Using WLED and Home Assistant to Monitor 3D Printers via Moonraker/Klipper

I wanted a way to be able to easily monitor my 6 3D printers. I thought about mounting a monitor, and just displaying a webpage, but I figured this would give me a much cleaner look on my wall. From the animation above, you can see that one printer is completely off(bottom left), one printer just completed a print, and the bed is about 3/4 of the way to fully cooled(top right), one printer is paused, likely due to filament running out(top left), and the other 3 are currently printing.

Create an Android Widget for Moonraker / Klipper to See Your 3D Printer Status on Your Home Screen

It’s been a while since I have posted, but someone on Reddit asked me about my Android widget that shows information from my 3D printers. This will be a quick write up to point you in the right direction, so I won’t have step by step instructions. Keep in mind that this only works when your phone can actually connect to Moonraker. So if you are away from home, it won’t work unless you have a VPN. Read more...

Compiling Marlin Firmware is Easy – Don’t Be Afraid to Do It

So I’m seeing a lot of posts on Reddit and other places about people wanting to compile Marlin and having a tough time with, or more commonly, many people just aren’t doing it because it seems intimidating. I’m hoping to put together a walkthrough that simplifies the process as much as possible for people that aren’t really comfortable compiling something. Many people think you need to be a programmer to do it. You don’t. Read more...

Using the WyzeCam as a Webcam for Your Computer or OctoPrint

So if you are looking for a webcam right now (I am writing this article during the COVID-19 pandemic), then you might discover that you are literally going to spend about 3 times the normal price. The Logitech C920 costs $200 right now, and the popular budget C270 will cost you $100.

You can currently get popular WiFi WyzeCam for around $25. And even the pan/tilt version for $35. However, those cams are WiFi only, and won't work out the box with your computer as a webcam for video conferencing(or for OctoPrint, which is what I plan on using it for). However, Wyze recently released a special firmware that allows that function.

Setting Up OctoPrint and its Plugins

About 8 months ago I purchased a Creality Ender 5. I wrote a mini getting started guide about it. In that guide, I mentioned OctoPrint, and how I would do a separate write-up on that. I installed OctoPrint after a few prints. I wanted to be able to monitor the prints remotely since the printer is down in the basement. This write-up goes through my setup and settings along with the plugins I used.

Using a Thermal Pad Under a Glass Build Plate on a 3D Printer

I was recently messing around with my Infrared Thermometer to make sure the air coming out of the heating vents was the right temperature. While doing that, I of course had to point it at random things throughout the house, when I finally got to the 3D printer, which was currently running. I figured that would be a good way to verify that the reading on the sensors was close to the IR thermometer. And it was close enough. The glass bed was reading a few degrees cooler, but I figured that was to be expected since the printer sensor is not on top of the glass where I was taking my reading.

Updated FilaWeigher Filament Scale – Now with Temperature, Humidity, Pressure, and MQTT

As I talked about in my last post about the FilaWeigher, I wanted to add MQTT and temperature/humidity(Using the BME280) to that project. Well, I've done that. Refer to the previous post for more details. But now for this one, I'm just going to focus on the updated code and schematics, and the Home Assistant integration via MQTT. I'm going to leave the old post up for the people that don't want MQTT or the BME280 sensor. This version also has JSON output of all the sensors which allows for OctoPrint integration(I actually just finished up that plugin and I'm going to be posting that up soon).

The FilaWeigher – A Standalone WiFi Web Based Weight Sensor for 3D Printer Filament For Less Than $7

I created this project so I can know exactly how much filament is left on a spool for my 3D printer, an Ender 5 I wrote about previously. However, it can very well be used to weigh anything else. I put a few settings that are specific to the filament, but they don't have to be used.