Apparatuses described herein relate to coniditioning an edge of a substrate using a water jet. In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a nozzle connected on a receiving end with a connecting tube to receive a water jet that is a stream of water accelerated at a high velocity to generate a high pressure for cutting a substrate, where the water jet exits through the nozzle. The appartus further includes a deflector coupled to the nozzle, where the deflector splits the water jet into a cutting stream of water for cutting the substrate and an angled stream of water for conditioning an edge of the substrate.