When opening up my machine and turning on today. I was about to put my first wood piece in to cut and I noticed that my tube has a yellow tint to it. Please see the photos I have attached.
I did not look like this when I closed it up last weekend. My machine only has about 10 hours on it (and that might be a stretch). Is this just something I have to clean? I am scared to touch it cause I know its made out of glass and not sure how to be cleaning it. So I am not sure if the tinting is on the inside or outside of the tube. I am scared to use it now cause I am not sure if something is broken?
As you can see from the photos, it is mostly on the left side of the laser tube and looks almost normal/clear on the right side.
Please help! What is wrong with it? Has anyone else had this problem?
Nothing is wrong with it. That is just the deposits from the fumes and dust from using the machine. It’s heavier on the left because that’s the side where the exhaust is, pulling the fumes out in that direction.
That’s pretty normal looking. It doesn’t hurt the tube so cleaning or not is just up to your aesthetic decision. If your tube is that dirty tho you probably want to give all your optics a good clean.
Yeah, that’s just resin and ash buildup on the outside of the bulb. I like to wipe mine off when it gets to be that cloudy…turn off the machine, then use a moist (not wet) paper towel spritzed with vinegar/water mixture. Comes right off. Let it completely dry.
It’s not a part of suggested maintenance and it won’t affect performance, but it looks much neater.
I’m so sorry about this small snag! I appreciate you providing images of your Laser tube. Based on the photos, the yellow tint you’re seeing is most likely a small amount of build up of particles during and after printing clinging to the tube. This does not need to be cleaned, and will not effect your ability to print.
As @ekla outlined, performing our recommended cleaning regiment should ensure that your Glowforge continues to perform within specification.
I’ll close this ticket for now, but please don’t hesitate to reach out to us directly at support@glowforge.com if you happen to run into any additional trouble.
