<p>I think you'll get weird print artifacts and strange surface errors.</p>
<p>The fan is not balanced and will buzz.  This added vibration could be seen as an effect in the finish.</p>
<p>Personally I'd suggest patience and wait for the replacement to arrive before continuing.  Or scavenge a suitable fan from something else in the meantime.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T21:08:48.590Z
I just ordered a fan for the Ender 3 from Amazon, but it is practically identical the the one on my printer. It's coming tomorrow, so hopefully it will work.
F Tyrrell
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T22:32:35.237Z
@FTyrrell if this is a common problem, consider having a spare in stock.  I have a paper box filled with fans of various ages and specs, though the 240V AC metal bladed 125 mm one is waiting for just the Right Project, which may be a vegetable slicer :))
Criggie
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T22:49:41.130Z
Luckily, this isn't a common problem. I had everything taken apart, and I was testing the fan to see if it was working well. I dropped it, and the blades hit the edge of my printer. Hopefully this won't happen again. You should definitely make that vegetable slicer though!
F Tyrrell
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T18:50:51.820Z
2022-05-05T18:50:51.820Z
Criggie
<p>If the fan is the part cooling fan, you'll have reduced cooling on the part as it is printed. This isn't necessarily going to be a problem, although you may have irregularities in the print surface.</p>
<p>If the fan is the heat sink cooling fan, reduced cooling will be problematic. This could result in heat creep and clogging of the hot end.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T00:19:00.603Z
It is, unfortunately, the heat sink cooling fan. Is there any way to temporarily get it to work decently? I only have about 4 hours of printing left to do.
F Tyrrell
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T16:30:41.403Z
It will probably work, but you need to watch for jams caused by heat creep, and if it happens, stop and wait for the replacement fan.
user10489
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-04T23:38:11.243Z
2022-05-04T23:38:11.243Z
fred_dot_u
<p>As long as your ambient temperature is not excessive and you're not using a very high bed temperature, you should be fine.</p>
<p>With insufficient cooling, there is a risk of heat creep - that is, of the heat from the melt zone working its way up to the area where the filament is supposed to be solid, potentially causing jams if it deforms and catches in crevices there. However, the hotend is made to operate in temperatures far above normal room temperature, e.g. in non-air-conditioned spaces, in enclosed chambers for printing ABS, etc.</p>
<p>Just keep the space you're printing in cool and go on printing while you wait for a new fan to arrive. Maybe reduce your bed temperature a bit if you usually use temperatures on the high end (over 50°C).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T00:44:43.957Z
2022-05-05T00:44:43.957Z
R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE
<p>I recently broke the cooling fan on my Voxelab Aquila while doing some maintenance, and I'm in the middle of a multi piece print that I would like to finish soon. I found the fan replacement I need, but it's not going to arrive for over a week. I was wondering if it would be ok to print a few things with the broken fan, or if that would be bad for the motor or anything else.
<a href="https://i.sstatic.net/8wC69.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/8wC69.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/C8Kvm.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/C8Kvm.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T06:54:23.767Z
Is there some reason you cannot get it quicker than a week? That looks like two broken vanes, it's going to make something vibrate somewhere if nothing else.
Kilisi
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T13:03:15.783Z
@Kilisi It does make it vibrate a lot, and it's really loud. I can't find **only** the fan to buy anywhere, except for on the Voxelab website. There is a set of the print cooling fan and the heat sink cooling fan on Amazon that will come tomorrow, but they're for the Ender 3. They look identical to what I have, but I want to make sure they will still work for my Aquila.
F Tyrrell
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T13:33:39.210Z
Fans are much the same if the currents match. Haven't done it with a printer but used different fans a few times on other machines for temporary or in some cases permanent fixes. Vibration sucks badly on machines with fragile wiring and connections
Kilisi
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-05T17:35:56.507Z
If you can get the specializations on the fan, size, voltage, air flow, it;s probably a standard fan that you could get quickly.  You would need to wire it however.
Perry Webb
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-09T22:30:05.193Z
The new fan works in case anyone was wondering!
F Tyrrell
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-10T12:09:56.313Z
Thats good to hear, have fun printing :-)
Kilisi
<print-fan>
Can I Print With a Fan Missing 3 Blades?
F Tyrrell
# Can I Print With a Fan Missing 3 Blades?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-05-04)

I recently broke the cooling fan on my Voxelab Aquila while doing some maintenance, and I'm in the middle of a multi piece print that I would like to finish soon. I found the fan replacement I need, but it's not going to arrive for over a week. I was wondering if it would be ok to print a few things with the broken fan, or if that would be bad for the motor or anything else.
[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/8wC69.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/8wC69.jpg)[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/C8Kvm.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/C8Kvm.jpg)

**Tags:** print-fan

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Is there some reason you cannot get it quicker than a week? That looks like two broken vanes, it's going to make something vibrate somewhere if nothing else.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 It does make it vibrate a lot, and it's really loud. I can't find **only** the fan to buy anywhere, except for on the Voxelab website. There is a set of the print cooling fan and the heat sink cooling fan on Amazon that will come tomorrow, but they're for the Ender 3. They look identical to what I have, but I want to make sure they will still work for my Aquila.  
> **username_1**: Fans are much the same if the currents match. Haven't done it with a printer but used different fans a few times on other machines for temporary or in some cases permanent fixes. Vibration sucks badly on machines with fragile wiring and connections  
> **username_2**: If you can get the specializations on the fan, size, voltage, air flow, it;s probably a standard fan that you could get quickly.  You would need to wire it however.  
> **username_0**: The new fan works in case anyone was wondering!  
> **username_1**: Thats good to hear, have fun printing :-)  

---

## 3 answers

### Answer by username_6 on 2022-05-05. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

As long as your ambient temperature is not excessive and you're not using a very high bed temperature, you should be fine.

With insufficient cooling, there is a risk of heat creep - that is, of the heat from the melt zone working its way up to the area where the filament is supposed to be solid, potentially causing jams if it deforms and catches in crevices there. However, the hotend is made to operate in temperatures far above normal room temperature, e.g. in non-air-conditioned spaces, in enclosed chambers for printing ABS, etc.

Just keep the space you're printing in cool and go on printing while you wait for a new fan to arrive. Maybe reduce your bed temperature a bit if you usually use temperatures on the high end (over 50°C).


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2022-05-05. Score: 2

I think you'll get weird print artifacts and strange surface errors.

The fan is not balanced and will buzz. This added vibration could be seen as an effect in the finish.

Personally I'd suggest patience and wait for the replacement to arrive before continuing. Or scavenge a suitable fan from something else in the meantime.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I just ordered a fan for the Ender 3 from Amazon, but it is practically identical the the one on my printer. It's coming tomorrow, so hopefully it will work.  
> **username_3**: @username_0 if this is a common problem, consider having a spare in stock.  I have a paper box filled with fans of various ages and specs, though the 240V AC metal bladed 125 mm one is waiting for just the Right Project, which may be a vegetable slicer :))  
> **username_0**: Luckily, this isn't a common problem. I had everything taken apart, and I was testing the fan to see if it was working well. I dropped it, and the blades hit the edge of my printer. Hopefully this won't happen again. You should definitely make that vegetable slicer though!  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2022-05-04. Score: 2

If the fan is the part cooling fan, you'll have reduced cooling on the part as it is printed. This isn't necessarily going to be a problem, although you may have irregularities in the print surface.

If the fan is the heat sink cooling fan, reduced cooling will be problematic. This could result in heat creep and clogging of the hot end.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: It is, unfortunately, the heat sink cooling fan. Is there any way to temporarily get it to work decently? I only have about 4 hours of printing left to do.  
> **username_5**: It will probably work, but you need to watch for jams caused by heat creep, and if it happens, stop and wait for the replacement fan.  

---

