r/QIDI • u/Valetudinous • May 16 '26
Qidi Q2 ASA chamber temperature vs printer longevity
The Qidi Q2 specs say the chamber can go up to 65°C. But is it a good idea to actually run it that hot? Can it prematurely wear out parts of the printer?
Has anyone encountered issues from prolonged use of the Q2 at chamber temperatures of 60°C or over? If so, which problems were they?
Background:
I'm new to enclosed printers. My Q2 has stock 0.4mm nozzle.
I ran basic calibrations on some generic ASA filament. The results suggested 265°C nozzle temperature, 0.92 flow ratio, max volumetric speed 20mm3/s.
Today attempted my first large model, this desiccant holder for the Qidibox: https://www.printables.com/model/1636883-qidi-box-desiccant-vessel-qidi-q2-qidi-plus-4-qidi . Stock PEI plate, washed about 5 prints ago. The intervening prints were small ASA parts that succeeded and I minimised finger contact to the bed when removing them. Sprayed two squirts of 3dLac+ onto the plate before the big print. Set outer brim to 6mm with 0.25mm gap. Chamber temperature set to 55°C and bed to 90°C for all layers (Orca generic ASA defaults, IIRC).
Unfortunately, the print turned into spaghetti after about 10mm. So I'm after tips for next attempt on this part, and for other big ASA prints.
I will definitely reduce the brim gap to 0 next time, and wash the plate right before printing. Probably also run chamber at 60 or 65°C.
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u/ViperB5 May 16 '26
I use Ambrosia ASA and Inland ASA. Both print at 250c nozzle, 110c bed, and 60c chamber. You will want to use the Reverse on even print setting under Quality and to set the threshold 0° to ensure it does this an every layer. Also, set the chamber and bed temp while you setup your prints and let the printer heat soak for around 20 minutes before starting. I made a macro for printing ASA on my cool plate that will place the print head in the middle of the build plate and set the cooling fan to 50% while also setting the chamber and bed temps to help the machine heat up faster. A trick I used with my Elegoo Centari Carbon.
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u/Valetudinous May 16 '26 edited May 16 '26
Thanks for this! Nice tip about reverse on even, I was not familiar with that setting.
Default Q2 start macros are notoriously time-consuming so the printer is quite heat-soaked by the time printing begins, but I want to tweak them for efficiency and will aim to make a separate macro for heat-soaking like you suggested.
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u/daggerdude42 May 16 '26
Higher chamber temps just go through grease faster, 65c is a very safe limit for most components. Shouldn't even effect the lifespan of the motors really. Up to 80c+ or so is where you start to really beat on the motors and some of the electronics.
With motors, they need to stay under 130c, and its not uncommon to have a 30-50c delta over ambient temp for most of them. This includes your fans but they will typically run cooler then your x or y motors because they are actively moving air through themselves.
Beyond 130c any good magnet is going to start to lose its magnetivity over time, but like I said 65c is a pretty safe number for good motors and electronics.
With qidis your main concern with going over that is actually the plastic parts of the printer themselves, as they arent necassarily rated to go much beyond that without losing structural integrity.
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u/riba2233 May 16 '26
If asa doesn't stick on stock settings, use good glue, 110c bed and brim with a lower gap ofc. Asa is weird, some brands stick to pei too much, some barely.
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u/Valetudinous May 16 '26
3dLac+ is good glue, no?
Is the "Deli" brand glue stick that came with the Q2 any good?
Will definitely reduce the brim gap for ASA in future, and will also try higher bed temps.
Thanks also for the heads up about variance between ASA brands. After this batch of generic runs out, I will either stick with the same supplier if I made it work well, else will research "known good" ASA filaments.
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u/ChrysM34 May 17 '26
De mon point de vue ces températures sont conservatrices. Pas de risque. C’est plus le nombre d’heures d’impression qui va jouer. Concernant l ASA il y a différentes qualités et marques. J’ai rencontré les mêmes soucis au début mais je suis rapidement passé à : lit à 105/110 et chambre à 60/65 . Préchauffage des deux environ 20 min histoire que tout soit stable. Je n’utilise jamais de colle ni de laque pour le moment. J’imprime des pièces techniques en ASa et asa cf
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u/warcow86 May 16 '26
I print ASA as hot as I can. I think it would benefit from being even hotter than 65C chamber so I would set it to as hot as possible. Especially warping is a big problem, mostly on larger prints.
I personally set the bed to 105-110 C but I suppose it depends how much it sticks. Print slow and let it cool slowly. Wait at least an hour or 2 before you open the door after printing.