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Remove floor tiles with an SDS chisel

Updated: 21 October 2026

You are lifting a kitchen, hallway, or bathroom floor, and a wall chisel is the wrong picture. To remove floor tiles with an SDS tool you first decide whether the floor is allowed to be broken, and only then whether a 75 mm crank is better than a 40 mm edge. Old vinyl and thermoplastic tiles can contain asbestos. Ceramic and porcelain on screed are the job these bits are sold for, and they still gouge the bed if the blade stands up. The matrix is the [chisel tiles comparison](/hub/flooring-tools-and-accessories/chisel-tiles). Peter F., 20 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are lifting a kitchen, hallway, or bathroom floor, and a wall chisel is the wrong picture.

Our top picks

VonLux VonLux two-piece cranked set

Best overall

VonLux VonLux two-piece cranked set
8.1/10about £16.90
View offer
Lebahan Lebahan 165 mm 25° tile chisel

Best value

Lebahan Lebahan 165 mm 25° tile chisel
7.6/10about £12.99
View offer
Nucraft Nucraft 250 mm 15° tile chisel

Alternative

Nucraft Nucraft 250 mm 15° tile chisel
7.2/10about £13.90
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Stop if the tiles might contain asbestos
  2. 2.Ceramic and porcelain on screed or concrete
  3. 3.Short blade or long blade
  4. 4.Adhesive and a floor you can tile again

Stop if the tiles might contain asbestos

The Health and Safety Executive lists vinyl floor tiles, thermoplastic tiles, bitumen adhesive, and paper-backed sheet among the places asbestos turns up in UK buildings. If your floor is any of those, or you are not sure, do not fit an SDS chisel and do not break a tile to see what is underneath. HSE sheet a23 describes a scraper, wetting, and no sanding. An SDS masonry bit is not on that equipment list. Paper-backed tiles are notifiable non-licensed work, and grinding flooring off is licensed work. A VonLux review mentions vinyl on bitumen. That is one amazon.co.uk experience, not a method if the floor may contain asbestos. Only ceramic or porcelain, on adhesive, screed, or concrete you recognise, is the rest of this page.

Ceramic and porcelain on screed or concrete

On a ceramic floor, start at a loose tile or break one tile so you have an edge, which is the opening Topps Tiles describes for a kitchen. Keep the crank nearly flat. A steep angle is how a 75 mm spade digs a trench you then have to fill. Hammer-only and grease are on how to use a tile chisel. UK review notes are experiences, not a success rate. Pre-1970s solid mortar is the case Topps flags for hired equipment.
VonLux VonLux two-piece cranked set

Testsieger

VonLux VonLux two-piece cranked set
8.1/10about £16.90
View offer

Short blade or long blade

For an open ceramic floor, a 75 mm crank covers the tile in a wide pass and is clumsy in a tight corner. Use 40 mm at door frames, including the DeWalt 40 × 250 mm crank at £21.99 on Screwfix. The 100 mm piece is for scaling a bed. Width choices are in the buying guide. Nucraft at 250 mm is the long single, with no snap in its ten UK texts. VonLux, pairing 165 mm with 250 mm, is the top pick when you want both reaches. Lebahan at 165 mm is the best value short blade if a return is realistic. Which listing fits is on best tile removal chisel.

Adhesive and a floor you can tile again

Once the ceramic is up, adhesive is a separate pass. Keep the blade shallow and take the ridges. Chasing every smear with the tip is how you dish the screed. Pro Tiler Tools suggests a straight edge afterwards so you can see hollows before new adhesive goes down. Stop when the shank bends or sticks, or when the screed breaks out in lumps. Topps points at hired gear for solid mortar from before the 1970s. A scraper is the wrong next step on asbestos vinyl. At work, the Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005 set an action value of 2.5 m/s² A(8) and a limit of 5 m/s² A(8).

Common questions

Can I use an SDS chisel on old vinyl tiles?
No. HSE lists vinyl and thermoplastic floor tiles, bitumen adhesive, and paper-backed sheet as possible asbestos materials. Sheet a23 is a hand scraper, water, and no sanding. An SDS bit is outside that method, including when a review mentions bitumen-backed vinyl. If you are unsure what the tiles are, do not break one to find out. Get advice before you make dust.
Is 75 mm better than 40 mm on an open floor?
On an open run of ceramic, a 75 mm crank covers more of each tile and matches most listings here, from the £9.99 HPMAISON to the VonLux pair. A 40 mm blade, such as the DeWalt at £21.99 or the narrow half of the Lytool set, is the better fit in tight joints and at frames. The 100 mm width is a scaling blade. Wider is not kinder to the screed if you tip it.
Will porcelain come up?
Sometimes, in the reviews, and sometimes not. Lytool notes mention two porcelain floors. A Lebahan note covers porcelain with adhesive, and another where stubborn floor tiles would not move. Nothing in the listings states a bond strength or a success rate. If the first tiles will not release and the blade is digging, stop, especially on a pre-1970s mortar bed that may need hired gear.
How do I avoid digging the screed?
Keep the crank nearly parallel to the floor and start from a free edge, or from one ceramic tile you have broken on purpose. A steep angle pulls the bed out with the tile. Sand-and-cement often chips even when you are careful. Modern flexible adhesive may stay stuck and need a second, still shallow, pass. Hammer-only and grease do not cancel a bad angle.
When is a hired scraper the next step?
When the room is large, the bed is solid old mortar, or the SDS is gouging faster than it is lifting. Topps Tiles points at hired equipment for pre-1970s mortar beds. A scraper is the wrong next step on asbestos vinyl, where you stop instead. If you cannot tell tanking or underfloor heating from ordinary screed, that call belongs to a fitter rather than to a bigger blade.

Related pages

SDS chisel vs bolster

Chisel tiles

Best tile removal chisel: short blade or two lengths

SDS plus tile chisel guide: chuck, width, and bend

How to use a tile chisel: hammer-only and stay flat

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, checked in October 2026. Prices, stars, sizes, and review themes come from the amazon.co.uk snapshot in the display file.

  1. HSE: where asbestos is found (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. HSE asbestos essentials a23 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. HSE ST4: hand and pneumatic chiselling (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. Bosch Professional GB: tile chisels (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. Einhell UK: rotary hammer chisel fittings (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. Screwfix: DeWalt SDS Plus cranked tile chisel 40 mm × 250 mm (retrieved 20 October 2026)