---
layout: feed_post
title: "Using BL Touch auto-leveling with Ender 3"
slug: 7e95e99d-47bb-4754-b5ca-08b623d855a2
date: 2026-05-16 11:30:00
tags: feed
permalink: /feed/2026-05-16/using-bl-touch-with-ender-3/
feedtags:
  - Future Reference
---

I have had/have used my Creality Ender 3 3D printer for nearly a decade now. It's not the fastest, it's not the most advanced, but it works well enough for the prototyping I do.

One worthwhile upgrade I made a few years in was the addition of a [BL Touch auto bed-leveling add-on](https://www.creality3dofficial.com/products/creality-bl-touch). This lets the printer sense the bed surface before the print and adjust for a slightly-off-level bed.

BL touch has a problem, though: while the bed leveling runs (which can take a minute or so), the extruder _cools down_ some 20 Celsius. Then, the print immediately starts with the temp well below spec.

The solution? Add a 60 second wait (in Marlin g-code, this is called a ["dwell"](https://marlinfw.org/docs/gcode/G004.html)) _after_ bed leveling before the print starts to let the hot-end come back up to temp.

In Cura, go to **Settings > Printers > Manager Printers > Ender 3 > Machine Settings**. Add the following lines to the custom g-code:

```text
; Ender 3 Custom Start G-code
G92 E0 ; Reset Extruder  (EXISTING LINE)
G28 ; Home all axes  (EXISTING LINE)
G29 ; Auto bed-leveling  (ADD THIS LINE)
G4 P60000 ; Wait for extruder to heat back up  (ADD THIS LINE)
...
```
