I finally got a filament drying box and I’m using it prior to and during prints. It seems to be helping. I’m a bit of a color queen, so I keep a pretty big backlog of different filaments. I’ve been storing them in vacuum bags but the vacuum bags often seem to lose some of their vacuum after a few months; the whole process is a bit of a pain. Is this really worthwhile or as long as I’m using the drying box can I forgoe the vacuum storage? If vacuum storage is still a good idea, are there better bags I should be looking for that don’t lose some of the vacuum after a few months or is that pretty standard?
Airtight storage bins + silica beads = win.
I live in a subtropical area.
Short answer: YES!!.
I now religiously use a filament dryer, VAC bags and loose silica beads that I bag my self into DIY teabags and then redry in the oven.
I also make sure to dry new filament for 24hours before using it the first time…
Since I started doing this for PLA and PETG, many of my previous my print issues dissapeared…
Depends where you live. I live in a desert so humidity isn’t an issue, but dust is. I keep most of my filament in bags just to protect from dust. The only one I actually vacuum seal is tpu. Pla, pla+, and petg all do fine without. If I store it for more than a year though, I run it through the dryer first. Or at least have the dryer running while I print from it.
Instead of those bags with a valve take a look a the kitchen department. They have vacuum seal machines used for sous vid cooking.
This is practically identical to the original packaging and can hold the vacuum for years to come. Leave the bag longer than required to allow it to be resealed multiple times (roughly 3cm are cut with each opening & resealing).
For the frequently used filaments place them in a drying box.
The big issue for long term storage and exposure to moisture is hydrolysis, in which over time water molecules infiltrate and alter the polymer chains of the filament, causing the mechanical properties to degrade. Hydrolysis is, to the best of my knowledge, not reversible by simply driving the filament as the water molecules become incorporated into the polymer chain.
That said, simply storing your filament in your vacuum bags and tossing in some dessicant pouches before you seal it should drastically increase the time you can store filament before running the risk of it degrading noticeably.
Personally I just have a large plastic bin with a rechargeable dessicant device that keeps things relatively dry and I haven’t had any issues storing filament long term.
