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Resin Printing Safety: Gloves, Ventilation, Disposal

Resin printing7 min readUpdated: 10/2026

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Liquid resin is not a harmless craft glue. The safety data sheets of common resins warn of skin irritation, allergic skin reactions, eye irritation and irritation of the respiratory tract. This also applies to water-washable and plant-based resin. If you follow a few rules from the start, you can still print with peace of mind.

What is in the resin

Resins consist largely of acrylates, that is, reactive plastic building blocks. The safety data sheet for Anycubic Standard Resin, for example, lists 20 to 30 % triethylene glycol diacrylate. The hazard statements in the data sheets:

Resin (example)Statements according to the safety data sheet
Anycubic Standard Resinskin irritation, may cause allergic skin reactions, serious eye irritation, may irritate the respiratory tract
Anycubic Water-Wash Resin+as above, plus “causes serious eye damage” and harmful to aquatic organisms
Elegoo Photopolymer Resinmay cause allergic skin reactions, eye irritation, respiratory irritation (uncured)
Photocentric Durable, plant-basedmay cause allergic skin reactions, serious eye damage, very toxic to aquatic organisms

The tricky part is sensitisation: repeated skin contact can trigger an allergy to acrylates. According to the resin manufacturer Ameralabs, it is usually permanent and can also extend to acrylates in gel nails or dental material. Prusa points out that people with eczema should be especially careful.

Protective equipment

  • Gloves: Formlabs recommends chemical-resistant gloves made of nitrile or neoprene, not latex. Thin disposable nitrile gloves only protect against splashes. Change them as soon as resin gets on them and throw them away after working. Manufacturers’ information differs here, by the way: the Anycubic data sheet names butyl rubber.
  • Safety glasses: mandatory when there is a risk of splashing, especially when pouring, stirring and washing.
  • Clothing: long sleeves or an apron. Resin that lands on fabric would otherwise end up on your skin.
  • Resin on skin: wash off immediately with soap and water. No isopropanol and no other solvent, as Formlabs explicitly advises.

Ventilation and where to put the printer

A study by UL (Chemical Insights, 2021) measured 3 to 6 times higher emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC) from a resin printer than the average for filament printing. During washing, most of it came from the isopropanol. The values were below the limit values, but the authors warn of the irritant effect of the mixture. The German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt) generally sees exposure to VOC and fine dust from 3D printing indoors.

Our recommendation from this, not a regulation: do not put the resin printer in the living room or bedroom, but in a room of its own that you can ventilate well. The BG ETEM (a German statutory accident insurance body) also recommends a separate room and regular ventilation for workplaces. An exhaust to the outside helps more than an activated carbon filter, which according to Ameralabs only supplements it.

Isopropanol is flammable

According to the safety data sheet, isopropanol (IPA) is highly flammable, and the flash point is 12 °C, below room temperature. Vapours can ignite. Therefore:

  • no open flame, no cigarette, no fan heaters nearby
  • always keep containers closed and store only the amount needed at the workstation
  • do not use a heating function on wash stations with IPA, as Phrozen explicitly warns

Disposing of it correctly

WhatWhere to
liquid resin, including leftovershazardous waste collection, or cure it first
cured resin, finished parts, supportsgeneral waste
paper towels with resincure in sunlight first, then general waste
isopropanol with dissolved resinhazardous waste collection, never down the drain
rinse water from water-washable resinnever down the drain uncured: cure it, filter out the solids

According to Formlabs, you can leave small leftover amounts of liquid resin in a labelled, transparent container in the sun for a few days until solid, and then put it in general waste. How your municipality accepts liquid resin and solvents is something you can find out from your local waste disposal service. In the waste directory of the Ravensburg district, for example, synthetic resin and solvents are listed under problem substances.

Sources