3D Printers

E3D Online launches water cooling for enhanced FFF 3D printer performance

E3D Online is a marketplace selling all the parts, kits and filaments you could need for desktop FFF 3D printing. Identifying the maker community’s need for high-quality hot ends for their 3D printers, the E3D team has been developing their own parts since the company was founded in 2012.

After years in the making, the site has now launched a new range of  water-cooled hot ends, to bring enhanced temperature control to hobbyists and professionals seeking the perfect finish to their 3D printed objects.

The Titan Aqua water-cooling system. Photo via E3D Online
The Titan Aqua water-cooling system. Photo via E3D Online

What is water-cooling used for?

The Titan Aqua is an water-cooled, all-metal hot end and extruder based on the design of E3D’s existing fan-cooled Titan Aero. It is designed to work perfectly in warm and hot environments essential to 3D printing plastics like ABS, ASA and PEEK, and maintaining part quality. Temperature stability is especially essential to assuring good adhesion between layers, and avoiding common problems and deformations such as stringing, oozing, layer separation, splitting and motor overheating.

Is it overkill?

E3D’s water cooling system was first previewed at TCT 2017 at the Birmingham NEC. Following this introduction, two of the company’s co-founders, Sanjay Mortimer and Joshua Rowley, appeared on Thomas Sanladerer’s YouTube channel, tackling the developing Titan Aqua system in a live Q&A. As most 3D printers use fans to maintain temperature, Sanladerer asks “Is it overkill?”

Moritmer explains that, “You’ve got to think about the objectives, because the reason for using water cooling isn’t “we need to take more heat out,””

“The reason for using water cooling is you can transport heat in a more efficient way.”

In agreement Sanladerer adds, “You can quickly remove large amounts of heat, and you can also keep it at that low temperature.”

The Titan Aqua hot end. Photo via E3D Online
The Titan Aqua hot end. Photo via E3D Online

Hot end performance

The Titan Aqua is built especially for use in heated build chambers. With a fan cooled hot end in such chambers it is impossible to achieve the same level of cooling as the air it is distributing is already hot. As explained in the E3D release,

“Aqua, by contrast, continues to perform in heated chambers, maintaining a sharp thermal break and efficient, quiet cooling of both its body and motor thanks to its internal cooling channels.”

In addition to the Titan Aqua, E3D has launched a water-cooling kit to allow users to upgrade their existing systems.

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Featured image shows E3D’s new Titan Aqua water-cooling system. Image via E3D Online