I have a couple places I could put a 3D printer, looking at the X2D as my first printer and not sure if some of it’s advantages (heating) over other printers make a difference in different environment temps. So first off it could go in an office downstairs in the house where it’s 65-72 F or 18-23 C all year round. So fairly ideal.
However it could also go in my detached workshop which I keep heated all winter, but not heated 24/7 like my house. LOL
My workshop is always heated in the winter to at least 48F or 9C, and then about 68F or 18C when I turn up the heat to work out there. Is it even a possibility to run an X2D in that environment? Would I have to turn the heat up in the garage for the duration of all my prints, which obviously would not be cost effective. Does the printer or filament care about the temps outside the cabinet in my example?
My guess is I could run it in the summer in the shop and winter in the house, but since I spend so much time in the shop it would be more handy to keep it out there.
This is all new to me and I have not found much info on printer environment temperatures. Thank you.
I’ll be as brief as possible: if the room temperature is below 24°C, the air recirculation system will definitely cause PETG lifting. The solution is to disable the exhaust fan, lift the printer lid by 3 centimeters, and leave the door slightly ajar. Note that I am referring to a closed room that has been dehumidified for 24 hours to stay under the alarm threshold of 50% relative humidity. I don’t think I need to add anything else. If you are printing hot materials, I don’t expect any issues other than increased energy consumption.
Unless I plan to spend an entire day in the shop, I keep it at 10°C in the winter, and I use my X1C heat bed to preheat the chamber to about 25°C before starting a print. I had a concern that the filament on the external spool might be too cold, but that has not been a problem. The chamber temp may continue to rise during the print, but unless it is a very long print I do not need to open the door for PLA, PETG, or TPU as I do in warmer months.
You should be able to print in the winter IF you use the X2D’s heater to warm up the chamber first. You can specify a minimum chamber temperature in your filament presets.
That’s wonderful news, and good to know my workshop will be an option for me. I’l never know for sure if there is negative effects until I try, but this gives me enough info so while I’m waiting for my printer to arrive it allows me time to build a good work bench. I have a nice stainless steel counter top sitting in my shed waiting for a home to put it on. In fact todays task it to polish it up and make it look good again.
As a followup question, I think I want to build the workbench taller than average, say about 42” high. This will allow me and my wife to see through the X2D side windows without having to bend over but also using the machine through the front door without bending over too much. Make sense?
The drawback is that if put the AMS on top it will be fairly high, but that’s OK isn’t it? I don’t think there is anything too technical or time consuming to do way up top is there.If my measurements are correct I should still be able to see and reach the reels easily, but looking straight down may require a step ladder. Is there even a need to do that?
Will the bench do anything other than hold the printer?
My X1C sits on a counter top at 36”, leaving the rest of the 8 ft counter for work space at a convenient height. I’m about 6 ft tall, and can easily look through the top glass to view the print, or bend my neck slightly to view the back of the plate through the door. If the printer was at 42”, I would not be able to see into the drawers of my riser.
Since this will be your first printer, I would suggest using it inside the home in the first few months. You will get to know how the printer works in a typical environment. After that, you can move it to the workshop. If things don’t work like when it is inside, you will know, and hopefully have learned enough by then to know how to mitigate problems.
