After getting started on our Kitchen Refresh I discovered one of our marble topped consoles needed a large piece of marble so I started researching how to DIY cut marble with a circular saw. I was very pleased to find lots of videos and info! I am going to share what we did as we have now cut two large pieces very successfully and will be cutting more this week. There were a few things we discovered during the process which I had not seen anywhere.
Week 6 of the ORC and we have been doing many different things! Cutting marble, researching, custom mixing and ordering lime paint and getting everything ready to finish this sprint but I am still loving participating yet again in the One Room Challenge, the ORC is a wonderful event in which anyone can participate! The challenge of the ORC lies in completing a space within 8 weeks and we are halfway through! Be sure to click on the link and learn about all the wonderful projects and participants!! If you want to catch up on this year's project my first post is all about the overall plan & mood board, the second Freestanding Kitchens, third getting started planning an IKEA Kitchen, and in week four we tackled whether or not to install a Kitchen Island and last week was all about How to Remove Marble from a Backing. In previous years I have completed A DIY Limestone Patio, A Colour Saturated Vestibule, and a Bedroom for Busy Boys.
Where to source marble in the first place? Well I was pleasantly surprised by how much is available on FBMP. Remember, whenever you are looking, to train your algorithm by saving anything that is similar to what you want regardless of price or condition. I searched for ‘marble’, ‘marble top’, ‘marble piece’ and ‘marble threshold’ in both French and English (I live in a bilingual society).
If you are looking for a particular size then you will want pieces that size or larger but bear in mind that cutting a piece right to the edge is the trickiest as that is where it is most likely to break so try to allow more leeway if you can.
Also bear in mind the thickness, the thickest we cut was 1.5’’, I think trying to cut anything below .5’’ will likely be much tricker as the marble will be brittle.
How to DIY cut Marble
Materials;
Ideally 2 people
Marble
Circular Saw
Strong and stable surface
Straight edge for guide - we used the factory edge of a piece of plywood
Painters tape (won’t mark your marble)
Cardboard for templating
Spray bottle
Use your cardboard to template the space you want your marble to cover. We did both a countertop and a slab behind the stove.
Lay the cardboard over the marble and tape in 2 spots to keep it from moving. Then using your painters tape lay out your cutting line. Many materials stain marble so I used the tape and not any pens etc. Also the tape will help to prevent against chipping.
Lay your marble on your cutting surface. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to support the marble as close to the edge of where you are cutting as possible. You cannot have a lot hanging over the edge or you risk fracturing the marble along its natural fissures as you add the weight of the saw.
Determine where the saw needs to be to cut along your tape line and then clamp your straight edge to the marble and cutting surface so that your saw can run tightly along allowing the edge to cut your straight line.
Put on all your protection and spray down the beginning of the marble. You do not need to attach your hose to the saw. You just need to keep spraying ahead of the saw so there is a nice shallow puddle of water.
Start cutting - slowly. Depending on the size of the cut we cut in a few inches and then set up everything to finish cutting from the opposite side. We did this when we were cutting off a large piece to keep the end from breaking off as we took the chance to cut right to the existing edge.
As you get to the last 6-8 inches or so you will likely not need to spray any more water.
If you are cutting a large piece off, the ideal is to have that piece supported as well and cut between to prevent any breakage.
This is definitely a do-able DIY but will be messy as you create a lot of marble dust. Be sure to wear your mask and protect your eyes and hearing. Also take you time and if possible make you first cut on a practice spot.
It is also worth noting that you will run through blades quite quickly. If you have any small spots that need touching up you can do that with a grinder and diamond blade.
We are super pleased with the results and have a few more pieces to cut. Stay tuned for the final results in a few weeks!
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