The Low Humidity Filament Box I Made Up..

[The Hat]

I eventually got a clear plastic box suitable to use for a Dry box, the courier somehow managed to damage the first box, so I had to wait for a second to be delivered, the box I got is called Really Useful Products.

This type of box is not air tight, but I don’t suppose it will make a huge difference but if it does then I’ll pack the lid with spray foam to seal it, and at least I have that option to do later if need be. Pic 1

I used much the same bits and pieces from thingiverse.com as @Nifty, which there are many to choose from there, but I went with a piece of 22mm copper pipe for the spool rod and a similar type of support, Pic 2 also the plastic hollow screws and nuts for the sides, Pic 3, I then used Open SCAD to make an inner core for some of the Reels. Pic 4.

I managed to get 4 reels into my box, and I made up little plastic spacers as separators to keep the filament reels in position and apart from each other, I finished off with pieces of foam to keep the filament dust free as it leaves the box. Pic5

I now have the container in its print position, it’s 50 and 90 cm from the printers Pic 6, and inside the box I have temperature / hydrometer gauge and Mini Dehumidifier along with a pack of desiccant beads. Pic 7.

When installed the humidity level was at 65% and over night that has dropped to 48%, so despite not having the container air tight, everything seems to be working as planned.

I used the two-printers feeding from the box at the same time and the filament flowed very smoothly, the only trouble I had was with the PETG filament, it eventually clogged up the nozzle and I was forced to switch to PLA to get going again. (The PETG is an ongoing project) ...

1 2 3 4 5 6 7.
Click and all the Pic will be enlarged..

 

[PeterBJ]

I think the desiccators need regeneration. Images 1, 6 and 7 show the indicating spot has turned greyish green, meaning the silica gel is saturated with moisture. The indicating spot should be orange in an active desiccator.

 

[Nifty]

Wow, great job, and fantastic pics!

I've been surprised at how fast my desiccant sucks up the humidity... often it maxes out in an hour or two. I'm wondering why your level didn't drop below 20 overnight... so I'm guessing @PeterBJ is correct that your desiccant may need recharging and/or the seal may be letting some air exchange?

Regarding the seal: I was very surprised a few times when I thought a bag or box was sealed with desiccant inside, that just a tiny hole made a big difference and made my desiccant saturated.

Would spray-foam work? I thought that stuff gets pretty ridged, no? I'd probably use some kind of sponge foam tape or rubberized or neoprene gasket tape, like this: https://amzn.to/2JNSJPw

 

[The Hat]

Well I decided to improve my Filament box, so added some expanding foam to the inner part of the lid, it looks like a cake when you first look at it. Pic 1.

When the foam dried I trimmed most of the excess foam off and after two fittings got it to seat snugly on the box top and the locking handles snapped shut firmly. Pic 2 & 3.

While I had the lid off the box I used the opportunity to make up a container for the desiccant beads, because the bag it was in was opaque and I couldn’t check to see if they were worn out. Pic 4.

When I emptied the desiccant bag into my new tray, It was well saturated and had turned green, is now cooking to dry it out for reuse and I also charged up the electric Mini Dehumidifier, it takes about 20 hours to get it completely dry.

The one thing I have noticed is the colour of the filament seems to make a difference, I have used different colour reels stored in the same conditions and get excellent results with the yellow, but the black and the green may still be effect by moisture, because the results are still a bit dodgy on some objects Pic 5..
12 4 5

 

[Nifty]

so added some expanding foam to the inner part of the lid

Wow, I'm surprised that worked, but sounds like it did!

The one thing I have noticed is the colour of the filament seems to make a difference, I have used different colour reels stored in the same conditions and get excellent results with the yellow, but the black and the green may still be effect by moisture, because the results are still a bit dodgy on some objects Pic 5..

Yeah, I've heard that different colors, manufacturers, blends, batches, etc. can have a lot of variability in how they print, how they interact with the environment, etc.

 

[Redbrickman]

You can also buy self adhesive rubber door sealing strips whch might work as well as the expanding foam.

 

[The Hat]

I’ve gone and bought another smaller Dry box for two more filament reels, (Different sized core 22 mm) it’s also more portable, giving me a smaller filament run to the extruder..

P.S. If we could only get @stratman interested in 3D printing...

 

[stratman]

Oh, I am interested, but it hasn't gone beyond reading all the fun and informative posts yet. and if I do make the plunge I feel I will be fairly prepared after all the ups and downs you've gone through.

Edit:

 

[The Hat]

I will be fairly prepared after all the ups and downs you've gone through.

Ah yes, but you can see all your mistakes much better in 3D....

 

[stratman]

you can see all your mistakes much better in 3D....

That's why I'm enjoying yours so much!