PEI Bubbles

I’ve got bubbles.


I know there’s a lot out there on the topic, but everything I’ve seen is what’s causing them. I haven’t found anything on how to fix the issue. I’ve tried using a squeegee to press them out, but it doesn’t work. Even if I get them flattened out they just pop right back up again, and it’s worse when I heat up the bed. Any suggestions?

The printer isn’t that old. Is this something that should just be replaced?

FWIW, I’ve tried taking a sturdy sharp needle or dissecting probe and making a small hole in the bubbles, then pressing the trapped gas out of them.

That seems to help, for a while, but they still seem to come back. So far the small needle-hole doesn’t seem to affect prints, and I suspect most of them close up after a few heat/cool cycles, perhaps explaining why they come back.

Or it may be the adhesive just works less well after sitting in a bubble for a while. Or that the PEI, once stretched, doesn’t shrink back to being flat again.

Whatever – it’s far from perfect, but what do you have to lose? If you try it, let us know how it goes.

That’s far enough gone you are going to want to pull the sheet off using the “stick it in the freezer for a few hours” method then remove the old adhesive with a citrus based remover like goof off, being very careful to keep it away from the heater side. Then clean the glass really well with glass cleaner and then a rinse of isopropyl alcohol and apply a new sheet of 3m 456mp? Adhesive ( double check that model number from the pei sheet thread) then stick the pei back on.

Also if it’s under warranty call Lulzbot.