Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do if my printing platform is dirty and bumpy?
When the build tape on the printing platform is dirty and damaged, the build tape needs to be replaced. First, tap “preheat” function in the equipment to heat the build plate to 60℃-100℃ (high temperature is better, 60℃ is good to prevent burns ), keep it for a few minutes until the glue under the build tape softens, then remove the old build tape along the corner, and use alcohol to remove the residue on the build plate. After wiping up, put on the new build tape and smooth it out.
How to solve the problem of 3D Printing Stringing or hanging?
The best way to solve the stringing problem is retraction.
Starting the retraction, the area of extruder finishes printing the model, the filaments in the nozzle are pulled back, and when printing again, the filaments are pushed back into the nozzle and extruded from the top of the nozzle.


What are the causes of print not sticking to the bed?
Build platform is not level – If your printer has an adjustable bed and you’re having trouble getting your first layer to stick to the bed, the first thing you will want to verify is that your printer’s bed is flat and level.
Nozzle starts too far away from bed – Once your bed has been properly levelled, you still need to make sure that the nozzle is starting at the correct height relative to the build platform. Your goal is to locate your extruder the perfect distance away from the build plate, not too far and not too close.
First layer is printing too fast – As you extrude the first layer of plastic on top of the build platform, you want to make sure that plastic can properly bond to the surface before starting the next layer. If you print the first layer too fast, the plastic may not have time to bond to the build platform. For this reason, it is typically very useful to print the first layer at a slower speed so that the plastic has time to bond to the bed.
We also recommend that you make use of a build bed adhesive – We find that the most effective and in reach item to use is a can of ordinary hairspray. Spray a few layers on to your build bed before you start your print.
Warping, the first layer peels off and the parts bend?
Warping is a decreasingly common problem, as the vast majority of modern printers have heated beds. Warping can be caused by the following factors:
Lack of adhesion to the bed: this can occur due to incorrect height of the nozzle in relation to the base, or poor levelling; but also lack of adhesion to the printing surface. For the lack of adhesion there are several solutions. If we are using a glass base, it is highly recommended to use some adhesive to increase the fixation of the part. Some known adhesives are standard aerosol hairspray.
Thermal contraction of the upper layers, which when “shrinking” pull on the lower layers. If this occurs, the print surface may even break if it is a BuildTak type, as the sticker will be torn off the bed. This can also happen with glass. This happens mostly with materials such as ABS or Nylon, and it is very difficult for it to happen when printing PLA.


Cracking or delamination of prints?
When the layers of a part are not well joined, resulting in these layers being separated (hence the name delamination). This problem can be caused by two different reasons:
Poor adhesion between the layers: the layers do not stick properly to each other.
Thermal shrinkage: the layers stick together well, but a difference in temperature between different sections of the part causes it to deform, which can cause some layers to separate.
To check if our part is cracking due to lack of adhesion between the layers, you can try to raise the temperature and/or reduce the speed of the layer fan, as excessive cooling can also affect it negatively. Some materials, like ABS, will always be prone to cracking and will be more difficult to control, others like PLA are very easy to print without cracking.
If your problem is thermal contraction the solution is more complicated, as you must manage to create a warmer environment in our printing area. The optimal solution would be to cover our printer or move it to a warmer environment.
My print is shifting layers?
Layer shifting is a problem that occurs in the form of a displacement on some axis at a certain height. It can occur in the X-axis, the Y-axis or even both simultaneously. The most common causes of layer shifting are:
Excessive temperature in the motors, or drivers: the electronics in general are not designed to operate continuously at a very high temperature.
Lack of power in the motors, usually caused by a very low voltage value in the drivers.
Mechanical failure: it can happen that we have some of our belt’s teeth broken, or there is some debris on the shafts that can cause a jam in the movement of our printer. Sometimes a wrongly tightened component can also cause layer displacement defects when the whole shaft moves freely.
A general advice would be to put heatsinks, and if possible ventilation, to the drivers of our board. These components basically take care of sending all the necessary air flow to the motors, so they tend to heat up.
Additionally, you can check if your printer has drivers with adjustable voltage, and if so, you can increase this voltage slightly by carefully turning the potentiometer on each driver.

How to prevent and fix extruder clogging?
Extrusion jams are the number one cause of failure. You may have mastered your printer but the jams are always going to be there, so it’s critical to understand them and be able to prevent and fix them.
Clogs arise from many different causes, sometimes in conjunction with each other. We believe the best way to solve them is to first understand all those causes and then try a series of techniques that can help fix them.
Contamination at the tip and print canal. Impurities that are deposited in the print canal or at the tip of the nozzle and hinder or completely block the flow of the filament.
PTFE/Teflon degraded: Teflon hot ends in the hot zone require maintenance of the Teflon, which when degraded clogs the filament flow.
Extruder problems: It might be that your extruder is not working properly. Too much tension or too little tension in the dock. Low voltage in the driver that does not give enough power to the motor. Dirty thrust wheel, with teeth covered with filament debris or any loose or broken parts.
Scratching the filament: This is very important to understand. When you see the scratched filament, nibbled by the extruder wheel, it is not always the cause of the clogging. All printing clogs, whatever the cause, end up scratching of the filament. And only those clogs that are due to spring tension and excessive shrinkage are the root cause of the clog itself.
Tip scratching the base: If the first layer is too low, it can interrupt the flow of the melted plastic and quickly cause a clog in the extrusion system.
Watch out for shrinkage: A part with a lot of very fast retractions can end up scratching the filament. And long, slow retractions can overheat the cold zone of the extruder and cause clogging as well. In general, retractions won’t cause your clogs, but you should always keep an eye on them.
Poor cooling: Cooling is a fundamental variable in all-metal hot ends. If your extruder is 100% metal like the E3D V6 you have to be very careful with this and with excessive shrinkage.