Revamping your garden or driveway can be a seemingly monumental task, especially for those looking to lay it with stone paving slabs.
We all know that very few of us are lucky enough to have a square or rectangular garden or driveway that will perfectly fit the pavers without having to cut them to the right size. This is when an angle grinder comes in handy.
Types of Angle Grinder
Making sure you choose the right tool for the job is a huge help when you’re looking to cut pavers efficiently. Depending upon the size of the task, you may want to select one of the following:
Electric or Corded
These are the most common types currently available on the market. They are also a popular choice as they have access to higher voltages, making them cope better with more power-demanding tasks. Due to this increased power capability, you’ll often find these types of tools on building sites.
Battery Powered
Again, an electrical cordless angle grinder but with the added convenience of being cordless. This adds a considerable level of comfort to its user as they’re able to easily handle and transport the angle grinder without the hassle of a cable trailing behind them. These are great angle grinders for small at-home jobs or those that need the convenience in the workplace of being able to move the tool from one position to the next easily.
Pneumatic
Compressed air angle grinders are becoming increasingly popular for the higher rates of disc revolutions that provide an extremely fast cutting speed. Moving at such a high rate does come at a cost though since the discs will wear down quicker but when you’re looking to get smaller jobs completed promptly, these angle grinders are hard to beat.
Petrol-Based
Providing the same level of convenience as battery powered angle grinders, petrol units don’t lose out on power. Due to the need of a petrol tank, they can be considerably larger, and they’ll also need to be refilled after a more demanding task. This is why you’ll really only find them in industrial facilities such as on building sites.
Top Tips when Cutting Pavers
When it comes to utilizing these tools for maximum efficiency, there are a few things that you might want to consider when deciding on how to cut pavers with angle grinders.
Technical Tips
- Wheel Types
With many different wheel types available, it’s important to be able to differentiate between them, allowing you to fit the right disc to the job. When it comes to cutting stone pavers, you’ll want to invest in a diamond wheel or disc as these have proven to be great with concrete and tile.
- Disc Size
For the most part, the larger the disc size, the more power it’ll have behind it. This being said, it’s always important to use a disc size appropriate for the task at hand. The most popular angle grinder disc sizes are 115mm and 230mm, and for larger pavers, you’ll want to use the 230mm disc.
- Motor Power
The power rating of each grinder differs across models depending upon their type and size, and this number is commonly depicted through their voltage, wattage, and amp ratings. These are significant numbers to consider when pairing an angle grinder with a specific task.
Most household projects won’t require substantial power, whereas industrial users will certainly want to look for higher power ratings in order to quickly cut through materials quickly.
- Speed
Angle grinder discs typically revolve anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 times per minute, allowing them to be used for a variety of tasks such as buffing, sanding, and more commonly, cutting. It’s important to not only match the right speed for the right task, but if you do require a higher RPM, you need to make sure that the grinder is easy to handle in order to prevent any accidents.
Non-technical Tips
- Grip
When cutting pavers, the heavy vibrations reverberating through the grinder will make it seem significantly heavier than it does pre-cutting. To help combat this, take a strong stance above the paver and securely grip both handles before cutting.
- Line Marking
Lay out your pavers beforehand in order to get a better overview of where cuts will have to be made. Now, mark these pavers accordingly rather than cutting freehand, as this will provide an excellent guide and produce a quality finish to your projects.
- Scoring
If you need to cut through a large number of pavers, then you may want to consider simply scoring the pavers with an angle grinder and then using a hammer and chisel to sever each block neatly. Using an angle grinder to cut straight through a high number of pavers will likely let you get through many blades before the end of the project.
Final Verdict
Angle grinders provide a ton of freedom to cut each paving slab to fit its purpose. When it comes to how to cut pavers with angle grinders effectively and safely, you must have the right kind of tools.