In the past, Formlabs advised using only isopropyl alcohol (IPA) to effectively wash liquid resin from stereolithography (SLA) parts and prepare them for post-curing. For more information, read our support article on isopropyl alcohol.
If you’re looking for other wash solvents for your prints, or if you’re just getting started with Formlabs SLA printers for the first time, we’re pleased to announce you now have a second option.
Formlabs has tested and approved tripropylene glycol methyl ether (TPM) as an alternative solvent to IPA for washing SLA 3D prints.
Tripropylene glycol methyl ether is a colorless liquid with an ether-like odor. It has several advantages for cleaning 3D prints:
- TPM cleans parts at a higher resin concentration more effectively than IPA.
- Leaving parts in IPA for a prolonged period of time may cause warping or damage. This is no longer an issue when soaking prints in TPM.
- TPM evaporates slowly and mixes well with water. It is non-flammable and has low volatility, making it a safer and more economical solvent than IPA.
- While IPA may be difficult to procure in some regions, TPM is available globally.
Support Articles
Please visit support.formlabs.com to explore our support articles on tripropylene glycol monomethyl ether (TPM) and washing prints with TPM.
Read our support article on choosing the right wash solvent for an in-depth comparison of IPA and TPM and to find out which solvent suits your application best.