Amazingly Simple Free Filament Dryer -You already have one!

What if i told you that you already have everything you need to assemble one of the best filament dryers available? Don't believe me? In this video i'll show you how, with a combination of very simple principles, we can all dry filament without an oven for free.
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[@nismocapri1]

An experienced design engineer once said to me "If you are adding simplicity or removing complexity your design is going in the right direction, if you are adding parts and complexity it's a sign that you should review your design" This sums that idea up for me!

[@conorstewart2214]

That is a very simplistic view of it, a lot of times you have to add complexity.

[@DailyFrankPeter]

@@conorstewart2214 I've noticed you can always count on others to add complexity (must be easier or something) but rarely anyone removes any... :)

[@aceman1126]

One thing is certain... your design engineer friend was without a doubt NOT German.

[@conorstewart2214]

@@jayblack8132 yes you need a solution for keeping the filament dry. Most common are sealed boxes and desiccant or vacuum bags. However for some filament, especially filament that isn't very hygroscopic, it will take a while to rehydrate, so you can get away with leaving it in the open and only dehydrating when you notice it has become too wet.

[@KitGerrits]

​​@@jayblack8132I am considering the same. Hot air can contain more moisture than cold air and water is more likely to evaporate from something when it is hot, that is how the principle works. In the case of this box (see what I did there?), convection makes the "extra wet air" rise out the top. It is then replaced with colder air, which can contain more air as it heats up. If you cycle the "wet" air out once the drying is complete (and ideally vacuum pack it), the moisture should stay out. I'm too lazy for all that, so I use almost-airtight crates with no vacuum bags and recycle the dessicant pack when I notice the humidity goes up (if it doesn't recover after taking out or putting in a roll). A mini-fridge would be the ideal size for having a mini dehydrator.

[@grlygirl1264]

I did this! I had two failed prints and didn't know why...on one printer the filament (PLA) broke and got stuck in the tube. Not knowing my filament needed to be dried, I moved it over to my second printer and restarted my print. The filament was being shredded going into the extruder (swollen) and broke again. I asked in a social media group what was going on..someone told me to dry my filament. I don't have a dryer so I Googled how to do it without one...and found your video. I gave it a try...and the next day the filament printed flawlessly! Thank you so much!!!!

[@RickyImpey]

Glad you've seen such great improvements!

[@waldolemmer]

I'm surprised you managed to salvage your filament. According to Zack Freedman, the process where humidity makes filament brittle is permanent, so filament that has become brittle can't be restored.

[@wabisabi7600X]

@@waldolemmer I mean if that were true then nobody would talk about the drying your filament drill, there wouldn't be filament dryers either

[@waldolemmer]

@ Filament only gets brittle once it's absorbed a ton of moisture. Filament dryers exist to prevent filament degradation, not to cure it.

[@MomMakesStuff]

I just came here to say that not all heroes wear capes, but I’d chip in for a cape for you if you wanted one. Because you’ve earned it.

[@thetechhobbyist3d9]

Coming back to say that this technique truly is a miracle! Not a single filament, the old ones and the cheap ones, resist to it. I get better result from filaments I had almost 7 months ago after this than brand new ones. Thanks again!

[@RickyImpey]

Thanks for taking the time to come back and comment👍 I don't really use this method myself as I have a modified filament dryer but I dry all the filament I buy now. So much of it comes with some kind of moisture content. A lot of PETG is unusable from new for me. Like you, I'm always able to print with older filament after a spell of drying too. Glad you have good results after watching one of my videos, that's what they are here for🙂

[@lebasson]

Glad to hear about your results. How long do you keep your filaments in there? I understand that this will depend on how moist the filament has gotten but can you give a ballpark figure of what 'should generally' be enough?

[@thetechhobbyist3d9]

@@lebasson I do about 60deg for at least 4 hours. for my oldest filaments, I did left some overnight so that would be a good 8h. But I do believe that if your filament is in a very bad storage, the humidity can actually break the filament to the point that drying it won't help.

[@Thiccologist]

@@RickyImpey What temperature do you normally use for drying your PETG and for how long?

[@anachronist]

@@Thiccologist - I've been drying PETG at 55° for 12-18 hours. I can't use a higher temperature because the PETG is on a spool made from PLA, but that temperature and duration works fine.

[@saintawful7127]

The thumbs up button wasn't enough. I love things that are smart and save me money. Thank you so very much.

[@RickyImpey]

You're welcome!

[@Mark-nm6zw]

Now that is "thinking within the box".... Excellent, I'm going to give this a whirl - maybe turbo it with an extractor fan, maybe print a cover that fits snug over the spool - you've definitely got my creative juices flowing!

[@LordHojo]

As someone who is just now getting into 3d printing, thank you sooo much for this. I surely would have went out and purchased a filament dryer sooner or later and this just saves me money and space.

[@sdg3363]

Personally I’d still inverse in owning you haven’t yet. Spending 8 hours to dry 1 filament without being able to use your printer at the same time isn’t ideal, but it’s fine if you have no other options

[@andyminch9156]

I came back after trying out the method, just to Tell you that it works really really well! My small anycubic printer kept messing up prints, warping and all kinds of stupid incomprehensible crap. After drying the filament with your method it printed perfectly, INSTANTLY!! Thanks, man, you rock!!

[@florianfeith]

I "built" this yesterday and I was quite amazed how good this works. I had a wet roll of PETG which came very wet from the factory. I couldn't even finish my calibration prints, it was popping all the time and the models just crumbled. Let it sit on the bed at 65C ovenight and it now prints great. I already have 28 of your dryboxes made, so thank you for those also. I use the 5l variant of the storage box because I don't use the somewhat big dehumidifiers but rather silica in Nylon "Organza" Bags. Thanks a lot, you made my life easier!

[@germas369]

Thanks mate! I just dried my PETG spool for about 4 hours and it worked like a charm! I just had to set the bed to 95C to keep the temperature inside the box around 65C

[@cybranshark]

Instead of working outside the box, you used the box. Simply ingenious and effective. You've earned yourself a thumbs-up, a new subscriber, and a $5 tip. Keep up the great work!

[@RickyImpey]

Thanks very much, I really appreciate the comment and tip!

[@_blood_moon_proto_1500]

damn, ya missed the chance to really box in a good pun there hehe... im not sorry

[@AndouHarvey]

3 years later and your video is still a lifesaver for people who have just joined the hobby, like me. Thanks man

[@lamarw7757]

I knew most of how to do 3d printing before I ever bought one. Research, and common sense.

[@AndouHarvey]

@lamarw7757 wow! I'm so proud of you buddy!

[@geronimo3451]

it's awesome! I just tested it and it works very well! For TPU it's very important to dry it before use, this idea is perfect!

[@TheAlcheprints]

You just saved me 40-50 bucks, i think that deserves a subscription

[@Volz__]

This is crazy!! It works!! I had a unknown tpu filament in my garage for months and always had bubbles. After this small diy it works like new!

[@libervolucion]

Could you please tell me for how long and at what temperature?

[@Volz__]

@@libervolucion im using a glass bed 90C for my tpu/petg around 3hrs. I flip it over once and awhile and check on it so it doesnt catch on fire(its a cardboard roll)

[@willkiel3137]

Fantastic video. I nearly bought a Sunlu Plus filament dryer as they were only £19 on a well known Chinese site. The cheaper price for it concerned me. I found a cardboard box that the spool fitted in and fortunately it fitted on the heated plate nicely. I did put a few holes in the top. I then realised that by turning the box over would let the hot humid air out and replace it with the room air, (I did this every hour for 6 hours). This is where the air comes from when the hot damp air rises and leaves the box through the holes anyway. The spool stopped the filament touching the plate and dried it out nicely. My prints had got to the stage I was almost going to give up on the Ender 3 S1. Now I love it again. I realised that paper and cardboard won't burn until much higher temps so I used it to keep the heat below the bed trapped in. I'll install insulation under the plate in future. Then I realised that in the software I can turn off the injector head temp to under room temp and the fan to off. So the only power was for the heated bed. I can't find a way to upload the images of the 2 prints, but they are night and day. I had read on the web that PLA doesn't take on much moisture and you don't need to worry about it. PLA needs to be dried out. I nearly bunged my printer, when it was 2 year old filament that had gone damp. I had noticed that it snapped most times I came back to the printer, now hopefully it won't. Now I think I'll get some vacuum bags to store the dried filament in with some silica gel. I don't think PLA will be affected by moisture during a print of 4 or 5 hours, I think it would take days. I'll learn over time.

[@UrosGavric]

Tried it on PETG and worked nicely! I didnt even make holes in the box, just turned it upside down, rotated it so edges were of the bed so some air can get it and set bed temp to 60 celsius. Ran it for about 1,5 hours. Thank you very much for the video.

[@lparigi34]

Thank for sharing the duration, I came to ask for this

[@phytosth]

Your videos about drying filament are always great. I've already printed 4 dry boxes and they are working great keeping the moisture at 10%. This is amazing!!!

[@RickyImpey]

Thanks man, you never really know if people enjoy what you're doing so the nice comment is great.

[@IlanPerez]

what is this dry box you are talking about?

[@balhazer]

could u share the link or STL for the dry boxes you use to storage your dry filaments, please

[@mjenx86]

@@IlanPerez kzbin.info/www/bejne/ooHWioVsqbR0asksi=P4HzJSaBIklXMusX

[@mjenx86]

@@balhazer kzbin.info/www/bejne/ooHWioVsqbR0asksi=P4HzJSaBIklXMusX

[@jimmysgameclips]

Genius idea. There's some handy filament drying temp/times tables for drying too. I got one with my flashforge filament

[@lamarw7757]

Nope, just common sense.

[@jimmysgameclips]

@lamarw7757 I have always lacked that

[@Kenchinito2207]

Omg, you just earned my subscription. Straight and to the point. No need for a back story of how once you saved a puppy from a frozen river.

[@RickyImpey]

🤣

[@venom_ftw9316]

Same here

[@jwd1776]

This worked! Thanks for posting this video. I had some TPU that seemed to be popping and under extruding but after setting it up like you suggested went to bed got up and the filament worked fine.

[@RickyImpey]

Cool, thanks for leaving the comment 👍

[@JB-xg7io]

Great simple idea. Also, if you use a cardboard box that is uncoated, the cardboard will absorb moisture from the inside and wick it to the outside to evaporate which will make it even more efficient.

[@doeliy]

Thank you for these amazing tips! I was frustrated with the cheap filament I bought during a clearance sale-it was brittle and kept breaking. After trying this trick, the filament is much better now and prints without breaking. Plus, I don’t have to buy those ridiculously expensive filament dryers. Thank you!

[@ItsMeAndru]

I did this for 4 hours and the difference in the print's quality was impressive! Great tip!

[@escher22421]

Brilliant! That is one of those great "Why didn't I think of that?" inventions. Thanks for sharing!

[@ThreenaddiesRexMegistus]

That’s really quite clever and easily made! I use a Kmart food dehydrator with a cardboard cylinder to replace the plastic shelving. $55 and it works perfectly. It will do multiple rolls of filament and really improves printing results. The dried filament is stored in vacuum bags or sealed plastic storage from Bunnings, some even have a PVC pipe rack and filament path of Bowden tube to allow direct feeding. Can store 4 rolls and alternate as required. 👍🏻

[@Krautech]

I'd love to see pics! Need to hit up Kmart and Bunnings haha

[@argonarray7688]

I didn't even seek for the way to dry filament, but here i am. Considering that i still have a problem with stringing, i will definetely try this method. It's free after all. Thx in advance for this tip

[@lamarw7757]

Did you pay for the printer? If you did then it ain't free. If you used it for a boat anchor, you still paid for it.

[@argonarray7688]

@@lamarw7757 Yes, i paid my 100$ for 3d printer, i get my 3d printer that 3d prints for 100$ dollars. If i use it as a filament dryer, does it mean that i now have a printer for 60$ and filament dryer for 40? Or it's additional 40, so now i actually spent 140? I understand that printer have a price. But in this context it makes absolutely zero sense to account for it.

[@lucidchance]

I just got a 3D printer a few days ago and I am so using this! This is genius! I saw this video first when I didn’t have a printer yet and I just haven’t stopped thinking about it!

[@TheRealKnightchip]

I am back with news. This worked for an old pla spool I have had for quite a while. It was brittle to the touch but now it's not breaking as easily, going to try a print and see how it goes. Really appreciate this awesome tip

[@AweButSome]

your video save me tons of money, my printer had a problem which unsolved for 2month, which i almost decided buying new hotend and filament, then i stumbled upon your vid and realised that my probably my filament is bad, i did as your video suggested and it works. 😄👍🏻

[@ixtria]

Hi AweButSome. Just curious, what was the problem you were facing? I have a roll of PLA that I've been thinking was junk. I have inconsistent layer lines and now wondering if it's moisture.

[@FranzStrasse]

Let's just say that this method works and I am using it now - but I had to come back to remind myself that the suggested temperature was 70C, it's nice to know I can still remember little details like that. Someday I might build a box, but right now I just want my sparkle black filament to be usable again.

[@13StJimmy]

Honestly, Genius!! May not be the best for Nylon but a solution is a solution! I’m just getting into 3D Printing and it gets overwhelming with so many people saying you need to also do XYZ and rack up the costs but then I stumble upon people like you who actually have great solutions and are affordable Me and my wallet thank you

[@ZERONEINNOVATIONS]

This,,,, is too good to be true! I wish I watched your video before purchasing $35 food dehydrator, designing spacer 30mins, and printing spacer 6hrs

[@Rippeee]

Your oven is also pretty massive dehydrator, it can dry like 12 rolls at once.

[@Rakshasa84]

Thank you for this very simple and ingenious idea. Absolutely perfect for someone just starting out!

[@rauchfamily4]

brilliant use of the bed! I came about this in a slightly different fashion that holds a bit more and I can still print while using. I bought a 2 pack of Plant Heating mats on AMZ (in testing stay between 70-85 degrees and each mat holds 2 spools) For < $30 and with 4 cardboard boxes I got a 4 spool dehumidifier that doesn't tie up my printer bed. ;)

[@Christina-CA-808]

That's brilliant!!

[@TheStrokeForge]

what temperature and how much time should I leave my filament on for, if i'm using my printer bed? ? this seems really intuitive!

[@Droperix]

Thanks a lot for this video, I had issues with my pla stringing, but 8 hours at 50c fixed them!

[@alvasalrey]

LMAO DUDEEEEE!!!! comenting on an old video, but i just got my first printer and for some reason the dryer wont arrive for 2 more weeks, ive been printing like a kid with a new toy for 2 days until today i started seeing adhesion problems and bubbles in my prints, from reading online i found is most likely a moisture problem, but dont want to put the filament in my oven (i cook there and im not sure how safe it is) then i thought of the bed printer, i rigged a box from leftover cardboard for Christmas present packing and it worked, never thought of using the box the filament came in lol, this is genius

[@bruceogletree7995]

Absolutely fiendish! Seeing the combo Temp/Hum meter on your gizmo inspired me to grab one of the extra ones Bambu sent me. Using it now, and thanks!

[@rodneymiles6923]

Great video Ricky - Straight to the point and no fluff. Proper. You've got another subscriber now.

[@samsoto9111]

This is the first video I’ve seen from you so I didn’t know your original voice until I clicked on the next video… I have to say I found your normal voice so funny once I heard it for the first time. You earned a new follower.

[@RickyImpey]

Welcome aboard!

[@Elephantine999]

I like the scientific approach. Weighing water loss from a sponge to test is a great idea.

[@802Garage]

Love how responsive you are in the comments. I use this method now. Definitely works, though I haven't encountered any super wet filament yet. Can remove at least a couple grams an hour at 60C bed temp.

[@RickyImpey]

Sounds good, a couple of grams is a lot.

[@MrGsking12]

Not gonna lie your videos probably like the best one out there on DIY trying out your filament. I always reference people to it.

[@sparky-jo7dk]

I tried this to dry my reusable desiccant. It works great for that too!!!! Genius!

[@elitewolverine]

Considering the heat bed can hit 110c. I have used this method tobdry many many things. Love it. And my 2.5kg rolls... No problem compared to the small dryerw

[@RussG]

That is a clever idea. I would like to add a tip if I may. I punched a little hole in the side of the box so I could insert a digital meat thermometer probe through it so I could measure the air temperature within the box. I did it near the corner of the box so the probe wouldn't hit the filament. I found that it didn't get nearly as hot inside the box as the heat bed on my Prusa i3Mk3s+ and I that I needed to turn the bed temperature setting up quite a bit beyond the desired air temp. I was concerned that I might make the bed so hot as to damage the filament spool or the filament closest to the bed so I didn't turn it up too much. I never got the air temp never as hot as is recommended for drying PETG, but even so, after a few hours of drying time the stringing I was seeing during printing was almost totally gone.

[@duncanwest1864]

So simple but so effective. Fixed all my issues with stringing

[@dennisdecoene]

That's so smart. It's a very good example of first principle design. 👍🏻

[@nathanking2484]

Like all of the really great ideas - simple, cheap and effective. Excellent invention/discovery, thanks for sharing.

[@Black3ternity]

Lovely. Sitting here with a snotty nose, munching on some cake and waiting for my print on my Bambu X1C to finish. Already looked eagerly to the "Filament drying" option in the menu but everyone on reddit screams at it to degrade your components. And along comes a great guy called Ricky Impey and shows an awesome video that it works not just talks about it. Thanks and get well soon!

[@gregtoland1102]

My wife uses a garden germinator heating pad for bread proofing. I imagine it would also work well for dehumidifying my filament - I'll try it out.

[@lparigi34]

I think I love you... really... been laughing out loud for a while.. this is such an elegant solution! I also have a couple of extra printers that are not seeing much of load lately, I'd might even repurpose one 100% for this.

[@RickyImpey]

Ha ha, glad you like it🙂

[@wispa7209]

Drying filament worked wonders for me. I live in a tropical environment which means my workshop gets quite humid without air conditioning (75-85% RH at 25-32 degrees C). After fine tuning my printer, filaments straight out of the box print perfectly. I notice around 2-3 days later stringing starts to appear though. It only got worse as cracking and popping start to appear as well. Getting a filament dryer was a lifesaver, though i did regret buying the sunlu dryer later. I had thought of doing what was in this video early on but was too fearful and inexperienced to execute it at the time. But now i have revisited the idea thanks to this. I made a 21x21x10cm cardboard box lined with aluminum foil on the inside, using a combination of packing tape, kapton tape, and double tape adhesive to keep it together. The added height over the normal filament box gives it a bit of clearance overhead, allowing for better convection. Also made a 2cm thick circle with a 9cm diameter out of a strip of cardboard to keep distance between the roll and the bed. Poked holes on top, left some small gaps at the sides where it touches the bed. Heat up to desired temperature, put down the things in order, and leave for a few hours or even overnight. Come back to ready-to-print roll of filament. I still have safety concerns (namely of fire), but so far the benefits seem to outweigh the possible risks. Besides, i have left the bed heated for far longer when doing normal prints. So far? No fires. And i hope it stays that way. Another concern is knocking off the bed levelling, though i think that could be remedied with flatter/harder springs as well as thin silicone pads... which is an upgrade i'm about to do soon.

[@RickyImpey]

Yes, great work. I even dry new filament now as I've seen a weight reduction in every spool I've tried. I wouldn't worry too much about your bed level as long as you have the standard springs compressed to about 1/3 of their original length. That should be plenty to push it back up to the correct position without any problem. Did you see my S1 mod videos? You could make that S1 better than your bed dryer and print at the same time....kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5umh4dmob1-r7c

[@estebankelly770]

hello Wisp how are you, I'm having the same problems with the filaments, would you be so kind as to be able to publish photos of how you reformed the cardboard box to be able to do the same, thank you very much

[@HauntedSheppard]

This makes so much sence... can't believe the simplicity! Legend

[@justinavery4047]

Thanks man, I just got a 3d printer from someone who didn't use it and it came with lots of filament some of the bag were ripped and exposed I was trying to figure out how to dry them out and found your video!

[@insuranceguy4964]

I'm trying this now. From the comments people say it works.

[@mshepard2264]

I thought I was the only one doing this. I have been doing this for about 3 years. Since i have a couple extra enders it works great.

[@teeambird2079]

Do you do 7 hours at 70 degrees?

[@wittsullivan8130]

I bought a couple extra trays for my food dehydrator to modify so I could fit a roll in it, but never got around to it. This is brilliant!

[@Maradnus]

I was going to say I have a dehydrator! Good call

[@cdpond]

One thing that comes to mind is that initially, the dry cardboard box itself is going to absorb some moisture... but at the cardboard absorbs moisture, the efficiency in its removal of moisture from the filament is going to be reduced. Thankfully I live in a region where our challenge is getting moisture into our living environment, not having to remove it. Still, all said and done, your solution is a good and certainly inexpensive alternative to purchasing a filament drier.

[@JrodsRabbitry]

How am I just now finding this video? This is brilliant!!

[@BeybladeOmega]

This is absolutely brilliant! My moist filament has had me on a quest to level my bed, because i can't afford a dryer. Now I have a super tuned printer (From following your tramming video) and my filament will no longer sizzle and pop! Thanks so much. Liked and subscribed.

[@conorstewart2214]

Levelling the bed won’t fix moisture in the filament, not at all. Properly tuning the printer doesn’t make the filament stop sizzling and popping. That is just complete nonsense.

[@izack367]

man this is life saver for someone whos is on the tight budget

[@ColinWatters]

Great idea. I was thinking of buying one but now I can easily test if damp filament is causing the problem.

[@reinaldoalencar8432]

This idea is excelent. Especially for me since I do have an heating bed lying around as spare part.

[@goatmodegaming]

Thank you so much, my mom wouldn’t let me use the oven to dry filament and I’m too poor to afford a dryer, so this is perfect!

[@cerolocks8662]

Exact same situation man , have you tried this method yet , and if so how’d it work for you , what filament did you test it on ? Thanks in advance

[@goatmodegaming]

@@cerolocks8662 it worked perfectly, I had used small spools of PETG overnight, so like 10 hours. But the cardboard wasn’t working so I took plastic kitchen container and covered the inside with foil, poked some holes in the top (hopefully my mom doenst find out lol). For PLA make the plate like 60 and make sure there isn’t too much space in the bottom. Maybe flip the roll I’ve half way through too. I did have one roll that cooked in the middle a lot though, it may have been slightly too hot. Good luck! If you have any more questions I do see my YT notifications in mail so I’ll be quick

[@goatmodegaming]

@@cerolocks8662 and actually covering the inside of cardboard box with foil would be fine m sure too, I just used plastic container

[@Mo-bi1pk]

@@goatmodegaming be careful with what you use, since you don’t want to be eating from a container that you used on your filament

[@БабурЮсупов-э9ф]

thanks. u gave amazing solution which I wouldn't have never find out myself. I wanted to tip u but I'm in china so I cannot do it..subscribed and liked bro. keep on

[@CallMeSwal]

Amazing content dude, very helpful! I am 3D printing in Rwanda and it would four weeks to ship a filament dryer to me. Very happy that you came up with this at-home solution

[@RickyImpey]

Great, glad it helped 👍

[@TheDogn]

Thanks for getting in front of that camera even though you didnt feel like it 😂 i found the information extremely useful ❤️

[@PeraLind]

Thanks from the tip! It really works. World need more innovators as you!

[@Caffin8tor]

Consistent with the old adage "work smarter not harder" very nice!

[@adamsvette]

If it isn't already "thanks for watching, I'm going back to bed" should be your permanent sign off line

[@blendervendor2220]

I second this lmao

[@bluetorch13]

and you can control the temp very accurate! mate you are a freaking genius. I can't print at all because all my filaments are damp. You can try lowering the print head and and turning on the fans in a way they suck the air from the box with some 3D printed ducts!

[@clarkkent5442]

Thank you SO MUCH!!! I was about to buy some very expensive equipment, or stuff my PETG into the oven before I saw this. Since I have an old Ender 3 I rarely ever use anymore, this has just become my drying station!!! Thanks SO MUCH!!! I'm surprised this hasn't been taken down yet, I know there's going to be a lot of very rich people that are very pissed off if this info takes off within the 3D hobbyist community lol

[@rics_zip]

How many hours for PETG?

[@kristiantaverne7498]

You could also print a foot for the box which is standing on the print bed. Which keeps afloat above the bed itself. This helps the airflow inside and also the cardboard doesn't hit the print bad which keeps it away from possible fires

[@ngj874]

this is genius! Saved me a bunch of money

[@ondrefekete8946]

what temperature do you recommend for PLA?

[@potaterjim]

I'm curious if it's worth 3d printing a little convection box, if only to reduce the fire hazard. The materials are already designed to survive on the heated bed for a long time, so you could be pretty confident they wouldn't burst into flames even after repeated use.

[@nicoleibundgut534]

Awesome. Love the easy aproach here.

[@-MrDontCare-]

I never knew you had to dry the filament. Good to know when I eventually get one myself.

[@TimothyStovall108]

Hmm, very nice. I have this heating pad I had bought for baby animals that can get extremely hot, as I found out the hard way. Since I don't have any baby animals around now, I guess I can repurpose that heating pad into something like this. Maybe print out a cover, with an exhaust fan mount, as I have plenty of spare PC fans lying around, and I have a nice little filament dryer. Thanks for the idea.

[@Bespoke-Rodriguez]

This is one of the coolest ( or hottest?! ) hacks ! ✌ This will be my go-to solution till I buy a filament dryer or build one of my own.

[@roysekulich5763]

So simple and fantastic I am mad I didn't think of it. Thank you for this information

[@Coyote.five.0]

for .80c i can dry my filament thank you so much , in my city the kw per hour is about .16c and in about 5 hours thats 80 cents its a no brainer, i basically can do this once a month and have a dry stash of filaments.

[@Liberty4Ever]

I just bought a filament drying box today but this is a great tip. Many people upgrade their printer and older 3D printers have a fairly lousy resale value. It might be good to keep one as filament dryer.

[@RedneckTechSupport]

low resale value for the sellers. I only buy used. Saved so much money. It's a gamble on saving time as sometimes i've had to fix an issue here or there but 500 for the printer and upgrades vs 100 on facebook marketplace, yeah gimme the 400 to put towards whiskey!

[@Liberty4Ever]

@@RedneckTechSupport - I'm a sucker for the latest and greatest in the fast moving world of 3D printers. Not only am I not saving a fortune on a low mileage last year's printer, I'm currently waiting for the Neptune 4 Pro Max because the very nice Neptune 4 Max doesn't have the Pro features I want. I am thinking about converting my old SV01 3D printer into an EDM machine although the only real application I can imagine would be electrical discharge machining the rifling of a pistol barrel for some wacky 3D printed pew pew machine I might want to design, but then I'd post a video online and the fed bois would pay me a visit even though it's completely legal. :-/

[@random0332]

I did this but at 85c, printing with one of the spools i saved and it already looks so much better.

[@piotrnod6489]

dude I almost finished my dryer and well, its more complicated than it should xd so yeah, your idea is genial in its simplicity. gonna use your measuring method to verify how good my behemoth is stay safe

Dude! I crown you King of "Why didn't I think of that"! 🤯

[@thetechhobbyist3d9]

Very neat video. I got a second printer with bad parts that needs changing, ill use it as a dryer while waiting to get it fixed!

[@norm401]

Great idea and I'm sure it works if you have wet filament. Better yet never let your filament get wet! My environment is typically minimum of 45% to 60% humid. But I never have a problem because I use those air/watertight totes with desiccant after each use of any filament. In totes the humidity averages 27% to 30% and the desiccant shows no signs of wearing out for over a year. And the big benefit is no wasted energy or wearing out of my heated bed.

[@TDOBrandano]

Just store the spools in hardware shop paint buckets with desiccant packets. the paint buckets are air tight by definition, and each can store 3 to 4 spools. the desiccant can be dried on the print bed the same way as the filament.

[@amsoiltek]

@@TDOBrandano Problem I see with paint buckets is that you can't see what's inside, minor setback that can fixed with labeling.

[@Ambeastly]

New to 3D printing, been at it about 3 days now and I'm already addicted. With this method of drying should I keep the filament in the spool holder to prevent direct contact with the print bed?

[@TheArtofWalls]

Great use for the old small bed of my Tevo Tarantula. Since the day I replaced it with a bigger one, it has been lying around useless. Now I know it was waiting for this revelation 😅

[@Stambo59]

Any old school stick welder owner will tell you the best way to get welding rods dry is to not let them absorb moisture in the first place. We used to use an old filing cabinet with a 40w incandescent light bulb in it to keep it warm to store all our welding sticks. These days you could probably mimic that with an automotive brake light or 2 running off a 12v power source in a similar cabinet. All it has to do is keep the temperature a few degrees above ambient and you're done.

[@odeball22]

What a G this is exactly why this video didn't trend they don't want people to know this.

[@davidg5898]

Brilliant. I'll definitely be trying this soon.

[@Beehive66]

Can finally do something with my busted up Ender! Thanks for this!

[@ShedOfDreams]

Been doing exactly this for years, seemed obvious to me. Wrapping a pastie in tin foil and placing on the heated bed also works a treat😊

[@steinanderson]

hot pasties hurt my nipples

[@jerbear7952]

Shame you didn't share it :/

[@ShedOfDreams]

@@jerbear7952 If I shared everything I know KZbin would run out of server space 😆

[@davidaguilar2151]

what temp do you use in the bed?

[@ShedOfDreams]

@@davidaguilar2151 60/65

[@wandererstraining]

Crazy how useful heated beds are. I routinely use mine to defrost food from the freezer.

[@potteryjoe]

Great idea, thanks for sharing

[@Janovich]

Thanks, thats so smart Ill try it out

[@asakayosapro]

This is good for a quick-n-dirty way to dry filament - at least until you get a proper use-while-drying filament dryer that keeps it dry even as you are using it. Its still worth to get a dedicated setup to dry filament as part of the printing process.