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Print didn't stick to build plate, how to clean tank, Form3

General Discussion
#1

Hi Formlabs Community,
I had a small print fail today. It didn’t stick to the build plate, and has left a layer stuck to the tank. You can see the picture below. I’m wondering how to clean the tank and what could have caused this?

Couple of things that could have contributed to this happening:

  1. It’s winter and my shop is cold 16C. The machine said it couldn’t reach temperature of 31C, but had reached 27C. I ignored the alert, and started the print. (I’ll be putting in a supplemental heater before the next print)
  2. The build plate had an old layer of resin on it, which I cleaned off with alcohol but maybe not a deep clean.

Questions:

  1. Would that cause the print to not stick?
  2. How can I remove the layer from the tank film?

Thanks

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#2

I had similar on my F3, in a 72F room. I used the cleaning mesh (option in the maintenance selection of the FL unit) and it came out with the rest of the mesh.

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#3

My guess is the cold room caused the print to not stick to the build platform or the platform was not clean enough.

As for removing the raft, I use a plastic scraper to remove parts stuck to the tray. The key thing is to scrape at the stuck portion in a peeling motion and not a pushing motion. In other words; hold the scraper at a 45 degree angle and pull it across the stuck resin. Do not try to push/shove the scraper under the stuck resin. That will damage the tray. By using a peeling motion (over and over) it will eventually peel up the stuck resin. This is just how I do it. Others may have way that work better and results differ so I am not guaranteeing this will work for you. Especially in a cold environment.

#4

Do you drain your tank before trying this? Draining it seems to make the most sense to me. It will help me see the raft and avoid any mishaps.

#5

I do not usually drain the tank. The resin acts as a lubricant.

#6

When something runs amok with a print and I get floaters I pick out anything obvious I can find, then I pour everything in the tray thru a screen with about 1mm holes while the resin is still warm, Pour it back into the tray and I’m good to go. Have done this a few times and it seems to work just fine.

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#7

I also have 3D printed a “comb” that I use to get any particles out of the resin. If anyone wants the file let me know and I can post it.

#8

I sometimes wonder about this - as one of the first things the printer does is dip the platform in the resin again so does it really matter about cleaning the platform with IPA rather than just giving it a good scrape to ensure it’s uniformly flat? Obviously not if changing resins though!

#9

It might not need cleaning each time, but since I have a Form Wash, I leave the parts on the build platform when I wash parts which obviously cleans the platform too.

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#10

I stopped putting the platform in the washer because it was adding extra resin to the mix. I suppose I could scrape off the excess first.