I have a kitchen backsplash of 4 inch square ceramic tiles. The field tiles are fine, but about 10% of the tiles are accent tiles with horrible patterns on them. I want to replace these tiles without damaging the ones around them. Any tips would be appreciated.

Richard

 

Score the tiles you want to remove in an X pattern, and maybe a few more scratches. Use a carbide cutter to cut out the grout around the tile. Gently smack with a ball peen hammer. The tile should crack and the surrounding tiles should not, notice I say should. If you are gentle and good with the hammer, the old time cracked and can now be pryed out without damaging the adjacent tiles. Dig out the old mastic/cement and install the new tile and grout. Make sure the new tile is the proper size, measure carefully. What may look like 4" tile is actually 4 1/4 or 3 7/8, etc.