How to Make a Hole Through a Ceramic Pot Without Breaking It

Unfinished Pots

• 1

  Lay a small towel on the workbench and place the pot base in the center of the towel. Fill the base with water and place the pot in the base. If the pot does not come with a base, use a shallow container like a pie plate filled with water.

• 2

  Pour enough water into the pot so that the bottom fourth of the container is filled. Let the pot sit in the water for eight hours. This will slightly soften the ceramic material.

• 3

  Dump the remaining water from the pot and the base. Use a dry towel to wipe out the inside of the pot and place a piece of masking tape in the center of the pot to help prevent cracking when the drill bit exits. Invert the pot and place it on top of the towel. Place a few layers of masking tape over the inverted bottom as you did on the inside of the pot.

• 4

  Pour a little water on the inverted bottom of the pot to keep the ceramic temperatures down during the drilling process.

• 5

  Place the masonry bit in the exact center of the pot and begin drilling but without a lot of pressure downward. Allow the masonry bit to get pulled down into the pot with the natural motion of the drill.

• 6

  Replace the water when it has evaporated away to keep the area cool. Drill a few seconds at a time and remove any chips or dust that accumulates.

• 7

  Drill until the bit reaches the inside of the pot. Remove the masking tape on the inside and outside of the pot and your unfinished pot now has a drainage hole.

Finished or Glazed Pots

• 8

  Tap a nail gently into the center of the pot bottom. The intention is not to create the hole with the nail, but to remove a small area of the glazing. Soak the pot as discussed in Steps 1 and 2 in Section 1 for the unfinished pots.

• 9

  Dry off the inside and outside of the pot with a clean towel and apply masking tape to the bottom outside and inside to prevent cracking. Invert the pot over the towel on the workbench.

• 10

  Place the drill bit into the center of the nail hole you created and begin drilling. Apply water to the inverted bottom to keep temperatures down and to act as a lubricant. Do not use too much pressure on the drill as the bit could skip and hit an area of the glaze you don’t want to hit.

• 11

  Drill until you are more than halfway through. Place the nail into the center of the drilled circle and gently tap once. The hole should open up leaving you your drainage hole. If it doesn’t, keep drilling until you reach the inside of the pot.

• 12

  Remove the masking tape and begin using your new planter.