Coolant leaking and told to set it up

Community Support
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Opened my Glowforge today and there was liquid on it and inside the bag. I contacted customer support and they sent me and email saying it was coolant and to go ahead and set it up. Has this happened to anyone and did your Glowforge work perfectly fine with this happening?

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A little leak from the reservoir wouldn’t be a big deal as long as it wasn’t a huge loss. And if a lot was lost the sensors would stop the machine from destroying itself. So maybe things will be OK and if not you would need to send the unit back anyway.

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If you sent them photos and they told you it was okay to set it up, you can go ahead and do it. It’s possible that a small amount got splashed on the machine right before shipping. (I’d definitely wipe it up first.)

Was it a lot or a little? Few drops? Teaspoon? Tablespoon? More?

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Fire it up and observe the laser tube. That coolant is circulated through a jacket around the beam tube. A few bubbles will flow through the first time you fire it up. But if you’re low on coolant, you’ll see large air voids moving (big bubbles) moving through the tube.

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It wasn’t a lot

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Good! :slightly_smiling_face:

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My first one worked fine for short prints. When I got to 5 minute prints the laser tube blew up. It was impressive…

When I repacked it, I found out that one of the corners of the box was wet from leaking coolant.

Make sure you don’t see any bubbles of any real size in the tube. If you do, beware.

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:roll_eyes::astonished::grimacing:

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To be clear, there will be air bubbles in the tube on receipt, the system is self purging, so the air should disappear. If the coolant level was reduced by leakage then the cooling capacity of the system will be reduced.
I wouldn’t worry about it, your issue is documented here. You have the blessing and direction of support, If there is ever a problem, you have protection of the warranty. Plug that puppy up and begin the adventure!

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Indeed…

But they’ve told you to plug it in and give it a try. At the worst, you’ll just have to box it up and send it back, which is what you’d have to do anyway at this point.

I just wanted you to be prepared for what might happen.

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11

I’m very sorry for the rough start. I wanted to confirm a few things for everyone.

  • This does occasionally happen when there is a problem with the coolant cap and the unit is handled improperly by shippers (stored on its side or on end, handled roughly, etc.)

  • The liquid is a food-grade product that is safe to the touch, and doesn’t cause damage to your Glowforge.

  • Typically, the amount of coolant that seeps out when this occurs is not enough to affect the operation of your Glowforge. When you turn on your Glowforge you’ll see bubbles in the laser tube. The bubbles should clear within a few minutes of the system being powered on, at which point you can continue with Wi-Fi setup and start to print.

  • If the bubbles don’t clear from your tube after several minutes of being powered on, or if you see additional fluid leaking while the unit is powered on, please turn off your Glowforge and contact support for next steps.

Finally, we’ve designed an improved cap for the coolant. For anyone who experienced an issue with coolant leaking during shipment, we’re providing a replacement cap free of charge.

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