Tagged with 'Tips and Tricks for Industrial Water Chillers'

Here is a throw back article on page 92 of HackSpace back in 2022 where Dr Andrew Lewis reviewed the S&A industrial water chillers capabilities when used to cool down lasers in the K40 engraving machine.

Cooling your laser is a hot topic on the internet, and it’s one area where Heath Robinson-inspired solutions seem to flourish. The
focus on cooling is understandable, because proper temperature control is important for prolonging the life and effective power of your laser tube. Running a laser tube too hot for a long time is a sure way to burn it out. In this article you’ll take a look at some of the options available to cool your laser, and learn which cooling solution best suits your need. If you own a K40, then you probably remember the slight confusion that you felt when you opened up the box and removed what appeared to be a common garden pond pump and some clear tubing from the packaging. The K40 is a relatively low-powered laser, but it probably seemed unlikely that a small submersible pump would be enough to keep things cool for any length of time. In true K40 laser style, the pump and hose provided in the box represent the absolute bare minimum amount of kit required to get the laser up and running without instantaneous catastrophic failure. If you want to do anything more than run the laser for a few minutes at a time, you’re probably going to need a better solution than a garden centre special offer and a bucket. It’s important to understand that your laser cutter exists as part of a larger environment. The cooling system you use will be sympathetic to and part of that environment. If your laser cutter is housed in a cold workshop during a Canadian winter, then you’ll have less need to dissipate excess heat than you would if it were running on a tropical island in the middle of a bright summer
day. The surrounding environment always has an effect on the ability of a cooling solution to keep up with the excess heat generated by the laser. Now that we understand that, let’s look at some of the solutions available for cooling the laser.

Download the full article and magazine over at HackPace - https://hackspace.raspberrypi.com/issues/55

This is a simple procedure to flush the process water loop on your S&A chiller. To perform this task the following equipment will be required:

 • An empty bucket

 • Distilled or demineralized water

 • A towel

 • A bottle brush

Frequency: This task can be performed on an annual basis or sooner if the water chiller shows signs of algae in the reservoir.

Please familiarize yourself with these instructions before starting the procedure. These are guidelines only and may differ for different models of water chiller. Please contact us if you require any assistance.

1. Disconnect the power from the laser tool and associated equipment.

2. Remove the fill cap from the water chiller.

3. Use a bottle brush to clean inside the water reservoir through the fill cap. Avoid dropping any objects into the reservoir as this will damage the system.

4. Make a note of the hoses connected to the water inlet and outlet.

5. Put the towel underneath the position where the two water hoses connect to the laser machine.

6. Remove the inlet and outlet hoses on the laser machine.

7.Place the outlet hose into the empty bucket.

8. Place the inlet hose into the container of distilled water.

9. Switch on the water chiller. Ensure all other equipment is switched off. This will draw water from the container, flush through the system and get collected in the bucket.

10. Once the water is coming out clear the flush is complete and you can switch of the chiller. Monitor the filling container throughout the procedure to ensure it does not become empty.

11. Reconnect the inlet and outlet water hoses.

12. Turn the equipment back on and allow the chiller to circulate water for 5 minutes before using the laser cutting equipment