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Using old filaments
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 01 Dec 2024
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Are the filaments still in their original packaging and if not, how were they stored? The main thing with old filaments is how much water they've absorbed from the environment, with older filaments stored in high humidity environments causing issues for print quality.
If your filaments have been stored sealed in original packaging, they'll probably print like new. If they've been stored in an airtight container they'll probably also be pretty good. You can also just give them a shot and see if you're happy with the quality they provide.
If they've been stored open on a shelf, it isn't necessarily over for them though. Look up guides on how to dry out filament. There's a few products you can buy that do it too, but if you have a printer with an enclosure and heated bed you can use that as an oven to bake out your filament.
I've got a few filaments that have been sitting for over 6 years and after baking out they print absolutely fine.
Any advice on how to dry out old filament?
I’ve got some filament that’s been sitting out for about 2 years and it’s been clogging my hot end. I use my printer relatively infrequently and so I now have a lot of filament that’s potentially ruined.
I've not tried it, but I know some people claim that you can use your printer's heated bed to dry it out. Probably not the most energy efficient way to do it, but seems like it would work.
I have tried it and it works. It is not as good as a dedicated drier and not as energy efficient.
The worst filament was some 5 y old pla that was so brittle it snapped when unrolling from the spool, that just couldn't be fixed on the heated bed. I had to dry it at 50°C for 12h to be usable again.
If you're getting nozzle clogs, then it's probably not necessarily moisture but dust being an issue. Dusty and dirty filament pulls dust into the hotend, and the dust doesn't melt so the buildup clogs the nozzle. I've made rudimentary wipes by stabbing the filament through some foam (the grey stuff you find in pelican cases) so that it'll clean the filament of any surface dust as it travels through.
For drying the filament, I set the heated bed to just below the glass transition temp of the filament, put the spool on and leave it there. There are some guides for other methods, but I haven't tried anything else so I can't comment on them.
Hmm I don’t see visible dust on it but maybe there’s just very light dust or it blends in with the grey filament I’m using. I’ll give that a try!
My last print it did eventually finish but I had to pause the print to do a cold pull multiple times.