Tile etching - How much paint is too much paint? Is paint the way to go?

Thanks for this great demonstration!

Thank you for putting in all the effort with this and sharing your results!

Just starting with my engraver and trying to get something that I think is dark enough is the problem I have been having. Thanks for the CGC information. Going to pick a can of that up and give it a try!!

Thank you for sharing your results for this engraving method. I think you hit the nail on the head regarding the amount of coating. I experimented a bit and it seems like the lightest most even coat of spray works best. I don't know if this is the most efficient use of the paint, but try to just barely fog the surface, let it dry a few seconds and then fog it again turned 90 degrees. It is tempting to put more paint on but go with the most minimal amount to get an even coating. My NWT test pattern had a nice indelible black pattern at 3000 mm/min, 60% power. I also tried the Rust-Oleum Ultra Cover Heirloom White and got pretty good results at 2000 mm/min, 50% power, but I think I had too thick of a coating and need to run the test again. I am using an XTool D1 10watt.

Thank you for your recommendation, very generous of you. I’m doing engraving as a hobby & have gone through many times with unhappy results. I’m using diode laser, 40W. The one where you painted Etching powder over a single painted surface is impressive. I presume the Etching powder is similar with Titanium Dioxide powder which I have ordered. Katoria.

Thanks! I need to do this with my 100w c02 had some good results initially but haven't landed on any settings that give me a consistent result.

thank you for the video, very helpful. However, I urge you to use PPE dealing with lacquer thinner. Do not let it touch your skin, nor breathe the fumes. They are carcinogenic. Prolonged exposure can and will cause cancer. My father died from prolonged exposure. Years of exposure, and many years later in his life, yet his multiple myeloma was traced back to this exposure.

One of the better videos I’ve seen when it comes to white tile, thank you! I’m curious, when running your test burn what are the settings to make the laser go both vertical and horizontal?

That method sure looks familiar

Very informative. Can I use zinc spray instead of cold galvanizing compound?

good info except not listing the sources of the items used, fold galvanizing compound, metal etch powder ?????????

Great video, thanks for the content. Any tips on removing the smell of the paint thinner from the tile after it is cleaned off? Thank you!

Enjoyed you controlled testing. I just got a small CNC to play around with. I painted a tile with Satin Smokey Beige that I saw recommended with two light passes. I did the grayscale test and found it strange at higher power levels the samples lightened again. Any reason for this that you know of? - Thanks

You must cover tile whit glass water sodium silicate.

INTERESTING, I LASER ENGRAVE ON 12 X 12 CERAMIC TILES, AND I PAINT THEM WHITE GLOSS, AND I RUN THE SAME MATERIAL TEST AND I REMOVE OF THE PAINT AND TAKE A WIRE BRUSH OVER IT TO REMOVE ALL OF THE PAINT, ITS SHARP, CLEAN AND DARK, IT LOOKS GREAT, VARIES LIKE IT SHOULD, I SPRAY 3 DECENT COATS, I SPRAY IT A LITTLE HEAVY, THE END RESULTS ARE ALWAYS THE SAME, ONE THING THAT REALLY DOES HELP IS KNOWING HOW TO SPRAY CAN CONSISTENTLY, TO HAVE TO SAME EXACT QUALITY SPRAY COVERAGE AND CONSISTENCY EVERY TIME, IT TAKES SOME TIME TO GET THE SKILL, I CAN SPRAY HEAVY ENOUGH TO END UP HEAVY WITHOUT HAVING ANY RUNS, OTHER POINTS WHEN SPRAYING IS MAKING SURE THE SURFACE IS CLEANED CORRECTLY, I NEVER LAY THE TILES DOWN, I SET THEM AT AN ANGLE TO SPRAY, ALSO TEST SPRAY THE CAN ON ANOTHER SURFACE, THIS GET THE PAINT FLOWING ALSO PREVENTS SPLATTER OR TEXTURE, THE PROBLEM I TEND TO NOTICE WHEN PEOPLE USE A SPRAY CAN, THEY JUST SHAKE THE CAN FOR A VERY SHORT TIME OR NOT AT ALL, THEY JUST SPRAY RANDOM AND WAY TOO HEAVY AND WAY TOO CLOSE, THE DISTANCE AND SPRAY TECHNIQUE REALLY MATTERS, ALSO I MAKE SURE I REALLY REMOVE THE PAINT AFTER ENGRAVING, I USE ACETONE ON PAPER TOWELS TO REMOVE THE PAINT, I KEEP ON GOING OVER THE ENTIRE TILE UNTILE NOTHING MORE COMES OFF, I FOUND THAT THE DARK PART OF THE ENGRAVING WILL TAKE A FEW TIMES TO REMOVE ALL OF THE GRAY AND BLACK DUST FROM THE ENGRAVED IMAGE, AND AFTER THAT I POUR A LITTLE ACETONE DIRECTLY ON THE SURFACE OF THE CERAMIC TILE AND SCRUB IT WITH A WIRE BRUSH, AND THEN ONE MORE QUICK WIPE, THE IMAGE IS ALWAYS DARK AND DETAILED AND PERMANENTLY ON THE TILE, THE ONLY ISSUE I RUN INTO IS FAINT LINES OR A SLIGHT LINE PATTERN, I AM STILL WORKING THROUGH THAT ISSUE, I HAVE ALMOST ELIMINATED, THE TILES I HAVE BEEN USING ARE MAN MADE AND NOT MACHINE MADE, SO IT TAKES ME SOME TIME TO FIND A DECENT BALANCE BECAUSE OF THE WAVINESS AND UNEVENNESS, I NEVER HAVE LIGHT AND DARK ENGRAVINGS, I HAVE A FEW 12 X 12 SPRAYED READY TO GO, AND I WILL BE RUNNING THE MATERIAL TEST IN POWERS OF 10 AND IN POWERS OF 5, I FOUND THAT SOME TIMES SETTING AT 55 PERCENT IS BETTER THAN 60 PERCENT, THERE WILL BE 4 TEST, 2 FILL, AND 2 LINE, SORRY FOR GETTING IN TO THIS IN MY COMMENT, I DO KNOW THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE A HUGE PROBLEM WITH ENDING WITH A DECENT SPRAY COVERAGE AS WELL AS A DECENT END RESULTS WITH THE ENGRAVING, ANOTHER THING MOST PEOPLE DO NOT KNOW ABOUT IS HOW GRAPHICS AND FONTS ARE MUCH EASIER TO ENGRAVE AND CAN BE MUCH DARKER THAN IMAGES, IMAGES ARE TRICKY ESPECIALLY WHEN ENGRAVING ON A LARGE OR SMALL AREAS, THE BEST ADVICE THAT I CAN GIVE IS WATCH VIDEOS ON HOW TO SPRAY CAN ANYTHING(NOT JUST CERAMIC TILES), PRACTICE, THIS VIDEO IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF HOW TO END WITH A QUALITY CONSISTENT RESULTS, THE MATERIAL TEST HELPS, BUT IT ONLY GIVES A GENERAL LIGHTNESS TO DARKNESS, DOES NOT GIVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT THE ENDS RESULT WILL EXACTLY BE, EXAMPLE, I DECIDED TO PLAY AROUND ON SOME POLISHED METAL, METAL IS WAY DIFFERENT AND TAKES MANY PASSES TO ENGRAVE, I SPRAYED ALMOST HALF WHITE GLOSS, AND THE OTHER HALF, I COLORED WITH A FAT BLACK SHARPIE, I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF PASSES IT WOULD TAKE TO MARK THE METAL AT LEAST, I DID A MATERIAL TEST ON BOTH SIDES, PLUS SOME IMAGES AND GRAPHICS ON BOTH SIDE, ON THE PAINT I RAN 1 PASS ON EVERYTHING, AND ON THE BLACK I RAN 2 PASSES, I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO MARK OR IMPRINT A LITTLE I WAS NOT EXPECTING MUCH TO REMAIN ONCE I CLEANED OF THE PAINT AND MARKER, ONCE I REMOVED ALL OF THE PAINT AND MARKER, ONLY NOT EVEN 1 PERCENT MARKED, MOST IF THE METAL WAS BLANK, I RESPRAYED AND RECOLORED THE SAME WAY, AND THIS TIME, I RAN 10 PASSES ON THE WHITE AND 5 PASSES ON THE BLACK, MATERIAL TEST, GRAPHICS, AND IMAGES, I HAVE NOT CLEANED IT YET, I KNOW THAT IT DID ENGRAVE MOST OF THAT, A FEW DAYS AGO I ENGRAVED A NAME ON A FOLDING KNIFE, I ENGRAVED THE NAME ON THE HANDLE AND THE BLADE, BOTH AREAS ARE POLISHED METAL, THE NAMES CAME OUT GREAT, I USED A SHARPIE TO COLOR THE METAL FIRST, SORRY THIS COMMENT IS SO LONG, I TAKE PHOTOS AND MAKE NOTES, THIS KEEPS TRACK OF EVERYTHING AND PREVENTS REPEATING THE SAME TEST, BESIDES MATERIAL TEST, I USE IMAGES AND GRAPHICS TO RUN TEST ALSO

I have been doing glass and mirror etching here, and have been wondering about doing tiles. CGC is easily obtainable but what is this metal etching compound? Does it help with the blue lasers for etching things like stainless mugs and tumblers?

Thanks for sharing your experiences and please put some gloves on when handling chemicals. Lacquer thinner may contain compounds that are known carcinogens. I have personally found out that even different batches of Rustoleum flat white yields different results. Carb & choke cleaner also does a great job of removing the paint.

I watched another channel who recommended the "Antique White" spray paint from Rust Oleum because the formula contained a larger amount of zinc, so I think you are on to something with the cold galvanizing spray which is 93% zinc.

what happens if you use no paint at all when engraving tile?

where can i get the grid test file if you dont mind me asking