If you are having issues with a blue or blank screen on your 3D printer, it can be pretty frustrating, but there are a few ways to potentially fix this.
To fix the blue or blank screen on a 3D printer, make sure your LCD cable is connected to the correct port on your machine. You also want to check that your voltage is set correctly based on your region. Changing SD card can help if it is damaged. Reflashing your firmware has worked for many people.
Keep on reading to get more methods to try and important details behind fixing your blue or blank screen, so you can resolve this issue once and for all.
How Do You Fix the Blue Screen on a 3D Printer – Ender 3
The blue or blank screen on your 3D printer’s LCD panel can appear due to a number of different reasons. I’ll go through all of them below to cover the possibilities and help you quickly get back to 3D printing.
You need to do the following in order to fix the blank blue screen of your Ender 3 3D printer. We’ll first focus on the hardware end of this issue and then get to the firmware part.
Here are ways on how to fix a blue/blank screen on a 3D printer:
Connect to the Right Port of the LCD Screen
Set the Correct Voltage of Your 3D Printer
Use Another SD Card
Turn Off & Unplug the Printer
Make Sure Your Connections Are Secure & Fuse is Not Blown
Reflash the Firmware
Contact Your Seller & Ask for Replacements
Replace the Mainboard
Push the Print Bed Back
1. Connect to the Right Port of the LCD Screen
One common reason why the Ender 3 can show a blue screen is due to not plugging in your LCD cable in the correct port on your Ender 3. There are three LCD ports that you’ll see on the Ender 3, so ensure that you are using the third port (on the right) to get it working correctly.
The connector should be named EXP3 and it’s keyed so you can only put it in one way. In this step, you also want to unplug the LCD screen altogether and plug it back in.
If your Ender 3 screen isn’t turning on at all, connecting to the right port should usually fix this. Also, you can check whether the cable has come loose from the mainboard.
One user experiencing the Ender 3 V2’s blank screen even after the firmware update said that the LCD wasn’t plugged in properly.
If that doesn’t help solve your issue, keep on reading for more steps to try.
2. Set the Correct Voltage of your 3D Printer
The Creality Ender 3 has a red voltage switch on the back of the power supply that can be set to either 115V or 230V. The voltage that you set your Ender 3 to depends on what region you are living in.
If you are living in the United States, you want to set the voltage to 115V, while in the UK, 230V.
Double check what voltage you need to set based on where you are living. This is based on your power grid. Many users don’t realize this and end up experiencing a blue or blank screen when trying to use their Ender 3.
Some people have reported that they were using an incorrect voltage for their 3D printer that not only displayed a blank screen on the LCD interface but blew up the power supply as well a little while later.
You can see where the switch is by looking at the picture below. Once it is set correctly, you won’t have to touch it again.
3. Use Another SD Card
Several people experiencing the Ender 3 blank blue screen have reported a common fix in regard to their SD card. They were actually using a fried SD card that had stopped functioning and was instead causing the LCD screen to go blank.
To confirm if this is the case with you, turn on your Ender 3 without the SD card inserted and see if it boots up normally. If it does, then all you need to do is get another SD card and use it for your 3D printer.
4. Turn Off & Unplug the Printer
Some people have had the screen start working again by turning it off, unplugging everything, leaving it alone for a few days and plugging it back in. This is potentially a temporary fix though because someone who tried this ended up buying a new motherboard.
5. Make Sure Your Connections Are Secure & Fuse is Not Blown
Your Creality Ender machine has many connections and wiring that need to be plugged in properly to work at its best. In some cases, people have checked their connections and found something slightly loose or not fully connected.
Once they plugged in their connections properly, they found that their screens started working properly again.
I’d recommend possibly checking the mainboard, especially the power supply section because one user checked theirs and found that the side where the power supply plugs in was slightly melted and even sparking. This can happen when your connections aren’t fully plugged in.
Before you do any of these checks though, make sure to power off and disconnect the 3D printer from the power supply for safety precautions.
Creality created a video that helps you with screen troubleshooting and checking voltages within the printer and loose connections.
Make sure you check the LCD ribbon cable to see if it fried.
If you experience some kind of glitch in your 3D printer screen, it’s usually do to a cable or wiring being slightly broken, or potential overheating. It could also be a board issue where you should reflash the board. I’d recommend checking your firmware and ensuring you are using the right display.
A defective display screen can also be the cause.
6. Reflash the Firmware
If you’ve tried many fixes to no avail, then reflashing your firmware could be the solution that works.
Many users have experienced a blue or blank screen due to the firmware, whether it hasn’t been flashed properly, they had an error occurred in some of the main configuration files, or you accidentally flashed it without realizing it.
Some people have also reported getting the blue screen of death while installing firmware for the BLTouch.
Older Ender 3s didn’t have the new 32-bit motherboards which can be flashed simply by inserting an SD card with the correct file on it. People reported accidentally flashing their firmware and receiving a blue screen afterwards.
In most of these cases, we can resolve this issue quite simply.
If you have the 32-bit motherboard on your Ender machine, you simply have to download the relevant firmware such as the Ender 3 Pro Marlin Firmware from Creality, save the .bin file onto your SD card in the root or original main folder, insert it into your 3D printer and simply turn it on.
Before you upload the firmware.bin file to your SD card, make sure the format of the SD card is FAT32, especially if it’s a new one.
The specific firmware file that has worked for many users is the following:
This is the simple way to flash firmware on your 3D printer, but if you don’t have the 32-bit motherboard, you’ll have to do a longer method to flash your firmware.
I’ve got a more detailed guide on How to Flash 3D Printer Firmware so check that out if it applies to you. It involves using an Arduino IDE software to upload the firmware and connect it to your 3D printer.
7. Contact Your Seller & Ask for Replacements
One thing that has worked for people without costing them money is to get back into contact with who sold you the 3D printer and tell them about your issue. After some basic questions, you may be entitled to receiving replacements under warranty and customer service.
I’ve read around about users who got into contact with either Amazon or Creality’s customer service and have been sent a new motherboard, LCD screen or cables to get their screen working again.
If your Ender 3 (Pro) still gives you the blue screen after the firmware update or it isn’t letting you update the firmware in the first place, then this is a good sign that your mainboard has stopped working.
It’s important that you try everything else first before coming to this conclusion, since getting a new mainboard will cost you money and you may even have to flash the firmware all over again as well.
The Creality Ender 3 Pro Upgraded Silent Board Motherboard V4.2.7 on Amazon is a popular choice among people who set out to buy a new mainboard. It’s a top-rated product that brings multiple improvements over the stock mainboard of the Ender 3.
If you have the Ender 3 or the Ender 3 Pro, this mainboard will simply be plug and play for you. It comes with TMC2225 silent drivers and a bootloader has been preinstalled on it as well.
This makes updating the firmware easy and effortless, as mentioned earlier that you can simply use an SD card to update the firmware directly without having to connect the Ender 3 to your computer.
At the time of writing, the Creality Ender 3 Pro Upgraded Silent Board Motherboard V4.2.7 enjoys a solid reputation on Amazon with a 4.6/5.0 overall rating. In addition, 78% of the people who bought it have left a 5-star review.
Users who have encountered an unsolvable Ender 3 Pro blue screen of death decided to opt for this mainboard and found it booting up the LCD screen perfectly.
If you’ve confirmed that your current mainboard is definitely bricked, consider buying this awesome upgrade for your Ender 3 and enjoy multiple other features as well.
9. Push the Print Bed Back
One strange strategy that worked for one user to fix the blue screen on their Ender 3 was to turn off the 3D printer and manually push the print bed back with a little pressure to have the LCD screen light up.
What this does is cause a little voltage spike in the stepper motors to power the LCD component of the Ender 3.
I wouldn’t recommend it as a solution though because you do have a risk of damaging your mainboard due to this power spike going through the mainboard. I’m not sure if it stayed working afterwards either.
Michael Dwamena is the founder of 3D Printerly, a platform dedicated to simplifying 3D printing for hobbyists and professionals alike. Owns over 20 3D printers (filament and resin) and has plenty experience 3D printing. Michael has authored over 900 articles, helping millions navigate the exciting world of 3D printing.
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