Abandoned printing a few years ago, getting back into it. I have several rolls of PLA and one ABS. The PLA rolls are brittle due to being stored in the open for years. I ran them through a dryer at 50c for 12 hours with no improvement. I’ve seen suggestions online for 55c so I’m trying that right now, but I imagine they’re fucked.

Will more heat help or am I wasting my time?

Edit: another 10 hours at 55 did nothing, I’m abandoning the spool and trying the ABS at 65 for a full day. It wasn’t brittle to start so I’ll have to test print to know if it worked, but I’ll post an update here for posterity.

  • MysteriousSophon21@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    ·
    2 months ago

    Once PLA gets brittle like that, it’s usually because the polymer chains have broken down (hydrolysis) which no amout of drying can fix - the chemical damage is permanent.