Coffee pod disaster

I haven't tried PLA-HT. My go-to is Sakata PLA 850, and I also use PETG and the Taulman 910 nylon "alloy". The Taulman stuff makes excellent cleaning filament, by the way, and is far cheaper than the stuff they'll sell you a meter or two of at a time. Strong, higher melting point than anything else I use, doesn't stick to the nozzle etc, so it's great for hot or cold pulls, or manually feeding through the hotend to clear old gunk. I have not measured the dimensional change I get when annealing PLA in my filament drier, because the specific amount hasn't been critical. I've read that it's typically 1 or 2% shrinkage in X-Y, and 1-2% growth in Z. This dimensional change isn't due to the chemical composition of the filament, so I don't think your PLA variant would differ much. As I understand it, it's from the plastic being "squished" down in layers, which expands it horizontally. When you anneal it, some of that physical tension is released and the material de-squishes vertically and contracts horizontally. The specific amount is likely consistent enough that if it was critical to you, you could compensate by scaling your model.

Charles

Thank you. Have you tried any PLA-HT? It's my understanding that it has less dimensional change and what it does do is predictable enough that you can change the design of the model to compensate.

It is my understanding that there are food pathogens that can survive anything short of a good, long autoclaving provided they are ensconced in a porous material, and that includes bleaching etc. But as you say, short-term use for dry goods or similar is probably not too risky. I've done some "tempering". I tried the oven once, but mine simply can't be set to a low-enough temperature. I then tried my filament spool drier, and it's pretty ideal - set it for a much lower temperature than the glass transition point - I've been using 35-45C - for several hours, and then let it cool to room temperature before opening. You do get some dimensional changes - a little shrinkage in X-Y, and a little elongation in Z. But the part comes out much stronger and less brittle. I've got the PrintDry Filament Dryer Pro.

Charles

I know you're technically correct about the nooks and crannies making fdm printing inherently risky for food contact, though I do think there are caveats. Products like Colorfabb HT and the one you mention are able to withstand temperatures up to boiling so can be effectively sanitized. I can't imagine the conditions are much different than a fairly used plastic cutting board with all its marks and they can be properly cleaned. I think a lot are nylon also. Maybe chemical sanitizers would work, but I'd be concerned about plastic degradation? The other issue is what is it contacting. I definitely wouldn't use it for raw poultry items for instance, but wouldn't be concerned with dry goods and high salt or acidity foods that are essentially cured and that sort of thing. But as you mentioned, storage probably isn't great regardless. Also, I'm wondering what method you use to "temper". I've got a spool of PLA-HT designed to go in the oven, but haven't yet tried it. Do you find it beneficial for a whole range of filament types?

Would be good to go for platinum curing silicon as it's considered food safe. Great idea

How fun. I'm curious what potential hot water post processing of PLA might bear? If you're not looking to make tiny plastic stalactites I'd recommend you try ColorFabb HT or Fiberlogy CPE-HT, their glass transition temp is 100C. I've printed cookie cutters and spritz cookie dies with it because you can throw it in the dishwasher. You could also try Taulman3D Nylon 680 FDA that I think has a gtt in the mid to upper 90s. The big caveat is they both print in the upper 200's with bed temps above 100C. A heated chamber isn't specifically required but you've mentioned you tend to keep room temp in the teens, so maybe necessary in the icebox you call your home :)

No PLA variant will survive this, to the best of my knowledge. PETG won't. ABS I think is marginal - glass transition temperature just over boiling. I have Taulman 910 nylon "alloy" (they call it that, bad term) that would do the trick, I believe. Its printing temperature is quite high - I use 265C on an FLSun QQ-S Pro. It won't melt at a puny 100C. It's also tough as nails. Unfortunately it's not cheap - the last 1kg roll I bought was close to 100 Canadian kopeks, though it's also available in cheaper 1-pound reels. Even with it, though, I would probably "temper" (again, bad term) what I printed before exposing it to hot water. Less likely to break apart that way. Oh, and someone mentioned food-safe plastics - there are many, but no 3d-printed plastic is food-safe. It's all porous to one degree or another because of the way the plastic is melted and solidified, so there are tiny holes for bacteria to hide in and survive through a disinfecting wash. Don't store food or beverages in 3d-printed containers.

Charles

You could try printing it in chocolate

adrian

I guessed the result, after self trying to soften some PLA with hot tap water (ca. 70 dec C) It became very soft even at that temperature. PLA can tak a lot, but heat is not one of them :-)

Zeedijk Mike

Nescafe instant is so simple and has the same kick.

Frank

I got the generic nespresso compatible machine as a toy. For proper coffee I use an Aeropress.

Big Clive

I've been experimenting with a few different brands here. I think I have some Sunlu. It's quite good. Much less prone to snapping than the generic brands.

Big Clive

whilst I understand the motivation to create and experiment, I can't help but think you could achieve the same or better results by just buying a cheap espresso machine, I'm a coffee snob though so I would say that. I'd also be a bit concerned about what plasticisers or other additives might be added to 3d filament to get it to look good and operate correctly at 3d printing temperatures leaching out under heat and pressure, even if the base material is food safe.

Print a mold in just about whatever, and then cast it in a high-temperature food grade epoxy. You can add an intermediate step of making a silicone-based mold from a positive print instead, if printing a mold directly has other issues like release angles and supports because a silicone mold can be made flexible and cut at weird angles, but this is a relatively simple item. Nothing PLA-based is going to hold up to the temperature and pressure, and most higher-temp filaments are a serious pain to print with.

George Dorn

I use Sunlu PLA+ it prints best between 210 and 230C way hotter than regular PLA. I don't know if it would make a difference just my two euro cents. I can post you a few meters to try if you want.

Nuts 'n' Proud

Try ABS filament

Pete Kay

lol we all know where this is going. ☺so is it possible to reuse the filament now that its back in the extruded form. 🤦‍♂️🤣 👍👍

DC Allan

Lol.. reminds me of me trying to print a tea cup. :)

Badger