It's easy to keep your Glowforge Craft Series. With just a few household items, you can keep your printer in tip-top condition, so you can create for years to come.
Here's how to clean your Glowforge Craft Series Laser.
Always turn your Glowforge Craft Series Laser off by disconnecting from power at the outlet before cleaning or moving.
Laser Rails
If the rails get dirty, you’ll experience misaligned prints and double images.
- You should clean the rails every ten hours of printing, but you may need to clean them more often depending on what you're printing.
- Wipe down the silver laser rails with a lint-free cloth and some isopropyl alcohol. We recommend using 90% or higher isopropyl alcohol.
- Be sure to clean all around the rail as you go - don't forget the underside of the rails!
- Also clean the areas on the magnetic dock where the rails slide through. Buildup can occur on each side of the bushings.
- Be sure the rails are completely dry before you get back to printing.
Printer Floor and Cutting Tray
As you craft, bits of material can accumulate on the printer floor and the cutting tray. You should regularly remove any buildup — it can skew your designs by propping up material. Buildup can also cause elevated fire risk; see the Glowforge Craft Series Laser Safety article for more information.
To remove the cutting tray, lift it up using the tabs on the right and left sides of the tray, and pull it out. Wipe the surface of the cutting tray using a cleaning wipe (such as a Lysol wipe or similar). Use a cotton swab to gently remove any bits that have gotten caught in the metal grid.
With the cutting tray removed, remove, sweep, or vacuum out any tiny remains of past projects that have fallen onto the printer floor. Wipe away any remaining bits with a cleaning wipe.
Diffuser and Lid Camera Lens
If you notice buildup on the diffuser, or if your camera images are dark, gently use a lens cleaning wipe (such as a Zeiss lens wipe) to wipe it. Take care not to apply excess pressure to the diffuser when cleaning.
You can also use a lens cleaning wipe to remove any dust and buildup from the lid camera lens.
Air Assist Fan
Check out this page for instructions on cleaning the Air Assist fan in the laser head of your Glowforge Craft Series Laser.