Anyone have any experience in drilling a hole in bathroom tile? Any tips on how to do it safely so it doesn’t crack the tile? From what I found on the web, seems like I need to use a diamond tip bit and drill at a low RPM until I drill past the tile.
I used normal concrete bit if you are drilling into a tiled wall.
Worst comes to worst drill into the grouts rather than the tile.
Make sure you have a hammer drill.
Absolutely do not use a hammer drill on tile!
Yes, slow speed with a tile specific bit, a good quality bit is key.
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No need to drill and damage the tiles. If it’s just for towels, use a suction cup towel rack or hanger. Japanese brands work well.
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Ok, may give that a try. I was using 3m VHB tape thinking it would hold. Lasted 5 days.
Problem with tape is the moment they encounter moisture, which is quite common in bathrooms, they weaken.
I’ve drilled into tiled walls with a hammer drill before, it didn’t cause any problems. If you want peace of mind they sell diamond bits at b&q.
Why are you doubling down on advising someone to drill into tile with a hammer drill setting when a quick google search tells us that is exactly what you dont want to do?
Is it safe to use a hammer drill on tile?
Do not use a hammer drill setting when drilling tile. This rapid pounding will crack the tile in almost all cases.
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you’ll need a diamond bit for porcelain tile, but a carbide bit will work for ceramic or glass. might use a bit of tape to mark / help prevent slipping when starting.
make sure you don’t. well, you can use a hammer drill - but don’t use the hammer setting. 
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Masonry bits are carbide tipped.
There are special bits for drilling tiles. They look like tiny shovels. And as mentioned, do not use the hammer setting!
In any case, I’ll add a +1 to the suggestions to use a sticky hook. Yes, it might fall off, but that’s better than cracking your tile and having your landlord insist you make good (which he might do anyway - there was someone on here recently with a landlord insisting that they fill in a hole that they’d drilled).
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J.F.C. Is there no limit to Luthiersism © ?
©@KHHVille
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You don’t need to use a hammer drill, an ordinary one will work. If you do use a hammer drill then make absolutely sure you turn the hammer action off. No idea why TL advised this as it makes no sense to me.
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I have mixed feelings about those. I’ve got a couple in my bathroom but they do tend to come loose and fall off over time. The single towel rack version I bought from IKEA with two suction cups works fairly well – as in it takes somewhere between a few weeks and a couple of months to fall off each time I reattach it, but it has lasted 4+ years now. After a while the rubber of the suction cup starts to degrade and crack too.
I’ve used a couple of single suction cup ones from B&Q too – I found those to last 6–12 months before becoming useless, so while inexpensive they’re basically a consumable. And I recently bought a couple of cheap suction cup hooks from an everything store to hang on the side of my wardrobe (it’s some kind of smooth polymer-laminated wood, so a very smooth and sturdy surface), but those were next to useless and fell off quickly.
So I guess quality matters here and better not to go with the cheapest option.
I think those adhesive plastic things (like in the second photo here) would work pretty well too. Those can be pretty strong and it’s what I’d be going with in a rented apartment to avoid damaging the tiles (the weak point commonly seems to be the hard plastic holders on the front, not the adhesion to the wall).
I used these ones for a while, they seam to hold up well, and when they do fail its not as if the towel will brake if it falls 
PS. Don’t use a hammer setting on the drill 
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The problem with Japanese-branded suction cup towel racks is they are intended for thinning and smaller Japanese towels and won’t necessarily hold thick, heavy American bath towels.
I can vouch for their hand towel rings though.
Yeah, the cheap ones are useless on the wrong surface. Probably ok for a hand towel, for a couple of large and damp towels probably won’t cut it
If there is a bit of space between the door and the frame, can get a towel rack that hangs on the back of the door. A much better solution for a renter, @Joebie
For example:
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A quick Google search indeed suggests a hammer drill is a bad idea. @Taiwan_Luthiers, has been asked to stop giving hazardous advice to people.
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Yeah, I’ve got a load of those around my kitchen and elsewhere in my apartment holding up various things like pans, utensils, and small racks for herbs and stuff. The adhesion to the wall is pretty solid. The part that usually breaks is the little clips supporting the hook/rack, though I’ve had the entire plastic part shear off before.
I’ve been able to fix those with superglue and/or epoxy resin though, and they’re quite economical too. You can find the smaller hooks for like NT$9 each or something on Shopee, so I often throw in a few when I’m ordering something else and I notice the seller has them.
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This. it’s all I use now ,hang on door, never a problem. never damage for the landlord to whine about. Only issue is if you want wider/more racks.
can buy all shapes and sizes here, single hooks up to TTs shelf unit
tape, cups etc suck. waste of time.
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Wondering if you can just use a simple hammer drill
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