Cleaning of your hot end... ever do it?

[aWsomeABE]

Has anyone here ever cleaned their hot end? I'm curious as to which method(s) you used. Can it be done, if so how? Is Acetone safe to use on it?

[RobH2]

Here's a little quote from user 'jimc'

i switch plastics alot and i do have to clean out my hot end and nozzle often. if you have never cleaned it then im sure your due. before you do anything, pull the nozzle and brass tube off the machine and soak it in a little paint stripper. the methylene chloride will dissolve, pla, pet and abs. basically everything except nylon. let it sit a few hours then rinse, blow out, run a pipe cleaner through the tube, etc. Use zip-strip from Home Depot.

[Roxy]

I have had my nozzle plug up and the only way to clean it is by fully disassembling it and using a small drill bit. I never have a problem going from PLA and switching to ABS. It is the ABS to PLA direction that is dangerous for me. For some reason, it seems a little bit of ABS plastic stays in the nozzle and eventually it comes loose and plugs the nozzle at lower temperature. Some times I can turn the heat up and get it out. But always the print is destroyed.

[RobH2]

Roxy, I ask because I've never used a drill bit on my nozzle. Do you use the back end of the bit and just push it in a hot end? I'd be afraid that by using the sharp end that you might begin to gouge the inside wall of your tiny hole. What's your experience?

[beerdart]

Typically micro drill do not have a back end as it would not clamp in a normal chuck. I have used micro drills and welding tip cleaners.

[RobH2]

So, no damage issues and great results eh? Good to hear. I'll order something to have on hand. I was just afraid I'd damage that relatively soft brass (or whatever alloy it is).

[MysteryAlabaster]

I used a paper clip when we had out nozzle clog a week ago.


I have taken apart the hot end of a Rep 2 to clean it before. It's pretty simple as long as you know how to take it apart and re-assemble it.

[RobH2]

I guess I'm being too cautious then. See, my reservation about a paper clip might have been that they cut them from rolls when manufactured and a tiny bit of metal gets extruded or pushed sideways leaving a little burr. I'd be afraid that that burr would/could scratch the inside of the hole and begin to cause problems. Maybe I need to be a bit less anal...lol...

But yes, that's the good thing about building your printer instead of just buying one assembled, you know how to take things part from the get-go. It's not hard for me to pull the hotend off for a soaking.

[MysteryAlabaster]

I bought mine assembled and it just took like five breaks where I had to take various parts off and back on for me to learn the ins and outs of my printer.
I could assemble one from scratch at this point, I think.

[jimc]

i cleaned my hot end the other day and am kicking myself for not taking a pic of this but i soaked it as usually in my paint stripper bucket. it loosened all the plastic in the nozzle and brass tube as usual but this time i didnt let it sit too long and i was able to actually pull the plastic out of the tube in one piece. it was kinda like a plastic straw lining the brass. i set this on the work bench and let it harden back up a bit then i took my xacto knife and sliced the end off. in the cross section you could actually see the rainbow layers of each color i had printed with over the past 3 weeks or so. this was the first actual hard evidence i found that many plastics dont intermix welll and each time you switch you are left with a thin film that stays in there cooking and it gets harder and harder making the hot end tighter.