Drilling Rock - Drill Bits or Hole Saws and sizes ?

[427HISS]

Hello guys,

I'll be setting up a 215g mostly, fish tank with some corals. I have a lot of the BRS white rock and a big box of Tonga branch. I'll also buy some live rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater, I just don't know how much yet. I think their the best. Read about his company.

My questions are about drilling the rock.

What tripe of drill bit, concrete ?
Stainless steel bits or hole saw,... that have diamond tips like used for drilling our aquarium's glass for plumbing ?

What size of drill bits ?

Or hole saws ?

 

[Minifoot77]

Whats your end goal? Stacking the rock or frag plug holders?

 

[SaltyBlue]

How wide a hole are we talking?

For wide holes you need a diamond hole saw. I spent like $50 for one at Home Depot once and got about 5 good cores and 5 strenuous ones before it completely wore out. Make sure to keep it wet

For less wide holes, 0.5” or less, I’d build up to the hole size with masonry bits and and a hammer drill.

You can get away with a cheap, cheap hammer drill from harbor freight, you cannot get away with cheap bits

 

[stephenxbog]

Hello guys,

I'll be setting up a 215g mostly, fish tank with some corals. I have a lot of the BRS white rock and a big box of Tonga branch. I'll also buy some live rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater, I just don't know how much yet. I think their the best. Read about his company.

My questions are about drilling the rock.

What tripe of drill bit, concrete ?
Stainless steel bits or hole saw,... that have diamond tips like used for drilling our aquarium's glass for plumbing ?

What size of drill bits ?

Or hole saws ?

Use a masonry bit. I’ve done construction for 10 years, drilling holes in concrete and rock you’ll need to use a masonry bit.

 

[UncommonSense]

I second masonry bits!

I burned up a 3/8” standard twist drill bit in a hammer drill during my experimentation process…

I ended up landing on a SDS+ rotor hammer, despite the occasional split rock!

 

[jsmkmavity]

If you are going to drill a few the diamond hole saw like you use on glass will work fine just keep it very wet so it doesnt over heat.
If you are going to drill a lot get a segmented diamond hole saw in the size you need. Some are dry rated and some are wet rated but they all last longer if you keep them wet while drilling.

 

[jsmkmavity]

If its small holes masonry bits will work fine.

 

[427HISS]

If you are going to drill a few the diamond hole saw like you use on glass will work fine just keep it very wet so it doesnt over heat.
If you are going to drill a lot get a segmented diamond hole saw in the size you need. Some are dry rated and some are wet rated but they all last longer if you keep them wet while drilling.

What is a "segmented"... diamond hole saw ?
Can you paste a link ?

 

[427HISS]

I'll get to you others when I return later today.

 

[Freenow54]

Hello guys,

I'll be setting up a 215g mostly, fish tank with some corals. I have a lot of the BRS white rock and a big box of Tonga branch. I'll also buy some live rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater, I just don't know how much yet. I think their the best. Read about his company.

My questions are about drilling the rock.

What tripe of drill bit, concrete ?
Stainless steel bits or hole saw,... that have diamond tips like used for drilling our aquarium's glass for plumbing ?

What size of drill bits ?

Or hole saws ?

I have bought acrylic rods to make an Aquascape for my own third build . I have not tried drilling yet but assume carbide bit drill bits would be best . Also small rods

 

[Freenow54]

If you are going to drill a few the diamond hole saw like you use on glass will work fine just keep it very wet so it doesnt over heat.
If you are going to drill a lot get a segmented diamond hole saw in the size you need. Some are dry rated and some are wet rated but they all last longer if you keep them wet while drilling.

You can also just have a container of water and stop and quench , Very important with carbide tips as the carbide will fall off if it gets hot enough . I would bet the rock is fairly soft compared to concrete

 

[427HISS]

I have bought acrylic rods to make an Aquascape for my own third build . I have not tried drilling yet but assume carbide bit drill bits would be best . Also small rods

So, you have the rods, but drilled yet ?

 

[427HISS]

You can also just have a container of water and stop and quench , Very important with carbide tips as the carbide will fall off if it gets hot enough . I would bet the rock is fairly soft compared to concrete

I agree to use water for cooling the bits.

 

[UncommonSense]

So, you have the rods, but drilled yet ?

For my tank, I used 3/8” acrylic rods, heat bent to shape…

I wanted to maximize the directly lit coral real estate in a tall, narrow tank, so I opted for a triple helix of rock pillars!

I drilled numerous rocks with a 3/8” carbide rotor hammer bit, then slid them down each of the heat bent rods to make a “rock shishkebab”

The rocks on these kebabs do like to spin unless you anchor them to one-another using one of numerous methods; usually via three points of contact!

For the bases of each spiral, I split large, dense rocks in two on my tile saw, and drilled blind holes in them to receive the acrylic rods, without any adhesive or other fixturing. These (now flat-bottomed) rocks each serve as a solid ground anchor for a cantilevered pillar. (The lack of adhesive for the acrylic rod inserted into each of them means the rockwork structures are all modular, and easier to remove from the tank!)

Final result:

 

[mcarroll]

A regular masonry bit in a regular drill goes through it like butter IME.

 

[427HISS]

Is this a battery powered handheld circular saw ? What blade is it ?
Mine is a Makita 18v. I also have a 10" table saw and a Sawzall to use.

I don't know if my 10" table saw would cut deep enough in one pass, but smaller rocks would work.
I guess I could cut one side then the other ?

I like your rods too.

I just looked up these blades and I might try them.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=concrete+saw+blade,+masonry+reciprocating+saw+blades&crid=KP7ZYU4J7MIK&sprefix=Reciprocating+Saw+blade+for+mason,aps,223&ref=nb_sb_ss_p13n-expert-pd-ops-ranker_1_33

 

[UncommonSense]

Is this a battery powered handheld circular saw ? What blade is it ?
Mine is a Makita 18v. I also have a 10" table saw and a Sawzall to use.

I don't know if my 10" table saw would cut deep enough in one pass, but smaller rocks would work.
I guess I could cut one side then the other ?

I like your rods too.

I just looked up these blades and I might try them.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=concrete+saw+blade,+masonry+reciprocating+saw+blades&crid=KP7ZYU4J7MIK&sprefix=Reciprocating+Saw+blade+for+mason,aps,223&ref=nb_sb_ss_p13n-expert-pd-ops-ranker_1_33

Oh!! Sorry for any confusion there!

The saw pictured above is an underpowered little makita 6.75”(?) cordless saw, I was just using that to cut my 3/8” diameter acrylic rod stock to length! It’s only in the photo because I used it as an impromptu prop rod for my cantilevered rock structure!

The saw I was cutting rocks with is a LOT beefier… a Rigid R4093 15A, 10” diamond blade, wet cut tile saw, AKA “the beast”! — it also serves very well as a glass cutting saw!

(36” of sled stroke on the drop fence, unlimited length on the rip fence, 3.5” max depth of cut, can rip at 22.5 and 45 degree bevels, do drop cuts, etc…)

You don’t want to try to convert your table saw, or a skil saw into a tile saw by swapping blades; this can be incredibly dangerous! (And not just for kickback/binding reasons, it’s an electrocution risk based on how especially a table saw is designed!)

There are dedicated wet cut handheld tile saws, though they typically accept a ~5” blade, and have a ~2” max depth of cut!

— for just one or two rocks, your best bet here would probably be a handheld diamond wire saw, and some elbow grease! — They look a lot like a small hacksaw… you’d likely cut a deep groove, then split the rock along that now weakened section!

— follow-up with a stone or flap disc on an angle grinder if a flat face is desired! (do so in a well ventilated area, or use a cordless grinder [low voltage] and have a helper squeeze water on the cutting face with a sponge as you work to minimize dust production!)

 

[mcarroll]

I'd think a bandsaw would be the way to go for bigger cuts.

For example, a Gryphon Aquasaw isn't "cheap" (except by comparison to a 10" ridgid wetsaw! ) but it'll give you a 4-5" cut depth.

I see an "Inland Craft" bandsaw listed that's under $400....it claims a 3" cut.

One cool part about this kind of saw is that you aren't limited to straight cuts.

Seems like you'd have to need **a lot** of cuts to justify any of these options tho. ...and there are quite a few pre-cut rock options available to serve some of the more common needs.

Also, some LFS's might rent bandsaws, or if not you might ask about having some cuts done for you.

$0.02

 

[UncommonSense]

I'd think a bandsaw would be the way to go for bigger cuts.

For example, a Gryphon Aquasaw isn't "cheap" (except by comparison to a 10" ridgid wetsaw! ) but it'll give you a 4-5" cut depth.

I see an "Inland Craft" bandsaw listed that's under $400....it claims a 3" cut.

One cool part about this kind of saw is that you aren't limited to straight cuts.

For rocks? Absolutely! Precision isn’t paramount!

These mini bandsaws do tend to really struggle to hold long, straight lines though!

I actually have a little inland bandsaw around, mostly for oddball angles and curves… it can technically fit 3.5” of material in the throat of the saw, but I’d be worried about breaking it, or injuring myself trying to cut something 3+” thick! (Also, the blades are somewhat proprietary, and $70/each!!)

 

[427HISS]

A regular masonry bit in a regular drill goes through it like butter IME.

I'm surprised that a simple masonry bit does such a butter cut in rock. Low cost as well.