Six Tips for Extending the Life of a Laser Tube

This article offers six daily maintenance tips to help users extend the life of their laser tube and lower their equipment failure rate.The contents include practical methods of cleaning and maintenance, parameter settings, and heat dissipation management. It is designed to help operators quickly grasp the key points of maintenance and improve the efficiency of equipment.

Keep the work environment clean.

Lasers are particularly sensitive to dust, especially the laser tube and optical lenses.If the workshop has a lot of dust, you can suggest adding a dust cover to the equipment, or cleaning the surface of the machine with a soft cloth after it is turned off each day.The most important thing is to clean the ventilation holes around the laser tube to prevent dust from blocking them and affecting heat dissipation.

Clean the lenses regularly.

Dust or oil on the lens will cause energy loss.I suggest that everyone wipe their lenses with alcohol and a special lens tissue, and never use ordinary tissues to wipe them, or the coating will be scratched.

Control equipment operating load.

Many old craftsmen are used to keeping the machine running all the time, but in fact the laser tube needs a rest, just like a person.If you work for more than eight hours straight, it's best to shut down the machine for 15 minutes to let the tube cool down.If the material is highly reflective, such as metal, it is recommended that the power be set to around 80 %, which will both complete the task and reduce wear.

The parameters are set reasonably.

Don't believe that the higher the power, the better the effect. For example, when marking plastic, you can use a high frequency, low power mode.Each time the material is changed, remember to re-test the parameters, to find the best solution to guarantee the desired effect without overusing the laser tube.

Maintain a good cooling system.

The coolant in the water-cooling unit is recommended to be changed every three months, and the temperature should be checked at least once a week in the summer.If you see white scale deposits on the joints of the pipes, you can use a citric acid solution to clean them.If the computer uses a fan to cool, remember to clean the blades every month to prevent the buildup of dust from hindering the dissipation of heat.

Alarm for abnormal temperature.

The equipment panel displays a warning when it gets hotter than 35 ° C.Check to see if the cooling system is working normally, and if the ventilation is adequate.If you get an overload warning, do not try to restart the machine. Wait until the laser tube has cooled, then try to determine the cause.

Develop a daily habit of checking.

Before turning on the machine each day, spend two minutes doing a basic checkup: Listen to the cooling fan to see if it has any unusual noises, feel the case to see if it is abnormally hot, and look at the laser beam to see if it is evenly distributed.The power output of the laser should be checked monthly to ensure that it remains stable. If the laser's energy output has decreased by more than 15 %, the manufacturer should be contacted.

Keep a maintenance record.

Hang a little notebook next to the equipment, and record the time of each maintenance check, the parts replaced, and any anomalies.This way you can remind yourself to maintain the system on time, and if something goes wrong you can quickly trace the cause.

Avoiding hard injuries.

Don't open the cover right away after turning off the machine, the laser tube may still be hot and could burn your hands.When moving the equipment, the laser tube must be removed and packed separately, because the gas mixture inside it can be thrown out of balance by the vibrations of the journey.The system will automatically restrict the parameters to safe limits.

Properly handle unexpected problems.

If the laser suddenly becomes weak, first check whether the lens is dirty, and then test the power supply voltage.If you can't do it yourself, don't just go ahead and take the laser tube apart. Contact the manufacturer's technical support department.After all, the money for a new laser would be enough to cover maintenance for several years.