Cement board is a fairly popular building material, although cutting it apart can be challenging. There are a variety of tools that can be used for this purpose, including a circular saw.
How to cut cement board with a circular saw is exactly what we are going to teach you today.
Is a Circular Saw the Best Tool for Cutting Cement Board?
A circular saw is a fairly good tool to use to cut cement board. If you have nothing else on hand, it will do just fine, granted that you follow the right steps and use the proper blade. With that being said, no, a circular saw is absolutely not the best tool to use for cutting cement board.
In fact, power tools or power saws in general are not the best tools for this purpose. The best type of tool that you can use to cut cement board is a scoring knife, or if you don’t have one, a utility knife.
Simply put, you want a very thin and sharp blade that you will use to score the cement board about 75% of the way through, and then snap the rest of it off. However, if all you have on hand is a circular saw, you can definitely make it work.
What Type of Circular Saw Blade Should You Use for Cutting Cement Board?
In terms of the best blade to use when cutting cement board, there are two recommended types. The first recommended blade type is a carbide-tipped wood cutting blade. The other type of circular saw blade that is ideal for this purpose is a metal cutting blade.
One of the most important things to keep in mind here is that whatever circular saw blade you get needs to have as few teeth as possible. Cement board creates a lot of dust when it is cut with power saws, and this dust is very poisonous and should not be inhaled under any circumstances.
At the very least, all of that dust is going to make quite a mess. The fewer teeth your saw blade has, the less of a mess it will create. Also, the sharper the blade, the better the result, so make sure that you are using a relatively new blade that is in good condition.
How to Cut Cement Board with a Circular Saw
Let’s quickly go through a step-by-step process on exactly how to cut cement board using a circular saw.
Step 1: Find a Good Surface
You will want to find a stable and flat surface that you can lay the cement board down on so you can easily cut it. Remember that the circular saw blade is going to pass through below the cement board, so that space needs to be open. Therefore, you may want to support the cement board on either side of the cut that you are planning to make.
Step 2: Measure and Mark
Using the appropriate tools, such as a measuring tape, a T-square, or anything else of the sort, figure out exactly where you need to make your cut. You then want to use something like a carpenter’s pencil, or anything else capable of marking a cement board, and mark a straight line that you will cut.
Step 3: Hook Up the Dust Collection System
Although using the right kind of blade with your circular saw will cut down on the amount of dust created, there will still be dust. Therefore, if at all possible, now is the time to hook up your dust collection system, to suck up as much dust as possible before you inhale it or it makes a huge mess.
Step 4: Safety First
Seeing as you are using a circular saw here, it is best if you wear protective goggles to keep your eyes shielded. At the same time, because cement board makes so much dust, wearing a mask or even a respirator is certainly recommended.
Step 5: Power Up and Make the Cut
All you are going to do now is plug in your circular saw, power it up to full speed, and then pass it through the cement board in one straight, fast, and even cut.
Mistakes to Avoid, Tips and Tricks
Lastly, here are some additional tips to keep in mind:
- If you use a blade with many small teeth, it’s going to create way too much dust.
- If at all possible, it is best if you use a scoring knife or a utility knife for this job.
- If your circular saw does not have a dust collection system, be sure to wear some kind of breathing protection.
Summary
As you can see, although it’s not the best tool for the job, cutting cement board with a circular saw is quite simple. As long as you have the right blade, it should not be a problem at all.