General Printing Issues

Hi,

I launch the FormLab printer about 3 time in order to print a simple shape(see picture below), but I get anything(some residue in the tank)1 ?

I did some print before(about 5 print) and it went really well and I try to print this, and nothing?

I expected that the platform could had something wrong, so I change it(I have a new one) but nothing again?

I assume that it could be the tank or the resin(the resin was in the tank with the cover permanently close).

Is any body could help me to troubleshoot my issue?

Here is some picture about the residue in the tank and the laser test.



Also, I saw a little resin spill on the mirror. I try to clean that up and I perform an another laser test and I got this :

It look like the cleaning that I did on the mirror has change the result on the laser test. Is that a good laser test? If not, it is possible to have a proper procedure in order to clean the mirror? If so, I could eliminate each parameter one after the other in order to isolate the problem.

Thank

After changing the tank and the platform for a new components, and adding new resin, I had a successful print (see picture below).

I expect that the previous tank has lost the original properties(no scratch but probably sticky).

If anyone know how can we clean the tank in order to restore it at the original proprieties (to be not sticky), please post it here.

Thank you!

Glad to hear you sorted it out. Here are some mirror cleaning tips. The general rule of thumb is don’t clean your mirrors unless you absolutely need to.

If you run into any other issues, definitely reach out to customer support.

I sent a message to the support team via email and I received the procedure for cleaning the mirror.

My biggest concern is the silicon surface in the tank. After 5 print only (I let the resin in the tank after each print), I got an issue on the printing. I have to mention that I always print at the same spot. It probably why it doesn’t print at the same spot anymore in my old tank.

But, I would like to have a procedure in order to clean the tank and hopefully, restore as much as possible the surface(to be not sticky) and be able to print with the previous tank(and other tank also) all over the area.

Thank!

Hello Rene,

we have the same problem, too.
After 4 prints, the center of our tank has become a little diffuse, which is not cleanable.
As a consequence, prints fail after 1 cm and a solid shapeless “lake” forms instead.

Do you, or does anyone else, have found a solution to maintain the tank in good condition for more than 4 prints??

Regards,
Christian

Hi Chris!

There is no solutions to maintain the condition of the tank, unless the procedure describe in the following link:

But, some users seem to find a solution to refurbish the tank. Obviously, it’s not recommended from FormLab. Because the tank is a consumable product, the tank can be useless after 1-2 bottle of resin(information from FormLab via email). Personally, once the tank will not work after 1-2 bottle of resin, I’ll try this method to refurbish the tank. Nothing to loose after all. Here is the link: Repairing resin tank using Sylgard

If you see a ticket that I already post, I had a similar issue with a print and here’s the link: Failed Print issue

If you think that your issue is not about the previous ticket, I had a issue which the first layer of resin has sticked to the silicone surface and not to the platform(issue presented in this ticket, previous post) and that resulted to a fail print with nothing at all on the platform. I had to lower the platform about 0.2mm in the menu “Fine Tuning” under the menu “Help” in PreForm. I printed successfully after that.

Hope that information will help you!

Regards