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DIY heat bed for PLA beta

Discussion in 'Mods and Upgrades' started by Jaeson Cardiff, Sep 6, 2014.

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  1. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Alright. I've been playing around with the idea of a bed upgrade and rather than risk ordering one and potentially waiting around for the second coming, I figured I will try to do a DIY upgrade.

    I've competed printing all of the parts we need for our project (mostly) so now I can play around and see what I can come up with.

    I could build a board from scratch using parts from eBay and other useful sites but once again in relying on others to provide the parts. I then drew up some plans to run a small hydronic coil fed by a small electric boiler and a micro circulation pump but it was too bulky.

    Finally, Ive settled on a premade heating pad for terraiums. I'll need to modify it to boost the limit and yes its risky. Nothing of worth comes without risk. The stock pads run at around 125 - 130F so I don't need to push the limit much higher judging by what I'm reading on other threads.

    I'll give it a go. Watch for the plume of smoke to the north.

    Good times.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
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  2. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    So I'm a bit curious to see what applying some adhesive to the bed, combined with a bed temp just shy of 50C does to the warping associated with larger prints. I picked up a terrarium UTH today for $30. I'm doing this more for shits n giggles at this point.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
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  3. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Well.... that amounted to a whole lot of nothing. I've ordered the MK1 heatbed on Ebay which by all accounts should work just fine.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
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  4. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Hold the boat! Once again for poops n giggles I tried to mess around with the terrarium UTH. I dissected the pad and shortened the nichrome wire. Seems to be working. No control but at least it wasn't a compete waste. I'm using a Raspberry pi with a sensor to monitor the heat curve.

    [​IMG]

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
  5. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    Interesting stuff. How hot can it get? 130F?
     
  6. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Thanks. I didn't want to go that high due to the casing. I wasn't sure what temp it would start to melt at. I capped it at about 100 F (+/- 5°). I sealed it up with high temp silicone. I'll give it a try tonight and see what happens. Cheers.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
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  7. Soupaboy

    Soupaboy Active Member

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    Well i have a few snakes using those and i can assure you that wont cut it. it will take at least 30min to get to full heat and it will not be very hot.
     
  8. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Right! I agree. The purpose of this thread was to explore the oddball ideas that rattle around and see what the outcome is. The extremely small gauge of nichrome wire that's used can produce extremely high temperatures (by removing about half of the nichrome wire from the UTH) if you don't mind waiting for an hour or so. The issue with using this falls on the mat (vinyl sheeting) that's not able to withstand the heat. It's capable (only by a narrow margin) of being suitable for PLA if you're having minor warping issues.

    I'm going to continue to explore other simple DIY solutions.

    Cheers mate.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
    #8 Jaeson Cardiff, Sep 10, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 10, 2014
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  9. Soupaboy

    Soupaboy Active Member

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    you are doing exactly what the printer was designed for. Tinkering and putting new ideas into. If you want to to it then DO IT as I think I can speak for everyone when I say that the forum loves creative ideas. I never thought of using my Heated beds for this job and its a great idea. It can certainly help with pla issues with first layers.

    The best bit is that your idea can spark someones else's idea and they could make something even weirder! ;)

    Keep up updated on your projects.
     
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  10. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    just out of curiosity, the thermistor and heatbed for the r1 upgrade should work the same as adding an mk1 and a 100k thermistor, correct?

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
  11. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    as long as the mk1 runs on 12v otherwise you'd need a relay.

    The 100k thermistor will work as long as you specify the right table.
     
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  12. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    cool. thanks Mike.

    CleanO2 Carbon Capture Tech
     
  13. Jaeson Cardiff

    Jaeson Cardiff Active Member

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    Finished the upgrade using a Reprap heat plate (12V) and a 100K thermistor. Works like a charm. Saying goodbye to adhesives. I'd post a pic but I'm in the process of rebuilding my S4 and the camera on my loaner (i) phone sucks.
     
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  14. jim3Dbot

    jim3Dbot Active Member

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    "you are doing exactly what the printer was designed for. Tinkering and putting new ideas into. If you want to to it then DO IT as I think I can speak for everyone when I say that the forum loves creative ideas". These are the type of people that make the World Go Around, way to think. Outta the Box, Bro...........Jimmy
     
  15. WheresWaldo

    WheresWaldo Volunteer ( ͠° ͟ʖ ͡°)
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    @jim3Dbot You must have been tired when you brought this thread back from the dead.
     
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