How do I punch a drainage hole in ceramic flower pots?

I purchased some ceramic flower pots at the dollar store and they have no drainage hole, suprise, suprise!! I have already tried drilling a hole with a masonry bit and got nowhere. My dad said ceramic is too hard and i will just dull the bit or ruin the motor with the drill and said to try to chizel a hole. Would this work or is there another way?

How do I punch a drainage hole in ceramic flower pots?
MMMMmmmmmmm...There are bits out there that work, just make sure it's made to drill through ceramic. It will be a bit spendy, should have saved the hassle and extra cost by going to Lowes or HomeDepot and gotten your pots there with holes....much cheaper. GOOD LUCK?
Reply:Those are for looks only. We are suppose to put a pot of flowers down in the ceramic pots. When it is time to water the plant, take the flowers' pot out of the ceramic pot, water well in the sink, then return it to the ceramic pot.
Reply:Sometimes it's hard to poke holes in those without cracking them. I'd suggest placing stones on the bottom to elevate the root system instead. That way the water can situate itself around the stones and still prevent root rot. Another important question though is what kind of plant it is?? Cacti, make sure you water very minimally under those curcumstances (less than once a week!) and tropical plants, don't pour so much water in per watering that you cover the rocks on the bottom.
Reply:I can't recommend chiseling a hole, it will likely shatter the pot.


First I'd attempt to use the drill you already tried, but I would proceed by first re-sharpening the drill bit using a grinder to provide a good edge, then I would find a "hammer-drill". Borrow one from a friend, they are common but not everyone has one and to buy one for just the one project doesn't make sense.


A hammer drill produced low impact while rotating the drill bit. I've used them with great success on many other types of projects like drilling in hard, solid rock, using a standard masonry drill bit.


Adding a little water to lubricate and cool the drilling process may help.
Reply:use a plastic insert, don't put the dirt in there.
Reply:Here's what worked for me:





A while age, I got a ceramic pot with a plant inside of a plastic liner. Later on, I wanted to use the ceramic pot for a flowerpot.





Fortunately, under the ceramic glaze, the pot was red clay. I just turned the pot over and used my Phillip's screwdriver to hand-screw a hole through the bottom. Just a bit of pressure caused the point to penetrate the glaze. Then I just kept twisting the screwdriver from side to side until the screwdriver came through the other side. It didn't crack because I was careful not to apply too much pressure at once. Hope this helps.