Removing test print from magnetic flexible paper coated build plate

Question

I have a Monoprice MP10 with magnetic flexible paper coated build plate and I have just tried printing bed level test which is, of necessity, very thin on the build plate.

Watching the item print, I saw that the bed level was obviously way way off at the back left corner and down the left side. I was printing with PLA. There was no point in letting the print continue so I stopped it, let the build plate cool down and tried to remove the print.

The bottom line and right hand side came off cleanly but the top left corner and all down the left side stuck firmly. As it was so thin a layer there is no chance of getting something underneath an edge without damaging the paper surface. I tried acetone but this had no effect other than turning the surface white and thin cracks appearing in the paper surface. Wiped down with alcohol which toned down the white but was no help in getting the thin layer of PLA off.

I tried reheating surface, no joy. Does anyone have a foolproof way of getting this off as soap and water don't work either?

Answer 1

In my experience with the Creality magnetic textured build surface, it's easier to remove a thin print while the surface is still pretty warm -- probably between 35 °C and 40 °C -- as opposed to fully cooled to room temperature.

If the print is very thin, however (as when the nozzle is much too close to the build surface) printing over it may be the only sensible option. In fact, if the print residue is too thin to get a scraper under, it likely won't show in another print with the same color/type filament, so you can just ignore it unless you're changing color or material.

BTW, don't use acetone. For anything, unless nothing else will do the job. Too flammable, too toxic, and it dissolves stuff you don't want to dissolve (but won't do anything notable to PLA, which is why you can't do acetone vapor smoothing with PLA).

Answer 2

You could try freezing your bed with cooling spray around the print and then wait some seconds and try peel it off.

I had the problem once on my PEI sheet and it did help. I used this spray: Spray

But make sure you don't break any electric parts on your printer.

Answer 3

You could print something on top of it, like a giant square covering the whole affected area. You should use some slightly higher temperatures than usual to make it adhere good (e.g. 75 °C bed 210 °C hotend), make sure that you print several layers.

There are 2 options removing the new print when there is an elevated temperature in the bed left after printing, or removing after a complete cool down.