Stuck on "Homing"

I started my Glowforge up after a few months of not using it. The weather has been very cold recently too… not sure if that could affect it, but I hear fan, clicking like normal, and then the head makes a short “urt!” sound like it tried to move a millimeter or something, but then does nothing, and app says “Homing” forever. I cleaned fan in head, and connections seem fine. Ribbon is fine it seems.

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You are not getting a orange button, correct?

If not and you are past the click sequence and it tries to move but fails, make sure an check the tension on your carriage plate belt. The carriage plate tension has a lot of feedback for movement at that point.

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It must be above 60°F inside the machine. If that is not the problem then try using your phone as a hot spot. That will tell you it either is or isn’t your wifi signal.

Hey @tomdeslongchamp, I am very sorry about the homing problem you are running into with your Glowforge printer. I will do my best to get this resolved for you. Could you try the following?

I extracted the logs from your Glowforge to investigate, and it looks like the Glowforge printer is having trouble communicating with the printer head. There are two key connections I’d like you to check for me.

Could you please do the following?

  1. Turn off your Glowforge.

  2. Holding only the finished black surfaces, grasp the printer head as shown. Pull gently up and back to disengage the magnets and remove the head.

  3. There is a small tab in the center of the wire ribbon. Push down fully on the tab to release it, and gently pull the wire ribbon plug from the printer head.

  4. Take a clear photo of the gold pins inside the printer head where you just unplugged the wire ribbon. It should look like this.

  5. Pick up the printer head and wire ribbon. Make sure the tab on the wire ribbon is facing up. Slide the ribbon back into the head until it clicks.

  6. As shown, lower the printer head over the metal plate so that it rests next to the two round posts. Then push it gently away from you – you’ll feel a “click” as magnets pull the printer head until it sits snugly atop the metal plate.

  7. Pull the laser arm all the way forward.

  8. Reach over the laser arm, and to the left of the inside of the unit and you’ll see this circuit board:

  9. Take a photo of the circuit board. If the cable I’ve indicated above with the red arrow appears to be loose, please reconnect it and try printing again. This cable should ‘click’ back into place.

  10. Turn your Glowforge back on.

  11. Send us the photos you took in step 4 and step 9.


Let us know how it goes!

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It is quite cold in my garage, so perhaps that was the issue… I don’t have an easy solution for warming up the garage, so I’ll have to wait till the weather warms a little to see. Thanks!

Sadly, it isn’t a good idea to store the Glowforge in a cold or hot area.

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Some people have recommended reptile heating mats to keep their GF warm inside.

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Hey @tomdeslongchamp Thanks for letting me know. I will leave you with a few helpful tips regarding the cooling system with the Glowforge printer. I will go ahead and close this ticket out for now as well but if you need anything else feel free to reach back out.

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:

  1. A description of the things you tried and what happened

  2. 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

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

  4. 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