We are excited to announce Formlabs Resin Washing Solution! Formlabs Resin Washing Solution is a non-flammable solution for cleaning resin off of 3D printed parts. This solution cleans as well as IPA, but can dissolve twice as much resin before becoming saturated. Reduce wash replenishing and cost per wash with a part-cleaning solution safe enough for any workspace.
Stable and Cost-Effective: Stable, low-odor chemistry that cleans parts as well as IPA at a lower cost per wash.
Longer Solution Lifetime: Twice the longevity of IPA and minimal evaporation, leading to less frequent top-offs and full changeouts of washing solution.
Validated Non-Flammable: Non-flammable per GHS classification, mitigating storage and EH&S concerns.
Simplified Sourcing: Whether you buy Formlabs or our partners, you can now get your resins and washing solution all in one place.
Cost-Effective With a Longer Solution Lifetime
Resin Washing Solution has twice the longevity of IPA and minimal evaporation, leading to less frequent top-offs and fewer full changeouts of washing solution.
Solution
Fully Non-Flammable Workflow
Cost per Liter
Saturation Limit
Solution Amount Lost to Evaporation*
Solution Lifetime* (days)
Cost per Wash (USD)
IPA
No
$7.67
10%
1.18 L
97
$1.08
Formlabs Resin Washing Solution
Yes
$15.00
20%
~0 L
240
$0.91
Non-Flammable Competitor
Yes
$28.00
20%
~0 L
240
$1.69
Competitor High-Saturation Limit Solution
No - requires secondary flammable solvent
$52.50**
35%
~0 L
420
$1.81
*Solution amount lost to evaporation and solution lifetime are estimated values.
**Requires additional secondary flammable solvent.
@kkingcgi To safely dispose of contaminated Formlabs Resin Washing Solution:
Consult the safety data sheet as the primary source of information.
Research your local regulations for non-flammable hazardous waste disposal. This will most likely involve hiring a waste disposal service. For smaller amounts, check with your local waste disposal service to see if they have any suggestions for removal.
Provide your waste disposal service with the Formlabs Resin Washing Solution SDS and let them know that your waste also contains small amounts of methacrylated monomers and oligomers (unpolymerized plastic resin) and trace amounts of photoinitiator. Have a copy of the Formlabs resin safety data sheet (SDS) on hand in case the disposal service attendant needs more information.
I personally have not noticed any odors from it, especially compared to IPA. Here is a testimonial from Kristine Paxon, Lab Technician, Beam Orthodontics:
“Formlabs Resin Washing Solution is key in my 3D printing workflow. It washes my models completely and I can go much longer without worrying about replacing solvent. It doesn’t have a strong smell and isn’t a flammability risk, which I appreciate for my small work space.”
Odors shouldn’t be what one is concerned about because it could still be harming you even if you cannot smell it. This is why it’s a good idea to invest in a good respirator and have proper venting for the work area.
I’m not sure how saturation limit is determined but I have been told that 11 liters of this will hold between 1-1.5L of uncured resin before it is considered saturated.
Is this basically glorified TPM? Or does it have sightly better performance?
Have been meaning to try TPM since all of the people who lives next to my printer in a confined space complain about IPA smell, curious how this performs in surface finish and cleaning resin out of little crevices on parts after washing.
Loctite Cleaner C has a listed saturation limit as 15%, which is in the rough ballpark of your 1.5L out of 11L (works out to ~14%) of cleaner. Our Resin Washing Solution is around 20% (roughly 2.2L of uncured resin in 11 liters). For comparison, IPA can hold ~10%.
Formlabs Resin Washing Solution is a proprietary composition that is non-flammable and has a high saturation like TPM. Where Formlabs Resin Washing solution differs from TPM is in washing performance. TPM tends to leave parts with an oily surface. Our internal testing and beta users found Resin Washing Solution to provide much better wash quality – on par with IPA. You can refer to the SDS for more info.
I know this is not yet approved for many of the biocompatible materials. But, can you say if you are or are not working on getting this approved? Thank you!
Currently, Formlabs Resin Washing Solution is not recommended for workflows that require biocompatible materials, as we haven’t completed the necessary testing to ensure biocompatibility, and I cannot comment on the roadmap for doing so. If you’re considering using it for biocompatible resins, it’s important to understand that doing so may affect the biocompatibility of the material, and we recommend conducting your own testing to confirm it’s suitable for your specific application.
That said, I’ll make sure to pass along your interest in this to our product team! Thanks!
We recommend using Resin Washing Solution with Form Wash (2nd Generation), because it has 3x the agitation of Form Wash (1st Generation), and our wash times and settings were validated with the 2nd Generation Wash. It will technically still work, but you may not get as optimal washing results in Form Wash (1st Generation).
Does this leave an oily residue that needs a secondary wash like TPM does? That was one big reason I went back to IPA.
Also will this be easily sourced in Canada? For example n butyl acetate (for silicone resin) is extremely hard to get here and wondering if our regulations will make this problematic.
Lastly can this be distilled in a solvent recycler and incorporated into my existing workflow of recycling solvent?
Parts washed in Resin Washing Solution require a brief (30-60 second) soak in water but afterwards the parts will not feel oily. They will feel similar to parts washed in IPA. You can refer to my response to @eaglechen’s question about how it differs from TPM above.
This can be easily sourced in Canada. You can buy directly from Formlabs or see if your preferred Formlabs re-seller carries Resin Washing Solution.
We are currently evaluating if Resin Washing Solution can be recycled. However, because it has twice the saturation limit of IPA, we expect users to produce less solvent waste.
