Tile saws: Why rent when you could own?

I roamed through Lowe's a while back and noticed a new breed of tile saws geared towards DIYers.

I'm no stranger to tile saws, or to the benefit of renting tools as opposed to buying them.

But, it seems like those big, heavy, very powerful rental saws were overkill for my 3x6-inch subway tile backsplash problem.

I was amazed. For about the same cost, or less, of renting a bigger tile saw for 24 hours, I could buy one of my very own.

I tested QEP's 7-inch wet tile saw (sku: 60087).

Tile contractors prefer wet saws because the water cools the blade, extending its life.

Most saws use a pump to trickle clean water over the blade from above. QEP eliminates the pump with a reservoir at the bottom that the blade dips into as it rotates.

This saw is also smaller, lighter, and has a faster set up than bigger ones. The saw's small footprint (13" W x 14" D x 7" H) fit on my kitchen counter top.

The saw comes with two blades and a sealed 2/3-HP motor, which was perfect for cutting through tile. It never bogged down.

The only downside to the $88 saw is the rip fence. It was flimsy and less than accurate, so I switched it out for a straight edge clamped to the tabletop.

Overall, this is a solid alternative to renting a wet saw. You don't have to store a big, bulky tool, and you don't have to rush the job to get the tool back before the rental department closes.

And you don't have to wait while the guy in front of you requires a 45 minute dissertation on the finer points of swapping out hook and loop orbit sander paper. But that's another story.

In the meantime, buy the saw here.

More:

A video showing how to replace a damaged tile.

Our new gallery of art tile options.

Weekend(s) project: How to tile a hearth.