How To Drill Through Rock

Rock is one of the hardest substances to drill into. It is also a material that is highly usable for may purposes. If you have a rock, or something made of rock that you want holes drilled into, you do not need to call a professional mason to do the job for you. If you have the right tools, you can do the job yourself for far less.

Step 1

Determine where you want the hole or holes to be in the rock. Mark the place or places where the holes should be using a marking pencil. Make the mark dark as it will be your guide when drilling through the rock.

Step 2

Prepare a cordless hammer drill by inserting a freshly charged battery into it. Do not use a battery that is not fully charged as the drill will need as much power as it can possibly have to drill into the hard rock. Plug in your electric hand-held hammer drill. Use an extension cord if need be to reach the location of the rock if the rock cannot be moved.

Step 3

Insert a carbide- or diamond-tipped masonry drill bit into the drill. Do this by loosening the chuck of the drill, inserting the end of the and then tightening the chuck of the drill back up. Do not attempt to use a wood bit to drill into rock, as doing so can result in the bit breaking which can cause serious injury.

Step 4

Position the tip of the drill bit so that it is directly over the first mark you have made on the stone. Lower the tip of the bit down slowly, keeping it aligned and straight. Bring the bit down to the surface of the rock. Keep the bit steady and vertical.

Step 5

Apply pressure as you begin to drill. Squeeze the trigger of the drill slowly at first. Gain speed as you apply more downward pressure. Allow the tip of the drill bit to penetrate the surface of the rock. Apply more pressure, increase the speed of the drill, keep the bit perfectly straight and drill into the rock until the desired depth is reached.

Step 6

Back the drill bit up and out of the rock. Move on to the next marked spot and repeat Steps 4 and 5.