Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?  

Air fryers won't cut it; they recirculate the air which quickly saturates.  Once saturated the moisture re-enters the filament as much as it escapes.

The working temperature of the filament makes little difference except that higher temperature filaments permit slightly faster drying.

What matters are the air changes - the heat manipulates the relative humidity enabling the air to carry away more moisture but the moist air must then be removed and replaced by dry air - that's why so many of us use lightly modified food dehydrators.

Your filament will dry at 50°C - 60°C as long as the air is changing...

Cheerio,

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @diem

Air fryers won't cut it; they recirculate the air which quickly saturates.  Once saturated the moisture re-enters the filament as much as it escapes.

The working temperature of the filament makes little difference except that higher temperature filaments permit slightly faster drying.

What matters are the air changes - the heat manipulates the relative humidity enabling the air to carry away more moisture but the moist air must then be removed and replaced by dry air - that's why so many of us use lightly modified food dehydrators.

Your filament will dry at 50°C - 60°C as long as the air is changing...

Cheerio,

I tested it, the PET-CF does not dry at 50-60°C, even if air is being replaced, it doesn't even dry at 85°C. It keeps gaining weight while drying, absorbing moisture. I already had this discussion at Voron discord with people who print PET-CF a lot, and they confirmed that this is simply too low temperature for PET-CF to dry, no matter how much air circulation there is.

So if air fryer is not an option, what other compact consumer electronics device could be used here instead?

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Oven?

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

I have an oven, but I think it wouldn't be safe to cook food in it if I use it for drying filament. And I don't have the space for a second countertop oven. Like I said, looking for a compact solution.

RE:

Maybe look for something like a Autoclave (total overkill) or Hot Air Sterilizer used in laboratories to clean instruments/tools?
There are smaller devices in the size of the microwave.

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @_kaszpir_

Maybe look for something like a Autoclave (total overkill) or Hot Air Sterilizer used in laboratories to clean instruments/tools?
There are smaller devices in the size of the microwave.

Interesting idea, I am trying to find some, but all I found so far are VERY expensive and also way oversized (like you said, the size of a microwave). I am trying to find something that is close in size to as regular filament dryers, meaning it is barely larger than the regular 1kg filament spool...

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Or maybe something to do meat jerky which also is done in food dehydrators.

I guess with the size you want you may need to go to do something custom anyway.

In that case modifying hot air blower used for drying painted walls or plastered walls could be used. Is is already big enough to fit in the spool, and small enough to be the size of the microwave or a bit less. Remove big metal fan (or slow it down significantly or replace with a smaller one. Adjust protective mesh/grill. It has a heating coil large enough to generate quite a lot of heat. Electronics could be probably easily modified to add thermistor for better temperature control by simple on/off ( or it may already have one).

Something similar to https://www.boels.com/en-pl/hire/heater-electric-230v-3-kw/p/11305

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @_kaszpir_

Or maybe something to do meat jerky which also is done in food dehydrators.

I guess with the size you want you may need to go to do something custom anyway.

In that case modifying hot air blower used for drying painted walls or plastered walls could be used. Is is already big enough to fit in the spool, and small enough to be the size of the microwave or a bit less. Remove big metal fan (or slow it down significantly or replace with a smaller one. Adjust protective mesh/grill. It has a heating coil large enough to generate quite a lot of heat. Electronics could be probably easily modified to add thermistor for better temperature control by simple on/off ( or it may already have one).

Something similar to https://www.boels.com/en-pl/hire/heater-electric-230v-3-kw/p/11305

Thank you for the suggestion, that looks like a big project... I suspect these heaters have very little insulation, meaning the heating elements would have to overtemp quite significantly to keep target temperature, leading to large temperature gradient and possibly melting the filament on the side that is closer to the heating element. I think having a much better insulated box would allow for gentler heater element operation. But that means custom box, or insulating this one... So yeah, again, a big project.

I am really surprised that with thousands of fryers/dryers/ovens out there, there isn't a single model that would be sized about the same as the filament spool and be able to crank out 120°C... At this point it would almost be easier to just hack a regular filament drying box, add insulation, crank up the heater and be done with it, assuming the case can survive 120°C.

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

I mean who doesn't love jerky, but high temp printing isn't exactly a mainstream nor consumer thing. You're stacking niches on niches. Maybe Prusa will come out with something one day since the HT90 is a thing.

From the videos online, seems like in addition to heat you'll want to pull some vacuum on a hot spool for at least a couple minutes to help with the dehydration.

I did come across this OS.AT09 vacuum oven (Amazon US) for just $48 and one-day shipping. Looks like it's four times the size of a small toaster oven, so not what Justinas is looking for, and only 4 3 left. I'm just a layman, but seems like a hell of a deal if you're in the market ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

I've used my air fryer with a dehydrator setting to dehydrate filament and it works fantastic.  Don't believe the doubters.  But I just found something better, and I have tried many "filament dryers." Its this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09MCHTXHW

I got this for about $66 after coupons on Amazon. It gets to 190F/88C and has a 400W heater.  It will hold 1 roll of 1kg filament, maybe even bigger ones but I hadn't tried. Digital temp and timer on top and very compact.  And so quiet. Most filament dryers have a 20W to 50W heater at best. And it can do something no filament dryer can. it makes jerky.  Other dehydrators are so huge.  

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @baconfase

I did come across this OS.AT09 vacuum oven (Amazon US) for just $48 and one-day shipping. Looks like it's four times the size of a small toaster oven, so not what Justinas is looking for, and only 4 3 left. I'm just a layman, but seems like a hell of a deal if you're in the market ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Careful what you order... That linked $48 item is only a wire shelf for the OS.AT09 oven... The actual oven itself (Amazon US link) is $2780...

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @sembazuru

Posted by: @baconfase

I did come across this OS.AT09 vacuum oven (Amazon US) for just $48 and one-day shipping. Looks like it's four times the size of a small toaster oven, so not what Justinas is looking for, and only 4 3 left. I'm just a layman, but seems like a hell of a deal if you're in the market ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Careful what you order... That linked $48 item is only a wire shelf for the OS.AT09 oven... The actual oven itself (Amazon US link) is $2780...

Yeap, unfortunately figured that out after the short edit timeframe closed. I actually ended up getting one of these larger 190F dehydrators for my XL5.

This high temp IR sanitizer has a 21x22.5cm footprint, 32.5cm tall. But looks like the timer only goes to 30 minutes which is...a bit short.

The more I search the more it seems like the compact high temp move really is just a toaster oven, optimally with a convection fan (aka air fryer), and to just leave the door open a bit to let moisture escape.

RE:

Posted by: @baconfase

 

Posted by: @sembazuru

Posted by: @baconfase

I did come across this OS.AT09 vacuum oven (Amazon US) for just $48 and one-day shipping. Looks like it's four times the size of a small toaster oven, so not what Justinas is looking for, and only 4 3 left. I'm just a layman, but seems like a hell of a deal if you're in the market ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Careful what you order... That linked $48 item is only a wire shelf for the OS.AT09 oven... The actual oven itself (Amazon US link) is $2780...

Yeap, unfortunately figured that out after the short edit timeframe closed. I actually ended up getting one of these larger 190F dehydrators for my XL5.

 

This high temp IR sanitizer has a 21x22.5cm footprint, 32.5cm tall. But looks like the timer only goes to 30 minutes which is...a bit short.

The more I search the more it seems like the compact high temp move really is just a toaster oven, optimally with a convection fan (aka air fryer), and to just leave the door open a bit to let moisture escape.

I have a similar food dehydrator to yours, but only goes up to 75°C (167°F). Mine is this obsolete model at Amazon. I do have to say that I have a bad(?) habit of just throwing in spools (and desiccant if needed), setting the temperature to the lowest of the filament temperatures, set the timer to the max (99hrs), and then getting back to it in a couple days. So, yes, I've dehydrated PETG at 45°C because there was also PLA in the dehydrator (that's the temperature that I use for PLA).

Food dehydrators are designed to have an airflow through the "oven" volume to pull humidity out. Cracking the door on a food dehydrator would mess up the engineered airflow through it. (And my model does have a door-open sensor so cracking the door would turn it off.) I do agree that food dehydrators are really just low temperature convection ovens. In fact, my kitchen air-frier has a food dehydration mode...

I'm not sure how well an IR sanitizer would work for filament dehydrating. IR heaters heat the surface facing the IR source so any surface that is in shadow won't get as much heating. That's why your back feels cold when facing an IR space heater. For dehydration (food or filament) you really need a hot air bath oven.

RE: Compact air fryer recommendations for high-temp filaments?

Posted by: @baconfase

No I mean who doesn't love jerky, but high temp printing isn't exactly a mainstream nor consumer thing. You're stacking niches on niches. Maybe Prusa will come out with something one day since the HT90 is a thing.

From the videos online, seems like in addition to heat you'll want to pull some vacuum on a hot spool for at least a couple minutes to help with the dehydration.

 

I did come across this OS.AT09 vacuum oven (Amazon US) for just $48 and one-day shipping. Looks like it's four times the size of a small toaster oven, so not what Justinas is looking for, and only 4 3 left. I'm just a layman, but seems like a hell of a deal if you're in the market ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The link that you posted refers to the wire shelves only, the oven is an additional US$ 1,700 +/-  😳