Troubleshooting - Ultimaker 3 Installation And User Manual

Troubleshooting

In this chapter the most common issues that can occur on an Ultimaker 3 are described. For a complete description of each
issue and information on how to troubleshoot them, please take a look at the Ultimaker website.
Material is not extruding from the print head
In case of a long unattended print job where material runs out or material gets jammed, the print core may run for a long
time without any material flow. As a consequence the material in the hot end may degrade and cause clogs in the print
core. Especially for PVA there is a higher chance of degrading material when the print core is not cleaned regularly.
When material gets clogged, the print core must be cleaned. Therefore the cleaning method as described on page 38 can
be used. Please note that the following things are important and may be different from the regular procedure when print
core is clogged:
• Remove the bowden tube from the print head after the print core has heated completely.
• Repeat the hot pull process until no burned material is pulled out and the tip of the material has a smooth shape.
• Flush some material through the nozzle and apply a cold pull to confirm that the nozzle is clean.
• Clean an AA print core always with the same material as was used for printing.
• Clean a BB print core (PVA) always with PLA material.
Print not sticking to the build plate
When you experience problems with the adhesion of a print to the build plate, the following things can be done:
• Ensure that the correct material settings and adhesion method were used (see chapter 5 Operation).
• Re-calibrate the build plate manually and then do the active leveling (see chapter 5 Operation).
• Check the Cura settings that were used and try printing with one of the default Cura profiles.
Material is not forwarded by the feeder
There are a few things that can cause material to not be forwarded by the feeder when it is being loaded or while printing.
The following things can cause this behavior:
• Material is not inserted far enough into the feeder while loading.
• Material is ground down by the feeder. Take a look at this page for more information.
• The feeder tension is too low.
Print core not recognized
If a print core is not recognized by the Ultimaker 3, the printer will inform you about this. The main reason for this are dirty
contact points on the chip at the back side of the print core. When this happens, clean the contact points with a cotton swab
and some alcohol.
41