"Cleaning" PolyPrinter 229 Print Bed Before / After Printing?

3D Fabrication
#1

Are we supposed to / allowed to “clean” the PP 229 print beds before / after printing on them ?? If so, what is the “DMS approved” procedure (including any allowed liquids / sprays / paper towels / cotton cloths / microfiber cloths / plastic scrapers / other tools or implements) ??

If I understand it correctly, the PP 229 print beds have that greenish tint to them because the aluminum print beds of the PP 229 printers have had a layer of PET tape applied to them so that ABS will adhere to the bed. I can certainly see that PET tape layer getting messed up if someone does the wrong thing in an attempt to clean the bed.

Or is cleaning of the print beds considered to be in the “disallowed” maintenance category ?? If so, what are we allowed to do to ensure that the print bed is ready to print on after the previous user ??

Please advise. Thanks, Jeff

#2

@Team_3D_Fab

#3

Further investigation on the web seems to indicate that even acetone would be safe to use on the PET tape and acetone would also have the advantage of dissolving any residual ABS that was adhering to the PET tape on the print bed.

So, is acetone OK ?? Jeff

#4

No, no, no.

Acetone should not be used anywhere near those 3D printers. A lot of the parts are 3D printed and it will melt them. Never use acetone on something that is with those 3D printers without direct approval from a chair.

Generally in the past the tape is usually in pretty good shape and doesn’t need anything extra. When the tape starts getting screwed up, we replace the tape.

If somebody is frequently causing damage to the tape because they’re not pulling their part correctly then usually someone in 3D fab or the [vice] chairs will talk to them and show them how to do it properly. Most of the time, the correct fix for anything relating to the poly printers is to post an issue on talk, and will almost always get fixed within a day or two (unless we need to order a new part/ have polyprinter come out and fix it).