I ordered my first 3D printer a few days ago, and i’ve been excitedly waiting for it to arrive by planning out some mods and upgrades for it (guiltily I admit i’m more excited to customize it than to actually print much). It is a monoprice maker select v2 if that matters.
My question mainly centres around 2 things, enclosures, and coolers.
Enclosures
Now I get that enclosures reduce heat fluctuation, which would mean a more consistent build, but they also in general raise the ambient temperature, which lets certain plastics cool more slowly and uniformly, allowing for betting bonding when one side of the print would normally be cool by the time the print head gets back to it, causing the next layer to “run off”. However this seems to compete with the idea of a cooler? Or is the significance here the difference between a 160c nozzle and 20c to 60c ambient temperature?
Coolers
Now the enclosure itself I can mostly understand, its the fact that the cooler seems to do the exact opposite. More airflow means it rapidly reduces the temperature, allowing the plastic to harden faster and not actually “run off” while its still liquid.
Are these 2 features used for completely separate types of material? Are they used simultaneously for certain situations?
1 Like
Hi there,
Maddie here from 3D Hubs.
You’re right - enclosures and part cooling fans are for separate material types, primarily.
If you plan on printing with ABS you’ll want to use an enclosure and have your part cooling fan off, as this material behaves best when allowed to cool down very slowly and any drafts or bursts of cool air can cause warping and cracking in the print.
Cooling fans are great for materials like PLA, which like to cool very quickly to get nice bridges, crisp overhangs and fine details. If you happen to have an enclosure and are printing PLA, I personally leave the door of the enclosure open and add a secondary fan to ensure it doesn’t get too hot.
I hope this helps!
Best,
Maddie
2 Likes
