Jump to content
UltiMaker Community of 3D Printing Experts

Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure


Croy9000

Recommended Posts

Posted (edited) · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure

I recently built an enclosure that seals my UM3. I built the enclosure mostly for the air scrubber I also built (with hepa and carbon filtering). A side benefit I didn't plan for is that it keeps the enclosure heated. Something that has had a noticeable improvement on my prints.

 

Since the electronics are mounted under the body, they are mostly shielded from the 45C ambient air generated by the 80C build plate (though I need to measure the board temp to be sure). But one concern I have is over heating the steppers. I am reading about 65C on the case of the steppers. From what I read 80C is the limit before you start degrading them. I was going to order some 40mm x 40mm heatsinks and stick them to the top of them, but before I did wanted to see if others have any experience here.

 

Image%2525202019-01-03%252520at%2525209.

Edited by Croy9000
  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure

    You should only use the top cover if you really need it (ABS or similar materials). If you print with PLA your prints will fail, due to too much heat inside.

     

    Putting some ventilator in the case can help, but you should make sure, that also fresh air can get into the printer. There is thread here somewhere, where a user put the printer inside a cabinet and had a lot of problems at the beginning with too much heat. Then he put some ventilators to blow out the heat in the back, but it was still not enough because there was no way for fresh colder air to get in. I think finally he made also some holes in the front of the cabinet to get good airflow to bring the heat out of the cabinet.

     

     

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure

    Yep printing in ABS. Thanks for the tips. I was hoping to avoid holes in the enclosure. The "theory" of operation with the air scrubber I built is it draws air from inside the cabinet and expels it inside the cabinet, cycling it over and over again, increasing the efficiency of the filters. 

     

    But the idea of drawing in cool air (without actually drawing in outside air) did give me the idea to try a peltier cooling module like this one I just ordered https://www.amazon.com/KKmoon-Thermoelectric-Refrigeration-Conduction-TEC1-12706/dp/B074V4RKXM/ref=sr_1_4. I think I can fit that into my air scrubber so the forced air through the scrubber passes over cooled heatsink fins. If that works well I will add some temp control.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure

    Aside from the steppers, the other thing you want to keep in mind: the sliding blocks are made of plastic. If you heat the interior of the printer too much, that plastic will get soft, and your printhead shaft won't stay locked in anymore...which could go really badly mid-print. I try not to let the interior get above 50C.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted (edited) · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure

    Yeah atm my max temps are 45C on the interior, but that is whats contributing to my discomfort with 65C surface temps on the steppers. I might shoot for an ambient air temp of 30C.

    Edited by Croy9000
  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · Heating concerns with my custom UM3 sealed enclosure
    5 hours ago, Croy9000 said:

    But the idea of drawing in cool air (without actually drawing in outside air) did give me the idea to try a peltier cooling module like this one I just ordered https://www.amazon.com/KKmoon-Thermoelectric-Refrigeration-Conduction-TEC1-12706/dp/B074V4RKXM/ref=sr_1_4. I think I can fit that into my air scrubber so the forced air through the scrubber passes over cooled heatsink fins. If that works well I will add some temp control.

     

    You build a great high tech enclosure 🙂 

    But I like the idea, keep us informed if you have news.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now
    • Our picks

      • UltiMaker Cura 5.3 stable released
        In this stable release, Cura 5.3 achieves yet another huge leap forward in 3D printing thanks to material interlocking! As well as introducing an expanded recommended print settings menu and lots of print quality improvements. Not to mention, a whole bunch of new printer profiles for non-UltiMaker printers!
          • Thanks
          • Like
        • 30 replies
      • Here it is. The new UltiMaker S7
        The UltiMaker S7 is built on the success of the UltiMaker S5 and its design decisions were heavily based on feedback from customers.
         
         
        So what’s new?
        The obvious change is the S7’s height. It now includes an integrated Air Manager. This filters the exhaust air of every print and also improves build temperature stability. To further enclose the build chamber the S7 only has one magnetically latched door.
         
        The build stack has also been completely redesigned. A PEI-coated flexible steel build plate makes a big difference to productivity. Not only do you not need tools to pop a printed part off. But we also don’t recommend using or adhesion structures for UltiMaker materials (except PC, because...it’s PC). Along with that, 4 pins and 25 magnets make it easy to replace the flex plate perfectly – even with one hand.
         
        The re-engineered print head has an inductive sensor which reduces noise when probing the build plate. This effectively makes it much harder to not achieve a perfect first layer, improving overall print success. We also reversed the front fan direction (fewer plastic hairs, less maintenance), made the print core door magnets stronger, and add a sensor that helps avoid flooding.
         

         
        The UltiMaker S7 also includes quality of life improvements:
        Reliable bed tilt compensation (no more thumbscrews) 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi A 1080p camera (mounted higher for a better view) Compatibility with 280+ Marketplace materials Compatibility with S5 project files (no reslicing needed) And a whole lot more  
        Curious to see the S7 in action?
        We’re hosting a free tech demo on February 7.
        It will be live and you can ask any questions to our CTO, Miguel Calvo.
        Register here for the Webinar
          • Like
        • 18 replies
      • UltiMaker Cura Alpha 🎄 Tree Support Spotlight 🎄
        Are you a fan of tree support, but dislike the removal process and the amount of filament it uses? Then we would like to invite you to try this special release of UltiMaker Cura. Brought to you by our special community contributor @thomasrahm
         
        We generated a special version of Cura 5.2 called 5.3.0 Alpha + Xmas. The only changes we introduced compared to UltiMaker Cura 5.2.1 are those which are needed for the new supports. So keep in mind, this is not a sneak peek for Cura 5.3 (there are some really cool new features coming up) but a spotlight release highlighting this new version of tree supports.  
          • Like
        • 22 replies
    ×
    ×
    • Create New...