Clogged nozzle and extruder clicking

The extruder is trying to push filament that will not go. The click is the drive gear slipping. Clear the blockage first, then find out why it formed — a nozzle that clogs repeatedly has a cause, and cleaning it each time is not a fix.

Looks like: Extruder clicks or skips, extrusion stops mid-print, or nothing comes out at all.

Fixes, in the order worth trying

1 · Try this first

Do a cold pull

Pulls the blockage out with the filament instead of trying to push it through. Works on the burnt residue and dust that cause most partial clogs, and takes five minutes.

Heat to printing temperature, push a little filament through, then let it cool to about 90 °C for PLA (130 °C for PETG). Pull the filament out firmly in one motion. The tip should come out shaped like the inside of the nozzle. Repeat until it comes out clean.

2 · Try this first

Check for heat creep

If clogs happen part-way into long prints but never at the start, heat is travelling up the heatbreak and softening filament before the melt zone, where it jams. This is a cooling fault, not a nozzle fault — cleaning the nozzle will fix it for exactly one print.

Confirm the hotend heatsink fan actually spins the whole time (it is a different fan from the part cooling fan). Clear dust from the heatsink fins, check the heatbreak is tight against the heatsink, and if your printer is enclosed, make sure PLA is not cooking inside it.

3 · Common cause

Reduce retraction distance

Excessive retraction pulls molten plastic up into the cool zone where it solidifies into a plug. If clogs started right after you increased retraction to fight stringing, this is the cause.

Retraction Distance: Cura → Travel → Direct drive: ≤ 1.5 mm · Bowden: ≤ 7 mm
Retraction length: OrcaSlicer → Filament → Setting Overrides → Direct drive: 0.5–1.5 mm

4 · Common cause

Check the PTFE tube seats fully

In an all-metal-free hotend, a gap between the end of the PTFE tube and the top of the nozzle collects molten plastic that carbonises into a plug. Very common after a nozzle change.

Heat the hotend, loosen the nozzle slightly, push the PTFE tube fully down, then re-tighten the nozzle against it while hot. Replace the tube if the end is charred or deformed — burnt PTFE will not seal.

5 · Less common

Raise temperature or slow down

Clicking with a clean nozzle usually means you are asking for more melted plastic per second than the hotend can supply. Either give it more heat or ask for less.

Printing Temperature: Cura → Material → +5–10 °C
Max volumetric speed: OrcaSlicer → Filament → Filament → 8–12 mm³/s on a stock hotend

Change one thing at a time. If you adjust temperature, retraction and speed together and the problem goes away, you have learned nothing and you will be back here next month. Re-print the same test object after each single change.

Frequently asked questions

Should I use a needle to clear the nozzle?

Sparingly. A 0.35 mm acupuncture needle can clear a blockage while the nozzle is hot, but pushing debris around can scratch the bore and make the nozzle string forever after. A cold pull is safer and usually more effective; brass nozzles are cheap enough to replace when in doubt.

Why does my printer clog only with certain filaments?

Filled filaments (wood, carbon fibre, glow-in-the-dark, metallic) contain abrasive or chunky particles that block a 0.4 mm nozzle easily. Use a 0.6 mm hardened nozzle for those. Cheap unfilled filament with inconsistent diameter also jams more often.

Is clicking always a clog?

No. The click is the extruder failing to advance filament, and a clog is only one reason for that. Also check the spool is not tangled or binding on its holder, the path is not kinked, and the idler tension is not so tight it has crushed the filament out of round.