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Resin tank lifetime and monitoring (Form 4 and Form 4L generation)

Resin tanks are consumables and require replacement. The lifetime of an individual resin tank depends on two primary factors: number of layers printed, and accumulation of wear or damage.

Form 4 and Form 4L generation resin tanks are designed to exceed 75,000+ layers with any Formlabs material when maintained correctly. Factors such as leaving debris in the tank or allowing resin to cure in it may reduce lifetime. You do not need to replace your resin tank immediately when it reaches this threshold.

Resin	Form 4/Form 4L Resin Tank
All materials	Estimated lifetime: 75,000 layers of printing For example, this translates to: Approximately 190 prints of an average height model (39 mm tall), any resin, and 100 µm layer height Approximately 340 prints of clear aligner models (22 mm tall), any resin, and 100 µm layer height

Resin

Form 4/Form 4L Resin Tank

All materials

Estimated lifetime: 75,000 layers of printing

For example, this translates to:

Approximately 190 prints of an average height model (39 mm tall), any resin, and 100 µm layer height
Approximately 340 prints of clear aligner models (22 mm tall), any resin, and 100 µm layer height

Replacing the resin tank

We recommend that you replace a Form 4/Form 4L resin tank when one of the following occurs:

Punctures, cuts, wrinkles, or gouges in the film
Film wear that begins to affect print quality

Film wear can appear as scratches, dots, semicircles, or lines
When printing with some materials (BioMed Clear, Tough 1500, High Temp), you may notice small, circular surface artifacts that start to appear after 20–30,000 layers of printing. If this is an issue for your parts, please replace your resin tank.
Repeatedly printing the same model in the exact same location on a tank can cause the tank film to wear slightly more quickly. If you are printing the same model continuously, consider moving your model around the build area rather than printing in the same spot.

Unexpected print failures that occur only when using this resin tank

Formlabs recommends replacing your Form 4 or Form 4L generation mixer whenever you replace the resin tank.

Maintaining the resin tank

We recommend inspecting and cleaning your resin tank every month, or whenever you have a print failure. See Inspecting and cleaning resin tanks (Form 4 and Form 4L generation).

Notice:

After a print failure, there will often be cured resin inside a resin tank, which can cause tank damage in subsequent prints. Always run a cleaning sheet after a print failure. Draining the tank and filtering the resin may also be required.
Never use tools with metal edges or sharp corners inside your resin tank. You are likely to scratch, gouge, or puncture the flexible film with these tools, which can allow resin to spill into the printer.
High volume production may shorten the lifetime of a resin tank. Other print failures may occur at any time, unrelated to tank lifetime.

Monitoring resin tank usage

Form 4 and Form 4L generation printers have a software feature to monitor how much a resin tank has been used.

At any time, you can check how much your resin tank has been used:

Tap the printer icon on the printer’s touchscreen. The printer’s current status appears.
Tap the section of the touchscreen labeled Tank. The Tank Details screen appears, showing usage statistics of your resin tank.