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A few questions here after I've made a start doing some cleaning up work and the like.
Interestingly I almost feel like I'm going to get through more IPA than I do paper towels right now. Though have to say my dump box isn't as big today as it was yesterday so already making a few improvements/refinements to the process.


1) When you wash with IPA how many models/how much/how often do you change the IPA? Do you change after every single build plate comes out; or after a few or after it reaches a certain level of cloudy/murky or another property? Just trying to judge how often should work before one is sacrificing cleaning quality, whilst at the same time not simply swapping over so often that its inefficient and wasteful of the IPA

2) What tools do you use to help clean besides swirling the model in the solution. I've read that paint brushes are popular for wiping corners (synthetic I assume since natural hair are both expensive and also tend to damage in IPA) and that worn toothbrushers are too rough for uncured reasin.

3) How do you judge when the model is washed clean, esp when feeling the model with gloves on as opposed to bare fingers?

I use a couple of food storage containers that came with internal basket things. I think there are also things called pickle containers with a similar setup. They allow the model to be properly.swooshed through the cleaning liquid.



I tend to use the liquid until.it gets pretty cloudy. I think I used 2l of IPA to one of resin. I use water washable stuff now,.so I haven't kept a detailed track of usage.

Gloves will still help find tacky surfaces if you're careful as the glove will stick a bit. Also you can see differences in shine between clean and not clean surfaces.

Keep using the IPA until it stops working properly. I use two containers - an airtight jar to store my 'working' IPA, which I decant from into an old ice cream container to wash parts. Then back into the jar when I'm done. While it's sitting in between uses, the much from previous washes sinks to the bottom of the jar, so if you pour carefully into the second container you can leave most of it in the jar.

So far as the actual washing - I just drop the parts in, let them sit for a minute, and then give them a good swish. Haven't needed a brush or anything so far. As Flinty said, you can see the difference when it's all washed off.

Typical set up has 2 containers - one old IPA and one fresh IPA. A lot of people like to label the cap instead of assigning each pots to each function.

My standards are: if the clean pot gets dirty at a significantly greater rate, then that means that the IPA in the old pot has given out. I switch the cap (so fresh IPA container gets the 'old IPA' cap) and refill the washed old cup with fresh IPA. But this labelling is pretty much overkill because you can pretty much tell which is the old one and which is the fresh one.

Flinty I've got the same pickle containers off Amazon - great things!


Thanks for the feedback all. Sounds like IPA is going to be a regular order for me!

Yeah, you'll go through IPA. A 2-bucket system is practically "standard," I think. Denatured alcohol also works well, and may be easier/cheaper to come by in some areas.

I'm pretty new to this too, so am only using one container to wash. After 3-4 prints, I let it sit out in the sun (lid on!) until all the resin that's been washed off cures and settles to the bottom. Then I run it through a coffee filter to get all the particulate out and return it to the bottle. Clean out the container, put the IPA back in (with a little more to top it off), and you're ready to go. I expect after a while it won't be effective anymore, but then I'll just get some more.

I don't use a brush or anything to clean, just swishing it seems to work just fine. The important thing is the post-print cure. Some people have a cure station, but I just set it out in the sun for a few minutes, depending on the weather. And like others have said, you can kind of tell by looking at it when it's clean. Takes a few times to learn, but you get it pretty quickly.

I fill an ultrasonic cleaner with water, then place a ziploc bag with alcohol and my models in it and run for 10m. Then I remove, scrub with a toothbrush and rinse.

Yep, the two-bin process for me. The first rinse I keep using until I start to see the second rinse getting a bit cloudy, then make the second rinse bin the first rinse bin and clean out the dirty one, refill and make that the second rinse bin. I get A LOT of mileage out of the IPA this way.

Also, I have totally switched over to the Siraya Tech Simple Smoky Black resin (I love this stuff!!) that claims it only needs 15% IPA to clean. I think that is a bit low, but I add it some normal white or grey resin so it is no longer translucent (I want the prints opaque), so might lose a tad of the '15%' claim, but I can still dilute the IPA quite a bit (maybe 50%) and the process above cleans them perfectly.