots of the experts videos who make it look so easy, I jumped in the deep-end 3 days ago and started my kitchen splashback tiles 600 x 300mm porcelain tile, with 12 tiles needing mitres, 6 of them double mitres. I've cut 90 % of the tiles and only messed up one, my wet saw only has a small table top and the tile was sitting uneven as it cut the last 1/2 inch and it snapped. Having now seen your video, surprisingly I did it very close to your method, but had the tile up the other way when cutting the mitre, I marked the 1/16 guide line with a thick black marker pen which made it easy to see. Having never positioned mitred tiles in place, do I need to leave a certain sized gap or does it just work itself out by the tiles making the 90 degree corner?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

I try to match the gap of the space I'm doing for my actual grout line. So, if Ii'm doing a 1/16 inch grout line, for my mitre, I do the smallest gap possible before filling with epoxy. However, if I was doing a huge grout line, I'd still keep my corner gap relatively small or its going to look bad. If you leave that 1/16th reveal on your mitre, and fill it with epoxy, its going to die give you a nice corner look.

[@wonton8983]

@@YouCanDIYHome Thanks heaps, that makes sense matching a thin grout line.

[@Bbbbbbbbbbb-f1w]

What epoxy do you use?

[@wonton8983]

@@Bbbbbbbbbbb-f1w I've only got a thin grout line, ~2mm, I didn't use epoxy, I was going to use silicone sealant which I used for the grout line between the tiles and kitchen bench, but the silicone has a gloss finish, I opted to use grout mixed with a plasticiser to prevent cracking.

[@nevillestephen1135]

When doing a miter the lip is usually what messagement? Is the lip have to be them same length as the tile thickness or the length of the notch on the trowel.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Are you talking about that little tiny ledge I leave on there? I leave that tiny edge about a 1/16th of an inch but its not exact because I do it by hand. The thinner the lip, the thinner the gap of the mitre will be. But, if you get too thin, it may chip on you while grinding and then you have to start the cut over.

[@nevillestephen1135]

I am talking about the joining measurement. Let's say I am tiling an area where I have to make the 45° cut. The tile I have to Make the 45° cut on do I cut the tile to the measurement of the area plus the thickness of the other tile I have to join it at or to the thickness of the other tile and length of the teeth of the notch trowel altogether to make the 90° edge for the smooth look.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@nevillestephen1135 Gotcha! I actually cut a little steeper that 45 degrees so I have more of a margin for error, then I just make sure to backfill with mortar so that there isn't a void that's easier to break if it gets hit. If you cut right at a 45, if its not 100 percent perfect, you have no wiggle room, if you make the angle a little steeper, you can wiggle a bit to fit and then fill with thinnest. I don't know if that makes sense not giving you a measurement, but if you do that, it will work!

[@DubWubs]

Watched a video with ⅜ thick tile. That makes a ½ long to short. The video said always go ⅝ past the Backer

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@DubWubs I always cut and test on a scrap before I commit to my big sheets. Also, when I'm doing mitre wraps, I cut it all first so I don't have to panic to hurry while I'm trying to get it just right.

[@XsoloXela1989]

Im redoing a bathroom and plan on doing miter outside corners. Why can you not do grout on the miter and instead have to use silicon or epoxy?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

When you do tile work, you shouldn't use grout on any "change of plain." It will always crack and break out over time. But, even if that weren't a factor, your grout particulate may be too thick to fill depending on how tight your mitre is. Additionally epoxy is going to be significantly stronger and help strengthen the bond on the corner, which will naturally be a weaker spot. This will be less likely to break on you.

[@floydburkett630]

How would you miter/bevel a bullnose porcelain tile on the face side ( the opposite side that your doing) ?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Are you just wanting to create a rounded corner for a bullnose? If so, I wouldn't even cut it, I would just round it with the sanding pads in increasing grit to get it how smooth you want it. The only problem with porcelain tile is its not going to match the face since you will smooth off the faux finish on the top layer. It may not be asthetically pleasing.

[@floydburkett630]

No actually I have the bullnose tile but need to miter it to fit inside of a nitch (not sure that is how it's spelled). The miter is on the opposite side (inside corner) of what you show in your video.@@YouCanDIYHome

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@floydburkett630 I think you are going to use more of a strategy like you use when you cope wood trim that has a small curve toward the top. You can really manipulate a nice shape with a tile cone. (They have big and small). First of all, look up coping if you aren't familiar, that's basically what you'll need to do, is use one piece of tile to trace the curve. I'm thinking that will likely look the best, if you do a 90, I don't feel like it will ever end up looking right. Calidad tools has a tool called a "cone" that attaches to your angle grinder. You can make a nice curve or rounded shape. I think that may be your best bet for the exposed face of the niche. Hope this helps!!

[@floydburkett630]

Yes coping is the style. The thing is its on bull nosed tile that is 3 inches wide, and trying to cut it with the 45 on the wet saw creates chipping. There will be a grout line 1/8 inch at the mating surface of the 45 so exact 45 isn't necessary since the tile won't touch each other. unfortunately I can't attach a photo. The big question is how to get the 45 without chipping when cutting the 45 on the face of the tile instead of the back of the tile.. @@YouCanDIYHome

[@YouCanDIYHome]

If you get one of those cones, it grinds, rather than cuts. I would cut it slightly larger at the angle than it needs to be (enough to factor for how far in to the finish it is chipping) and do the rest with a sanding pad or grinding/sanding cone. @@floydburkett630

[@Dagestan.Warrior.Alpha_1]

Also, where did you get your polishing pad and adapter for grinder ?

[@YouCanDIYHome]

So sorry, just saw this! for some reason I didn't get a notification. Here's an Amazon link: amzn.to/3n1xDWQ

[@DubWubs]

If you have a floor and decor where you live, they have all of it.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

@@DubWubs I live in a small town and only a Home Depot. Very small selection when it comes to tiling products. I love floor and decor but have to travel about 3 to 3.5 hours to get to one so end up ordering a lot on line.

[@DubWubs]

@emilyalopez my next project I'll be pre ordering but I am right in the middle of it so I ended up having to track polishing pads down in stock. There's like 5 on the Denver metro but still way out of the way🥵

[@64maxpower]

I got your channel here from IG. You make good videos and know your stuff. Why so few subs? For real I thought you'd easily have 200k+ Maybe do something to get attention. Like wear a red make America Great Again hat.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

Thank you for the kind comment, hopefully I get there someday! I try to stay out of politics and just love my neighbor. All of that stuff just stresses me out.

[@64maxpower]

@@YouCanDIYHome I avoid politics myself. I meant it as a joke. To stir the pot and get eyes on your Channel like you deserve

[@JC-kl7qv]

WARNING! Please use a fine-dust-grade mask whenever ur cutting tiles/wood/concrete as it produces super fine dust that can damage ur lungs permanently. Good job on using ear protection and useful tutorial

[@cola617]

How you draw the 1/16 line? Its hard🤣🤣

[@YouCanDIYHome]

It doesn't have to perfect :) the main point is to just leave a little bit there!

[@wc6975]

great video. from a safety point of view, a respirator will protect your lungs much like your hearing protection equipment protects what is left of your ears. The dust from the tiles is harmful for all of us. Nice work.

[@wealthyperson3108]

Oh cmon everyone does these videos nowadays but what they don't cover though is MEASUREMENTS for those mitres - like if you have curb or column - that's way more important to measure it prior cutting assuming there's could be uneven surface or thinset layer which can also be factor hindering correct placement

[@oliverbrian999]

Great job. Where's your mask? You're too precious to your family to be breathing that dust in.

[@BoxOutCeltics]

Can’t believe you didn’t show the final result with silicone or epoxy in the gap. Disappointed.

[@YouCanDIYHome]

It’s on my Instagram around the date this video was posted but shortly after - it’s @emily.a.Lopez

[@iscjgomez]

Thank you, you're so beautiful