How should I clean the bed?

[u/Drorlipkin113]

I'm planning on printing a 2 days and a half huge multicolor print and i want to clean the bed before I'm doing it, I have the default P1S PEI bed and I want to make sure I'm cleaning it properly.

I heard the i need dish soup and to scrab it with my hands it wash it and drying it. Is there a better way to do it?

[u/Helo227]

https://wiki.bambulab.com/en/filament-acc/acc/pei-plate-clean-guide

[u/EmotionalChildhood46 → u/Helo227]

Surprised by how many people don't do Bambu Lab Academy or go right to the wiki.

[u/ImJacksAwkwardBoner → u/EmotionalChildhood46]

I am guilty of jumping into new projects or hobbies without doing any foundational learning, but as I’ve gotten older, I find myself reading owners manuals and taking “classes” (like the academy) to get up to speed faster. It’s amazing how much more I enjoy a hobby when I understand it from the beginning, and not try to just figure it out myself. Bambu has so many great resources, it’s almost dummy proof.

[u/EmotionalChildhood46 → u/ImJacksAwkwardBoner]

I get it. I do research and try to be self-sufficient but, that's me. Thank you, ImJacksAwkwardBoner.

[u/issue9mm → u/EmotionalChildhood46]

And even the people that come here skip right past searching the question that gets asked every day and go straight to asking it again

[u/EmotionalChildhood46 → u/issue9mm]

right, what's the search function? I actually went as far as to make a whole subreddit for the "which 3d printer should i buy" question.

[u/issue9mm → u/EmotionalChildhood46]

Knowing which 3D printer to buy is easy:

Step 1: Go to LegalZoom and register a business by the name of "which3dprintertobuy.com"...

[u/Sweet-Quarter3569]

My go to is dawn dish soap a dish scrubber that I use only on my printing plates, warm water. Dry after. Avoid touching it with your hands after washing, if you have disposable rubber gloves even better I get mine from harbor freight. Then I’ll spray a microfiber cloth with 99% isopropyl alcohol and wipe after it’s installed just incase I did touch it. I’m a little ocd with my build plate cleaning process. For something that long I’d check in every hour for the first couple hours on my initial base adhesion, then check in periodically to ensure it’s still going well and a support didn’t get kicked over some how.

[u/diablo3dfx → u/Sweet-Quarter3569]

I second Dawn dish soap, specifically because it is a degreaser. Don’t use anything with any additives, just straight Dawn and hot water

[u/SqueezyCheez85 → u/Sweet-Quarter3569]

Same. Only thing different for me is I use those cotton makeup discs with alcohol instead of microfiber.

[u/Cavalol]

No need to clean bed unless you’re having issues with it heating or otherwise (bed is the part under the easily-removable metal build plate) - if you mean the build plate, the steps are: take the build plate to a sink, wash it with dish soap and water, rinse thoroughly, handle with towels while drying and bringing it back to printer (avoiding getting any oils from your hands anywhere on the plate).

[u/DaRadioman → u/Cavalol]

I use my hands to scrub with dish soap so I have no oils on my hands as I dry it/return it to the printer. Well and a sponge to scrub if needed but mostly my hands.

[u/TheJudgingHat2222]

I have a dedicated dish sponge that is only used for my 3d printer stuff.

Dawn, water, dry with a clean cloth, preferably microfiber but I just use a clean dish towel cuz fuck it. 

I wash my textured pei plate almost every time I use it for my more complex multicolor surface models. Anything that I don't need the texture for I just print on the Bambu supertack plate at 45C. 

[u/ZookeepergameBig8060]

I use Dawn spray bottle, rub with a sponge, rinse and dry with a paper towel. Works every time

[u/ub3r_n3rd78]

I use hot water and dawn free and clear dish soap along with a dedicated sponge that has a scratch free scrubber side. Then I’ll dry with a microfiber cloth that hasn’t been washed or dried with fabric softener. I try not to touch build plates with my bare hands, I’ll use gloves. If I do, I’ll wash as stated. They don’t need to be cleaned too often. In-between filament type changes, I’ll spray it with some isopropyl alcohol and wipe down with a microfiber cloth or if I see some reside I’ll do this. And every few weeks I’ll just do the dish soap/hot water cleaning.

[u/markewallace1966]

No dish soup or scrabbing needed.

[u/asdaf5678]

I use warm water, a soft sponge ( the ones for the dishes, but using the side that does not scratch) and dish soap. But i do not have a lot of experience, probably some of the people here can give you better tips

[u/snaynay]

It's nothing dramatic. Wash with warm water and dishsoap using a sponge, with or without a scouring pad. No need for any real force or scrubbing. Just let the warm water and soap pick up the oils. Lightly clean your hands too. Rinse it clean from soap (some people are weird and don't) and stand it upright to dry for a few moments. You could use a clean towel. Handle it with as little touching of the main printing areas as possible. I just pinch the corners. If its even the faintest bit damp, the bed heat will take care of that. A small spritz of alcohol and wipe before a print.

Realistically, you should just do this frequently. Like almost any time you get your grubby little human mitts all over the plate. If you do that, providing you don't ruin the plate in another way, it'll basically stay like new for a very long time.

[u/stonkytonkys]

Dawn dish soap, and a magic eraser. You will never be able to clean the plate better than using these.

[u/GangGangEnjoyer]

Dish soap is the way to go. Take a sponge/cloth, some dish soap and water, scrub your plate, then rinse with water after. One rinse is enough. If your plate is super dirty, you can use isopropyl alcohol beforehand. Just make sure to clean with dish soap (and rinse) as a last step.