With the development of technology and economy, 3D printers are becoming increasingly common in our daily lives. Through 3D printing, we can obtain personalized models, intricate parts, etc. A perfect 3D print is inseparable from the various settings of the 3D printer. Especially, whether the hot bed of a 3D printer is flat or not will have a significant impact on the quality of 3D prints. Therefore, ensuring the levelness of the hot bed is a very important step in the 3D printing process. And 3D printers can be broadly categorized into two types: those equipped with leveling sensors and those without leveling sensors. In fact, regardless of the type of printer, manually raising/leveling its hot bed can effectively enhance the stability of the printing process. In this blog, we will provide a detailed explanation on how to raise the hot bed manually on a 3D printer. In addition, we will also provide some other related information about leveling the hot bed.
Table of Contents:
- Reasons for Manually Raising Hot bed on 3D Printer
- Symptoms of an Unlevel Hot Bed on 3D Printer
- How to Raise Hot Bed Manually on 3D Printer
Leveling on a 3D Printer without a Leveling Sensor
Leveling on a 3D Printer with a Leveling Sensor
- Inspection and Fine-Tuning After Adjusting the Hot Bed
- FAQs about Raising Hot Bed Manually on 3D Printer
Reasons for Manually Raising Hot bed on 3D Printer
- The distance between the nozzle and the hot bed must be perfectly consistent across the entire bed surface. However the hot bed on a 3D printer may become slightly tilted due to transportation or prolonged use. When the hot bed is no longer level, it will cause some printing problems. Manually raising the hot bed (i.e., leveling the hot bed) is an effective means to solve these problems.
- Some 3D printers equipped with leveling sensors also require manual leveling to achieve better printing quality. The automatic bed leveling system first probes multiple points on the bed to create a precise height map (or mesh) of its surface. During printing, the firmware then uses this data to dynamically adjust the Z-axis height in real-time, compensating for any detected unevenness. If your hot bed is severely tilted, the automatic leveling system will continuously make adjustments along the Z-axis. This will increase the wear and tear of the machine and shorten the lifespan of the print head. However, performing manual leveling can reduce the frequent up-and-down movements of the Z-axis. This makes the printing process smoother and the 3D printer more durable.
Symptoms of an Unlevel Hot Bed on 3D Printer
When the hot bed of a 3D printer is not level, some obvious symptoms usually occur. If you encounter any of the following symptoms during 3D printing, it might indicate that you need to level the hot bed.
1. Area Where the Hot Bed is too Close to the Print Head:
- The filament is extruded into a thin layer, even clogging the nozzle.
- The nozzle scraped against the printing plate, making a harsh noise and even damaging the nozzle or the printing plate.
- The first layer of filament is too thin, resulting in poor lamination in subsequent layers and weak model strength.
2. Area Where the Hot Bed is too Far from the Print Head:
- The extruded filament cannot adhere closely to the printing plate.
- The lines on the first layer do not stick to each other and can be easily torn off.
- Warping begins from the first layer, causing the entire print to detach and ultimately fail.
How to Raise Hot Bed Manually on 3D Printer
Manually raising or leveling the hot bed of a 3D printer is a relatively simple operation. Even beginners can get started quickly. However, the process of making the adjustment requires a great deal of patience. We will provide detailed step-by-step instructions. At the same time, you can get a more intuitive operation explanation by watching the video below.
1. Leveling on a 3D Printer without a Leveling Sensor
- First, you need to home the 3D printer.
- As soon as all free access are homed, please press “Motor-off” to disable the stepper motors. Then you can move the print head and pad by hand.
- Most 3D printers have adjustment screws at the four corners of the heating bed. You need to loosen these screws slightly to allow them to move freely. But don't loosen them so much that they come off completely.
- Next, you will need a normal sheet of paper—neither too thick nor too thin; standard office paper is suitable.
- Move the print head to one corner of the print bed, and then adjust the distance between them using the paper.
- Put the piece of paper between the nozzle and the print bed.
- Then, adjust the distance by rotating the corresponding screw. At the same time, please quickly move the piece of paper back and forth.
- The nozzle should be close enough to the print bed, so that the piece of paper between them has some resistance during moving. But it shouldn’t be too close, making the paper difficult to move.
- Please repeat the above operation for all four corners. Since adjusting one corner will affect the others, you need to repeatedly adjust each corner until the print bed is as level as possible.
- After all the adjustments are made, you can conduct a test print to check the results.
2. Leveling on a 3D Printer with a Leveling Sensor
- Although some 3D printers equipped with leveling sensors do not support manual leveling. However, most 3D printers, while equipped with leveling sensors, still retain the screws at the four corners of the hot bed.
- For printers that can be manually leveled, you need to perform some same operation as we previously described for printers without leveling sensors.
- First, you need to home the 3D printer.
- Then, enter the printer menu, select leveling-related setting and start (eg. “Leveling” / “Bed Level” > “Manual Level" / “Auxiliary Level”). The print head will automatically move to the first leveling position, which is usually the left front corner of the hot bed.
- Place a piece of paper between the nozzle and the heating bed. Gently pull the paper back and forth, while turning the corresponding screw at this position. The goal is the same as before 一 to adjust it so that the paper has resistance but can still move smoothly.
- Subsequently, according to the prompts on the touch screen, click "Next", and the print head will move to the next position. Please repeat the same operation until all four corners are adjusted. After completion, click "Finish / Done" on the screen.
- Move the print head to the center of the heated bed and set the Z-axis to zero.
- At this time, also place a piece of paper between the nozzle and the hot bed. Then enter the printer menu and find the "Z-Offset" or "Nozzle Height" setting. On this interface, use the up and down buttons on the screen to move the print head up and down in small increments. While making fine adjustments to the height, pull the paper back and forth until the optimal distance between the nozzle and the hot bed is achieved.
- After confirming this status, save the current settings on the touch screen. The printer may automatically restart to save the new Z-axis offset parameters.
- Finally, you need to run the automatic bed leveling or bad probing function.
- The print head will, in coordination with the leveling sensor, automatically move to multiple positions on the print pad. The probe will measure the distance from the nozzle to the print pad.
- All measured data will be saved as a two-dimensional matrix of numbers (be known as “bad mesh”), which is used to describe the overall flatness of the hot bed relative to the nozzle.
- During the printing process, the printer will adjust the Z-axis height in real time based on this grid data. This can compensate for the minor unevenness on the hot bed and ensure the stability of the first layer printing.
Inspection and Fine-Tuning After Adjusting the Hot Bed
- After completing the leveling process, you need to check the result by printing a leveling test file.
- Through the Internet, you can search for many related files. Just choose any one and print it out.
- Before printing, you need to clean the print bed in an appropriate way, usually isopropyl acetone is sufficient. For detailed information, please refer to our blog: How to Clean 3D Printer Bed.
- After printing, you can verify the result using the previously introduced Symptoms of an Unlevel Hot Bed on 3D Printer.
- Most 3D printers without leveling sensors can be leveled manually. However, if print quality remains unsatisfactory even after leveling, you may need to install a leveling sensor on your printer for compensation. You can also try to perform the printing operation only on the parts that have already been leveled.
- Some 3D printers support the baby stepping function (also known as Z-baby stepping or Live Z adjustment). If the first-layer print quality remains unsatisfactory after performing bed leveling, you can use this feature to make real-time Z-axis adjustments during printing for fine-tuning.
FAQs about Raising Hot Bed Manually on 3D Printer
1. Is it possible to manually raise the bed when it is still hot?
We do not recommend performing this operation when the hot bed is still very hot. This could cause burns. The adjustment effect might also be affected. Please wait for the temperature to drop below 40℃ (a slightly warm touch) before proceeding, or at least wait for 30 minutes of cooling time. Safety is of the utmost importance.
2. Does frequently needing to manually raise the heated bed indicate a problem with the printer?
Generally speaking, leveling the hot bed only needs to be done during regular maintenance. However, if you need to make frequent adjustments, this might indicate that there is a problem with your printer. You can conduct the corresponding check based on the following situations:
- Requires weekly manual adjustment → Check Z-axis motor current and lead screw wear.
- Consistently tilts in one direction → Check frame squareness and rod/rail parallelism.
- The leveling data cannot be maintained → Check spring tension and nut tightness.
Summary
Manually raising the hot bed on a 3D printer can help us achieve better printing quality. You might feel a little worried when you make your first attempt. But don't lose heart. The process of manually leveling is not complicated. Make more attempts and be more patient, you will achieve the ideal 3D printing result.
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