Preparing the Printer

After slicing a model, a couple of steps need to be taken before a 3D printer is ready to print:

1. Loading filament: The extruder needs to be ready to extrude filament before printing begins. The loading process begins by heating the hot end to the filament’s molten temperature (usually above 175 °C, depending on the filament) and then loading the filament into the heated extruder. Often, the printer will have pre-configured operations that will aid you through the process.
2. Bed leveling: In order for the printer to accurately deposit filament and build the object, the build platform must be level. Depending on the machine, leveling can be either manual or automatic. Bed leveling is very important because, if the print bed is too far away from the nozzle, the first and the most important layer won’t stick to the bed, causing the print to automatically fail.

Take a look at this bed leveling tutorial for more information on this important step!