<p>If you do not properly ventilate the enclosure, the enclosure could get too hot and doesn't cool the hotend properly anymore, this can result in unsufficiently cooling for the filament in the heatbreak which will result in blockage as a result of heat creep.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-07-16T21:50:47.683Z
P.S. I have had this happen on an Ultimaker 3E where I put a towel over the top. Heat creep stopped the printing....
0scar
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-07-16T13:46:10.410Z
2024-07-16T13:46:10.410Z
0scar
<p>Yes, you should especially if you have problems with bed adhesion, layer delamination, and such. Ambient temperature has a surprisingly strong effect on adhesion, a drop by 4 °C typical for change from day to night can totally detach your print from the print bed.</p>
<p>It does depend on the filament, bed type, and the actual temperatures (26-&gt;22 °C shouldn't hurt; 22-&gt;18 °C can be disastrous), the printer, the print, and other factors so that you can start without, but the moment bed adhesion or layer adhesion becomes a problem, this should be the first thing to do.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-07-15T14:22:20.290Z
so an ambient temperature of ~2-4°C is not an issue as long as the temperature during a print does not vary too much?
JoSSte
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-07-15T19:42:08.460Z
Nope. The filament cools so quickly it fails to stick to the table or filament below and your print fails. If you *start* with too low ambient temp your print will fail immediately, trivial to spot. If it drops mid-print you lose hours of work.
SF.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-07-15T13:51:20.223Z
2024-07-15T14:11:54.663Z
2024-07-15T14:11:54.663Z
SF.
<p>I currently have my 3D printer in my office - but I am not very happy about the smells so I have considered moving it to my unheated workshop. It is cool all summer, and frost-free in winter (I live in Denmark - we have very varied temperatures in winter, rarely in the double digits).</p>
<p>Should I consider insulating it so that there is less heat dissipation in winter? Or, just have some insulation ready in case it has issues? I am asking because a proper insulated case will be different in design than an uninsulated one.</p>
<p>I am aware that putting the printer in a workshop with wood dust and so on is not ideal. I might put it in another room with basically the same, but less dusty.</p>
<p>I am also considering adding a webcam and temperature sensor so I can get alerted if something should crop up - I assume that rockwool is sufficient to avoid fire issues...</p>

<enclosure>
What issues could I face if I was to insulate my 3D printer enclosure?
JoSSte
# What issues could I face if I was to insulate my 3D printer enclosure?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-07-15)

I currently have my 3D printer in my office - but I am not very happy about the smells so I have considered moving it to my unheated workshop. It is cool all summer, and frost-free in winter (I live in Denmark - we have very varied temperatures in winter, rarely in the double digits).

Should I consider insulating it so that there is less heat dissipation in winter? Or, just have some insulation ready in case it has issues? I am asking because a proper insulated case will be different in design than an uninsulated one.

I am aware that putting the printer in a workshop with wood dust and so on is not ideal. I might put it in another room with basically the same, but less dusty.

I am also considering adding a webcam and temperature sensor so I can get alerted if something should crop up - I assume that rockwool is sufficient to avoid fire issues...

**Tags:** enclosure


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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2024-07-16. Score: 2

If you do not properly ventilate the enclosure, the enclosure could get too hot and doesn't cool the hotend properly anymore, this can result in unsufficiently cooling for the filament in the heatbreak which will result in blockage as a result of heat creep.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: P.S. I have had this happen on an Ultimaker 3E where I put a towel over the top. Heat creep stopped the printing....  

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### Answer by username_2 on 2024-07-15. Score: 0

Yes, you should especially if you have problems with bed adhesion, layer delamination, and such. Ambient temperature has a surprisingly strong effect on adhesion, a drop by 4 °C typical for change from day to night can totally detach your print from the print bed.

It does depend on the filament, bed type, and the actual temperatures (26->22 °C shouldn't hurt; 22->18 °C can be disastrous), the printer, the print, and other factors so that you can start without, but the moment bed adhesion or layer adhesion becomes a problem, this should be the first thing to do.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: so an ambient temperature of ~2-4°C is not an issue as long as the temperature during a print does not vary too much?  
> **username_2**: Nope. The filament cools so quickly it fails to stick to the table or filament below and your print fails. If you *start* with too low ambient temp your print will fail immediately, trivial to spot. If it drops mid-print you lose hours of work.  

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