1. User Guide
  2. Preventative Maintenance
  3. Cleaning the Printer
  4. Clean Resin Trays

Clean Resin Trays

You must clean the resin tray if:

  • You believe the resin tray has foreign debris or partially cured resin in it, and you do not believe a resin-tray cleaning has removed all the debris.
  • You are using a different resin in the same resin tray, according to the section Resin Tray Material Cross-Usage.

Every time you remove the resin tray for any reason, you should also inspect/clean the catch tray, as in the section Clean/Replace the Catch Tray.

NOTE: The elevator must be at its upper limit and the print platform must not be in the printer during this procedure.

NOTE: Two iterations of this process tends to be enough for a fully cleaned resin tray. If you find that you need to repeat this process more than once, consider spending more time brushing the membrane/tray when soaked in >90% alcohol solvent.

NOTE: Avoid touching the bottom of the membrane during this procedure. If resin is observed on this surface, spot clean with >90% alcohol solvent by squirting/pouring solvent on the area with uncured resin. Finish by drying with compressed air. Do not touch Part-Cleaning Brush or any other tool to the bottom of the membrane.

Procedure

  1. Ensure the printer is idle and mark it as "not ready" by tapping the gui-power-btn.jpg button.
 local-gui-ready-to-print-08132018.jpg
  1. Push the Tension toggle button to release the tension arms.
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  1. Using nitrile gloves and holding a drip tray underneath, slowly lift the resin tray out of the printer.

CAUTION: Take care not to hit the resin tray on the elevator arms, printer door, or other printer components during removal.
remove-resin-tray-2.jpg
  1. Pour the contents of the tray over the tray corner into your hazardous waste container. The Resin Mixer may be used to guide resin and debris out of the tray.

CAUTION: Do NOT use the Platform Scraper to clean the resin tray, as it will easily puncture the membrane at the bottom of the tray.

CAUTION: Do NOT pour the resin back into the cartridge. Doing so risks contamination, and/or improper mixture, of resin in the cartridge. This could result in undesirable build quality and/or build failure.
  1. Place tray in its garage.

TIP: You may place a paper towel or clean-room wipe on your cleaning surface, so as not to get resin and/or solvent directly on it. This can also prevent foreign debris from dirtying or puncturing the tray's membrane. If you use this tip, be sure to discard the paper towel/wipe after each cleaning.

  1. There are two different cleaning solvents you might use in this step, depending on which material was in the resin tray:

    1. For any material EXCEPT for Figure 4 RUBBER-BLK 10: Pour approximately 250 mL of >90% alcohol into resin tray and use the Part-Cleaning Brush to gently agitate the material on the membrane and tray edges.

    2. If cleaning Figure 4 RUBBER-BLK 10 out of the tray: Pour approximately 250 mL of Propylene Carbonate into resin tray and use the Part-Cleaning Brush to gently agitate the material on the membrane and tray edges. RUBBER-BLK 10 has some material components that do not dissolve in >90% alcohol. Do not use >90% alcohol for this step.

  2. After brushing all surfaces that were in contact with resin, discard dirty solvent according to all government regulations.

  3. Rinse the resin tray with clean >90% alcohol and discard solvent according to all government regulations. It is okay to use alcohol for RUBBER-BLK 10 in this step.

  1. Dry membrane gently with 30 psi dry compressed air using an air gun attachment, or allow tray to air dry.

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  1. If uncured resin remains within the tray, repeat steps 6-9.
  2. If uncured resin remains on the outer edges of the resin tray:
    1. Wipe clean with a lint-free paper towel soaked with >90% alcohol (~15mL). Dispose of used paper towels and gloves discard according to all government regulations.
    2. Dry membrane gently with 30 psi dry compressed air using an air gun attachment, or allow tray to air dry.

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  1. Inspect the resin tray to ensure no uncured resin and/or foreign objects remain.

  1. Discard all paper towels/wipes used throughout this procedure according to all government regulations.

The resin tray can now be stored in the Resin-Tray Garage or be reinstalled in a printer, according to the section Resin-Tray Material Cross-Usage.

NOTE: Even though you have cleaned the tray of all resin in this procedure, it is still necessary to store the resin tray via one of the methods below to ensure protection of the bottom and top of the tray.

clean-resin-tray-10.jpg→resin-tray-garage-05012018.jpg

You can also store the resin tray in the printer with the cover from the garage on top, as seen below.

CAUTION: When covering the resin tray inside the printer, do NOT press down on the cover. The resin-tray membrane is sitting on the membrane lip while in the machine, meaning that even a small amount of pressure can damage the membrane.

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