Cutting a brick

LAST UPDATED: 5th January 2023 by The Editorial Team

Summary: Step by step guide and video showing how to cut a brick, cutting a brick with a bolster chisel and cutting a brick with an angle grinder.

How to cut a brick

Professional builders often have a quick way of cutting bricks, but this is because they have been trained and have years of experience. For DIY enthusiasts, take a little time and get a perfect cut rather than face wasting bricks which will end up costing you time and money.

  • You will need a bolster chisel, hammer and chalk for making the line. Other chisels will work too, but the shape and size of the bolster chisel is designed to cut bricks effectively. The wider blade and protected handle make it the ideal tool if you are not an expert.
  • Wearing safety goggles mark a line on the brick using chalk and scour along this line with a corner of the chisel blade. For best results, mark and scour at least two edges of the brick. This would mean, for example, scouring the top face and down one of the side faces.
  • With the line facing you horizontally, position the chisel into the scoured line and gently hammer the bolster chisel until the brick breaks clean in two. As you do this more, you may find that you know how hard to hit the brick in order to break it; when this happens, you will no longer require to scour lines in the brick each time.
  • For numerous bricks or bricks that require odd shapes and angles cut, you will be better off using an angle grinder. These can be hired or bought.
  • As before, mark where you want the brick cut. Wearing the correct safety equipment (gloves, goggles, face mask and ear defenders) use the machine as the manufacturer of your model suggests, though they are fairly straightforward to use. If using an electric model, be careful of the cable, as this can get in the way or cut through creating a serious safety hazard.
  • See our how to use an angle grinder project for further support.

Tools needed

  • Chalk
  • Safety goggles
  • Gloves
  • Ear defenders (if you use angle grinder)
  • Bolster chisel
  • Hammer
  • Angle grinder (optional)

Materials needed

  • Brick

How to cut a brick video

Summary: DIY video showing you how to cut a brick.

Author

The Editorial Team

The Editorial Team at lets-do-diy.com are a team of experts led by Mark Wilson. We have been creating DIY projects, articles, costs guides and product reviews since 2008. For more info see our about page.