Filament snapped above extruder gear???

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johnross808
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by johnross808 » Mon Dec 14, 2015 9:03 pm

Since we live in the same place id figure id chime in.
With the humidity here, when you leave a spool of PLA on the printer your going to see this happen every few days or so.
My printer is in a enclosed room with a dehumidifier running 24/7 and I still experience the same thing.
Any other material you can leave on the printer but with PLA you'll want to pull it off the printer and store it in a dehumidifying box or something after every use.

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Jules
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Jules » Mon Dec 14, 2015 9:16 pm

johnross is right - we've also got about 60-80+% humidity here all the time, and even with central ac, i have to take the PLA off the machine when the print is done, and store it in a sealed bucket with a dessicant.

The older it gets, the more moisture it absorbs too. Don't leave it out for more than a day or two when you aren't using it. (Just the nature of PLA.)

The good news is - PETG doesn't absorb water like PLA does, or i'd be surrounded by buckets. You can leave PETG out if you have to.

Quark
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Quark » Mon Dec 14, 2015 10:14 pm

ah, sounds good. I just never had this problem with the original PLA I got from MakerGear. That was even worse sitting at home on the spool holder for at least a month while I trialed print a ton of stuff. Home in open air is worse at 80% humidity, zero problems. Guess not all filament are created equal?

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sthone
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by sthone » Mon Dec 14, 2015 10:44 pm

If you are in a humid area and don't want to remove your spools all the time you can do something like this there are several examples floating around here also.

-Steve
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Jules
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Jules » Mon Dec 14, 2015 11:46 pm

Those are cool. :D (I'd do it too, but since I've got a dozen spools of PLA, I had to have the buckets anyway to store the ones I'm not currently using.)

Tougher issue is the dessicants.....i was using bags of rice until the weevils hatched their happy little arses. :shock: So now I'll be sewing up some little packets of dessicant beads. (One of these days. :roll: )

jsc
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by jsc » Tue Dec 15, 2015 12:20 am

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003QZ ... detailpage

Also, Damp Rid, supposed to be superior to silica gel, but turns into a goo as it absorbs so needs to go in some sort of container.

Quark
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Quark » Tue Dec 15, 2015 1:31 am

I like those tub idea, I saw this one a while ago, its on my build list.
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=1386&hilit=filament+tub

Slap in some of these and good to go.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003DK ... 3ZGBZ7A7O1

I think they can be nuked in the microwave for a few minutes to dry them again.

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jimc
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by jimc » Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:10 am

the damprid can be had right at walmart. it comes in little or large tubs then just dissolves into water and collects in the bottom of the tub. you shouldnt have to put it in anything. i remember this filament breaking thing coming up before and it was mentioned awhile back to esun. it was my understanding they corrected that issue but maybe not...or...maybe you got an older spool. they do have the pla+ out now which is only a couple bucks more. supposed to be less brittle and alot stronger.

jules, i think i remember Ed (the mythbuster) Nisley busting the rice/dehumidifier thing awhile back. i dont think rice ended up doing anything for humidity levels.

Quark
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Quark » Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:33 am

jimc wrote:........busting the rice/dehumidifier thing awhile back. i dont think rice ended up doing anything for humidity levels.

This reminds me of the argument why people put rice in salt shakers. its not so much to dehumidify the air, more so about having something in the salt to break up the salt and prevent it from clumping up.

I got a couple of these:
http://www.amazon.com/AcuRite-00613A1-I ... ds=acurite

I think an experiment is in order.

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Jules
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Re: Filament snapped above extruder gear???

Post by Jules » Tue Dec 15, 2015 3:19 am

jimc wrote:the damprid can be had right at walmart. it comes in little or large tubs then just dissolves into water and collects in the bottom of the tub. you shouldnt have to put it in anything. i remember this filament breaking thing coming up before and it was mentioned awhile back to esun. it was my understanding they corrected that issue but maybe not...or...maybe you got an older spool. they do have the pla+ out now which is only a couple bucks more. supposed to be less brittle and alot stronger.

jules, i think i remember Ed (the mythbuster) Nisley busting the rice/dehumidifier thing awhile back. i dont think rice ended up doing anything for humidity levels.
Oh yeah, I know....but bugs trump everything else in my book anyway! ROFL! :lol:

Rice does work somewhat, if you use enough of it (which i did), it just doesn't work as effectively as a dessicant, which i can believe. But i had the rice on hand, and it was easier than sewing up little cloth packages of dessicant balls (i have a five pound can of those for drying flowers - leftover from the primitive crafting days) and having to continually nuke them to dry them back out.

But it is on my list of things to do after the holidays....i'm just too lazy to haul the sewing machine out.

Wham! :shock: An idea strikes! I'll just tie them up in an old sock! It's nukeable!

:D

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