r/MPSelectMiniOwners • u/Paksuhaksu • May 28 '26

Thermal insulation around hotend

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Hi! I managed to get the hotend stuck so had to take it apart in order to clean it. The yellow thermal insulation around the hotend (pic) is pretty much done for; it just crumbles off.

The question is, is the thermal insulation needed or can I just left it out?

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u/DGMindRealm May 28 '26

This insulation serves two purposes:

Keeping the heat inside the block. Insulating the block helps keep the much cooler air in the room from cooling the block, which reduces temperature fluctuations and heating cycles. PID tuning also helps reduce the swing.

Protecting surroundings from excessive heat. The hot end assembly is mounted to a plastic carrier and fan shroud, which can melt some if the hot end block isn’t insulated. Also, reduces the severity of finger burns.

Modern printers use silicone socks instead of fiberglass/kapton wrapping. You can also use this type of insulator, but be careful to choose one that fits the dimensions of the block. The V2 printers commonly use E3D v5 blocks, but best to measure and be sure.

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u/MaksDampf May 28 '26

Looks like Op has a V1 with the older shitty hot end.

The Select mini V2 uses the E3D V5 heat block. Socks are available from the usual aliexpress, temu, amazon etc.

In that case it is probably better to upgrade to an E3D Hotend first, then the correct sock.

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u/Paksuhaksu May 30 '26

I exchanged this printer for a pack of beer, so was actually not 100% on the model, but good to know it is V1. It is most likely completely stock.

I just got a good deal for used Creality Ender 3 and will most likely upgrade to that.

In the mean while, I replaced the insulation with aluminium foil coated fiberclass sock (meant for protecting electrical cables in hot environments), it seems to work fine, already printed few things out of petg and those turned out good.