Stuck in 'Too hot to print'

Hi!

Room temperature is 86f, humidity is at 53%. Tried printing both w/proofgrade maple and 3mm birch plywood. Two-three minutes in Glowforge pauses printing, head hangs over the material. The webapp shows a message about resuming in a minute of two. Printing does not resume. I let it sit for at least ten minutes. The exhaust does not feel hot, but I guess the warning is emitted due to coolant temperature rising. Please advise.

Thanks,
G

Check out this link: https://glowforge.com/tech-specs

Under Mechanicals
Recommended Operating Temperature: 60F-75F (16C-24C) Basic and Plus; 60F-81F (16C-27C) Pro

And by “recommended” they mean “required”

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Thank you. I’d like to get a response from the GF folks. If its required, then it should say “required”, and not start printing if the temperature is too high… Also, why not resume printing after cooling down? It’s not 110f here.

i can get my basic to print up to 80 degrees by having cool air being forced into the chamber from the right side and cool air blowing on the left side of the GF where the coolant is…

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Support has responded easily more than 50 times with the same info @hansepe just provided. Search any of the cooling topics for the staff response. Just FYI.

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Alright - thanks.

It can start if the cooling fluid is within spec which it might be even with ambient temps out of spec. But once that warms up it has to stop. Then if your ambient air temp is too high, there’s no way for the coolant to get colder than ambient (Basic) or if the air temp is too high, the Peltier cooler (in the Pro) can’t keep up - that’s why there’s a temp limit for the Pro as well.

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Your Glowforge features a closed-loop liquid cooling system that uses the air from the room to remove heat. It is designed to be used when the temperature next to your Glowforge is between 60 degrees Fahrenheit (16 Celsius) and 75 degrees Fahrenheit (24 Celsius). To check, put a room thermometer next to the right hand side of the Glowforge; it draws in air from underneath, on the right.

You can try any of these things to improve warm-weather performance:

  • Try printing with no material on the bed (so as not to generate smoke and fumes) and no exhaust hose attached. If this works, then the problem may be that your exhaust hose is constricting the flow of air out of the unit, preventing cooling.

  • Examine the bottom-right side of your Glowforge, and ensure that there is no fabric or other flexible material underneath it, like a tablecloth. There are air intake vents, and if they become obstructed, it makes cooling less effective.

  • Try pointing a fan at the right side of your Glowforge. If there is warm air around the intake, this could help it cool off.

  • Power off your Glowforge when you are not using it. When your Glowforge sits idle, the fans are off, so heat can build up

  • Just wait. Your print may take a little longer when it’s warm, but your Glowforge will protect itself and make sure it cools enough to prevent any loss of power or damage. It’s clever enough to pick up from exactly where it left off, even if it needs to pause to cool down during the print!

  • Ensure that the sun isn’t shining on the lid. This could cause the inside of your Glowforge to heat up.

  • If you are venting outdoors, ensure that extreme temperatures or humidity do not enter the Glowforge unit through the exhaust hose. Disconnect the hose from the outside air when the Glowforge is not in use.

  • Turn your Glowforge off and open the lid for a few minutes before trying again. It’s possible for the air in your Glowforge to heat up, just like a car in the sun on a hot day, opening the lid will help that warm air to escape and your Glowforge to cool down.

If you are still running into trouble, please let us know the following so that we can investigate further:

  • A description of the things you tried and what happened

  • If possible, place a thermometer next to your Glowforge on the right hand side and measure the temperature there; if not, estimate the room temperature

  • The date and time (including time zone) when you had the problem

  • Take a picture of the exhaust hose behind your Glowforge that includes the part where it connects to your Glowforge, and the part where it exits the room

Regarding required/recommended: We say “recommended” because you may be able to print above those temperatures, but you will experience increasingly long cooling pauses depending how far above the recommended temperature you go. Ambient air is used to cool the system, and as the ambient air gets warmer, it takes longer to cool off until it pauses indefinitely at temperatures much higher than recommended.

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Thanks, Dan.

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I don’t know how long it takes to cool to be usable but my Pro sticks in cooling mode for longer than I have patience once it hits 80F in the room. I expect the machine’s internal temp is higher. I would just shut it down - I think I waited an hour once.

I ended up installing a/c so it’s always 75 or less now in the basement and it works fine.

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It’s been a little while since I’ve seen any replies on this thread so I’m going to close it. If you still need help with this please either start a new thread or email support@glowforge.com.