FOR THE WIN! – This really works!
Difficulty: Ultra Easy, 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
Tools required: Filament Cutter
And a Round Food Deyhrator
Presto Food Dehyrator: Amazon, eBay
- Least expensive solution
- 4 trays.
Presto Digital Food Dehydrator: Amazon, eBay
- Can set timer for auto-shutoff
- 6 trays, holds two rolls of filament.
Presto Food Dehydrator Trays: Amazon, eBay
Pros:
- Old unusable filament becomes usable again.
- Warms your 3D printing say while it works
- Clears out your cabinets of all those partial rolls of unused PLA Filament
Cons:
- None that I can see.
Satisfaction: Complete!
Background
We (me) here at MakerSteve.com have collected a massive amount of partial rolls of PLA filament. I have more rolls of unusable PLA filament than you can shake a stick at.
As you may or may not know PLA does not get better with time. If it is left out it absorbs moisture, becomes brittle and becomes unusable for 3D printing. When filament goes bad, it strings, blobs, doesn’t adhere and jams your hotend. I several have rolls that wouldn’t print new out of the box. I have rolls that I neglected and left out that became unusable. I have rolls that sat in the printer unused for a week or so (10 days seems to be the magic number).
There are several sources that pitch the use of a dehydrator to revive your PLA filament. Skeptical, I purchased a discounted Dehydrator on eBay. Essentially, you buy a perfectly good Food Dehydrator and destroy it.
They trick is to cut all of the supports out of all but the first layer.
Then put a couple rolls in.
And dehydrate them for 2 hours at 125 degrees Fahrenheit.
Digital Food Dehydrators are set and forget. Manual Food Dehydrators will keep going until you stop them.
I have revived 8 rolls of PLA that I considered dead but was to stubborn to throw out. I have had successful prints with each one. Prints looks very good, no clogs, no stringing.
I’ll update as I have more to share!
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Thanks Steve