What does the fan do?

K8200 3D Printer K8200 - Issues while printing
1

What is the purpose of the fan pointing at hot end? It seems to contribute to lifting because it cools the print bed. Why do I want it on?

2

It will cool the layer of plastic before the next layer.
This is helpful on small parts.
On big parts you can print with out it.

3

Thanks. Is the purpose of cooling the layer to prevent the plastic from dragging around on the part, getting gooey/stringy, etc.?

4

Yes, and it will prevent melting your object when printing small areas.

I would suggest you to print a nozzle for the fan, so you can direct the airflow
more directly to the object and away from the heatbed.

5

That is a good idea.
You can find a lot of them on thingiverse.com
Just search on K8200 or 3drag.

6

Don’t bother with the ‘traffic cone’ duct from the Velleman website. You get more air out the back of the fan than you do out of the nozzle. The design stalls the airflow.

7

Yep, that thing is crap :wink:

Thereare a lot of good desings on thingiverse though…