Elephant foot (flared bottom layers)
The bottom few millimetres bulge outward, so the part is wider at the base than the walls above.
Quick fix elephant foot elephants foot flared base mushrooming
Likely causes
- Bed too hot
- First layer over-squished
- No first-layer compensation
- Heavy part weight on soft first layers
How to fix it
- Lower the bed temperature by 5–10 °C after the first layer (or overall).
- Raise the z-offset slightly so the first layer is not over-squished.
- Enable "elephant foot compensation" (PrusaSlicer/OrcaSlicer) at 0.1–0.2 mm.
- Add a small chamfer to the model bottom edge.
Work through it in order
The fastest path to a fix
Change one thing at a time and print a small test. Start with the first fix listed — it is the most common cause.