For years I cleaned my bed with IPA but after 6 or 7 prints I would need to scrub it with Dawn & hot water. The dry with a microfiber towel that wasn’t used for anything else, neither was the sponge scrubbie I used to clean it with.
Then I kept hearing a few YouTubers saying that IPA didn’t remove the oils only moved them around. So I tried cleaning with water with a few drops of Dawn in it. Spray a little on the plate then wipe it with a microfiber towel fibers cloth with an applicator I downloaded & printed. Doing this I have much less issues with bed adhesion. Now I clean the build plate with Dawn & hot water maybe once a month.
I also try not to touch the print surface of the build plate with my fingers.
Thanks for posting! I, too, started out cleaning printer beds with IPA. These days, I mostly clean with tap water and a microfiber towel. I very rarely resort to cleaning with Dawn. I wonder what makes work is that I’m careful not to get finger prints on the build plate and every so often I’ll use glue (Dimaflix or MagiGoo). Maybe the water spreads any residual glue.
Do you have any experience with non-removable beds? I have a delta and a coreXY each with a glass bed.
Years ago I used to put glass beds on my printers but it was more for the flatness than anything else. As I recall I cleaned it with IPA then washed it with Dawn when the 1st layer wouldn’t stick.
I’ve used Aquanet hairspray & plan ole Elmers school glue stick either for adhesion or as a release agent.
Just because it is convenient to where my printer is, I’ve been using foaming hand soap and hot water on my print bed.
IPA has worked for me in the past. Where the oils+alcohol go is into a fresh paper towel, but lately I’ve been using more of the hot water and hand soap technique, because the glue stick glue rinses off easily in hot water, and not so easily with IPA.
It might be that I haven’t noticed a problem with that because I use a sheet of FR4 as a build plate, which doesn’t seem to build up any static charge.
I have had really good results with the new cold plates. So far my best has been from https://numakers.com/. I have just purchased more, so each printer has 3 plates, my Snapmaker U1 and Elegoo CC. With PLA at 45- 50C the prints usually come off when cool, sometimes the start line will stick. You can not use IPA on them, as it will ruin them, dawn and water is all that is needed, oil from fingers or water spots don’t seem to be a problem. The only problem I have had is they stick too well.
he build plates are perfect. The U1 have the notches and for my Elegoo CC1 they fit like the original.
I purchased more so that I can pull a finished plate off and let it cool and replace with a clean one. Some thin prints may be difficult to remove, so I have to wash the plate with soap and water to get them loose. The plates are also double sided so you can use the bottom if the top is damaged. I use a painters palette knife to remove parts if needed
I have switched to their filament also. If you can order 18 or more rolls the price is $12 per roll for PLA+. I have had really good success and they have a great color selection.
I mainly use Elegoo which I came upon by accident. Was looking for an inexpensive filament to use for prototyping. It printed so well I tried different colors & they work the same. When I started buying it I was paying $9.99-$11.99 a roll. Now it’s closer to $20 unless I catch it on sale.
I’m going to order a build plate for the U1 & a couple of rolls of PLA to try.
I checked their website & the filament is made in India.
I think you will like it. The spools are very well wound and are packaged in resealable zip lock type bags, I just wish they were clear. I have found a company that has some very good PCTG. It is expensive, but much better than PETG. The have a sale on rolls for prototyping - transition or of color rolls. ReFuel™ Recycled Filament - Pro PCTG - 1.75mm | 3D-Fuel - Made In USA
I have switched to PCTG for most of my higher temp or strength prints. They have good color selection and a fair price.
Never have tried PCTG, looked & 3dfuel sells it on Amazon but not the prototyping color. While I was looking around I also saw the SnapmakerUS is currently selling U1’s for $849 Prime. These’s also a few parts from them too.
I have two U1’s and they are my go to printer for PLA, and do well with the PCTG. I have the Walmart cover on mine for an enclosure. I also have the Elegoo CC1 which is a great one color printer. My Prusa XL and Rat Rig sit unless I need the size or 5 colors. I’m waiting for a 6+ toolhead from Snapmaker.
I have a U1 & Creality K2 Plus which only gets used if something won’t fit on the U1 build plate or the U1 is busy & I don’t want to wait for it to finish. 6 toolheads would be a nice addition, hope it would have a larger build plate the I could push the K2P in the corner.
The latest version of Snorca has color mixing built in. Tried it once but the results weren’t what I expected. I’m sure it was user error as I just grabbed a couple of rolls of filament to experiment with.
I print on glass and almost never clean my print bed. Especially the ABS printer has molten ABS on it.
However I never used IPA to clean it. Its just that I put the glass into the sink, give it a clean with a sponge, dry it with a paper towel and done. Must have been two years since I cleaned it. Usually done when printing TPU and I need to add glue stick, I want a clean slate to start.