<p>Applying 12 V to a 24 V heater cartridge won't damage anything, but you may have severe issues reaching and maintaining your target temp. A standard E3D heater cartridge is 40 W. When you run a 24 V cartridge on 12 V, you only get 10 W of heater power. Here are some rough estimates on where your hot block heat goes:</p>
<ul>
<li>Uninsulated hot block air losses: ~20 W depending on airflow</li>
<li>Insulated hot block air losses: ~5w depending on airflow</li>
<li>Filament melt power at typical print speeds: 0.3-3 W depending on filament and print speed</li>
<li>Heat conducted up the heat break: 1-3 W maybe, hard to quantify</li>
</ul>
<p>I've never heard of anyone using less than about 16 W to print. (Two 8 W power resistors.) 20 W is the lowest vaguely normal hot end power. I think you'll struggle to print.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-04-20T09:19:35.460Z
10W would work if you print a material that melts around 80-100°C, like... Hot glue
Trish
CC BY-SA 4.0
2016-06-01T03:44:16.830Z
2022-04-19T21:37:02.887Z
2022-04-19T21:37:02.887Z
Ryan Carlyle
<p>Would I damage anything running 12 V on a 24 V cartridge heater? I know it wont reach a max temperature 300 °C? I am using the E3D hotend set up.</p>

<electronics><heat>
Running 12 V on a 24 V heater cartridge?
Chris Manning
# Running 12 V on a 24 V heater cartridge?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-06-01)

Would I damage anything running 12 V on a 24 V cartridge heater? I know it wont reach a max temperature 300 °C? I am using the E3D hotend set up.

**Tags:** electronics, heat

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2016-06-01. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

Applying 12 V to a 24 V heater cartridge won't damage anything, but you may have severe issues reaching and maintaining your target temp. A standard E3D heater cartridge is 40 W. When you run a 24 V cartridge on 12 V, you only get 10 W of heater power. Here are some rough estimates on where your hot block heat goes:

* Uninsulated hot block air losses: ~20 W depending on airflow
* Insulated hot block air losses: ~5w depending on airflow
* Filament melt power at typical print speeds: 0.3-3 W depending on filament and print speed
* Heat conducted up the heat break: 1-3 W maybe, hard to quantify

I've never heard of anyone using less than about 16 W to print. (Two 8 W power resistors.) 20 W is the lowest vaguely normal hot end power. I think you'll struggle to print.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: 10W would work if you print a material that melts around 80-100°C, like... Hot glue  

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