April 14, 2025
Description
This Print Profile includes all the components you need to upgrade your AMS 2 to use loose (silica gel) desiccant. And the additional Dry Pods allow the AMS 2 to hold more desiccant, which will mean longer times between refreshes. And the Spool Pods provide even more space for desiccant, and add weight to spools so they don't bounce as much when they are empty.
Release notes at bottom.
9 form factors of hygrometers are supported. The Pods can hold hygrometers with a variety of features, from a variety of (12+) vendors:
The Bambu Rectangular Hygrometer is 48mm wide. The AMS 2 Large Pods are only 44mm wide, so there was no way to use the clips on the sides of the hygrometer to hold it in place. However, the Rectangular Hygrometer has small indentations on the top and the bottom of its body that may be used.
The Analog Thermometer and Hygrometer are very compact, maximizing the desiccant in the pod, use no batteries, and they can be adjusted to correct them.
The Rectangular, Xiaomi and Vaikby Hygrometer Pods use small tabs that mate to hold the hygrometers in place.
Note, the requirement to use Supports for these pods, makes it it very difficult to have precise control over the height of the top tabs. It may be necessary to scrape the tabs with a knife to get the hygrometer to snap into place correctly. See image below:
I've printed these in ABS and ABS-GF and installed them into my AMS 2 using the ‘0.20mm Standard @BBL X1C’ System' Preset. Compared to PLA, the ABS were ugly and the ABS-GF were uglier, but in both cases they fit properly and reliably held desiccant. I tried the ‘0.28mm Extra Draft’ preset with the ABS-GF and the parts were fragile, cracking easily when squeezed.
If you have any issues with these print profiles please add a comment to say why. I can't improve them if I don't know how they are failing.
It takes about 390 grams of desiccant to fill all Dry Pods and Desiccant Container. Within about 30 minutes after installing them with fresh desiccant your AMS 2 should show a level 1 humidity level, i.e., at or below 20%.
The Dry Pod, Spool Pod, and Desiccant Container covers include a detent to hold them in place more securely, but they can be a tight fit. Before you add desiccant, fit the covers into place to prevent fumbling with them when they are full of desiccant. The first time you insert a cover it may take some force, but it quickly becomes easier to slide.
The Right and Left Small Dry Pods are mirrors of each other. The their covers are also mirrored. On each plate, the cover for the respective Small Dry Pod is below to it. Make sure that you don't try to insert the Small Dry Pods on the wrong side. See the image below.
To insert the rear pod, be sure that the cover is on the left, before rotating it into position. See the photo below.
Spool Pods
Spool Pods (Plate 3) have two useful features: 1) Each Spool Pod adds another 82 grams of desiccant to the AMS, and 2) they provide additional weight to spools so they don't bounce around as much when almost empty.
Each Spool Pod consists of a Top, Bottom and Cover. The Top and Bottom snap together. Align the Top and Bottom on a table top then press hard on the Top until you hear a snap. You may have to put some shoulder into it, because it takes a fair amount of force to snap them together, but no glue should be needed because these really lock tightly together. After making sure that the cover slot surface that interfaced with the supports in the top is clear, press the Cover into the Top. The first time it may take a lot of force, but it slides easily after a couple of uses.
The Spool Pods are designed to simply snap into Bambu Filament Spools. They can be removed from a spool without removing the desiccant. Spool Pods are not effective when storing filament spools in vacuum bags, because the bag seals the vent holes on either end, and the inside of spool hubs are not vented.
The inside shape of Bambu spools is different on each side: Smooth and Edge. I find that if I press the Spool Pods in from the ‘Edge’ side they go in and out much easier, than if I insert them from the ‘Smooth’ side. See the photo below which show inserting the Spool Pod from the ‘Edge’ side.
The Claymore Pods are designed for storing filament spools in vacuum bags. The inside of a Claymore Pod is vented, which allows exposing the desiccant to the filament, even after vacuum is applied. All sides of Claymore Pods are vented to enable faster refreshing. Claymore Pods are compatible with the Funnel and use the same covers as the Large Dry Pods (Dry Pod Large Cover.stl). The term ‘Claymore’ comes from the pod's resemblance to the shape of the personnel mine designed in the 50's. Note that no supports are used inside the Claymore Pods. This results in a rather ragged top inner surface, however it does not affect strength or functionality.
Claymore pods support channels to attach the optional Claymore Hygrometer (right side in figure below). The Claymore Hygrometer part that can be attached to a large or small claymore.
The small hygrometer claymores hold about 40 grams of desiccant, and the large one holds about 100g. I find that one small clamore is plenty. With fresh desiccant, the humidity is <10%.
The round hygrometer in the Claymore with Round Hygrometer pod can be inserted into any of 4 orientations.
The Bambu Hygrometers can be found in the Maker's Supply store or the Amazon versions work as well. See ordering information below. Note, Both the Bambu Round and Rectangular Hygrometers are list in the Bill of Materials. Only order the one for the version that you print.
A compatible Round Hygrometer can be purchased from Amazon at:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0885TFLZX?th=1
The Xiaomi Bluetooth Thermometer Hygrometer can be found here:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/114642177360
Note: The Xiaomi hygrometer supports a Bluetooth interface that can be connected to the Mijia Reader app to read the status of multiple connected hygrometers, and log their output. On the Android Play Store search for “Mijia Reader” for the phone app that can connect with multiple Xiaomi hygrometers.
The Vaikby Hygometer can be found here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09F6QHJ3Z
Note: the Centigrade/Fahrenheit button is under the “QC Passed” sticker
The Senckit WiFi Hygrometer can be found here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5GVL1S8
This hygrometer does not have a display, but it does allow monitoring humidity over the internet. It measures ~25x71x20mm. A small slot on the bottom of the pod allows the hygrometer to be extracted using a small screw driver or knife. The Tuya Smart Phone App allows multiple WiFi hygrometers to be tracked, their output logged over time, and notifications generated if humidity thresholds are crossed. Search for "Tuya Smart" in the Android or Apple stores. I didn't find the app very intuitive, but there is method to their maddness once you figure it out, and it does work.
Thanks to @DarkestKnight for this suggestion. He also uses this hygrometer in his Sterilite 20 quart dry boxes, his Sunlu S4 dryer/dry box, as well as his two AMS 2 Pro's. The Tuyla Smart app generates a notifcation if any go above a set humidity level, which allows one to know when a desiccant refresh is necessary.
The ZigBee Hygrometer can be found here:
https://www.amazon.com/IHSENO-Temperature-Humidity-Monitoring-Automation/dp/B0DCZ9M7JM
This hygrometer has the same formfactor as the Senckit. The ZigBee Temperature Humidity Monitor requires a ZigBee Hub for operation. These hygrometers can also be connected to the Tuya Smart app, see above,
The SwitchBot BLE Hygometer can be found here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BVLYPYT1
The Switchbot Bluetooth Low-Energy (BLE) hygrometer measures ~27.5x66.5x20mm. A small slot on the bottom of the pod allows the hygrometer to be extracted using a small screw driver or knife. These hygrometers can be connected to your phone using the SwitchBot App.
I used this desiccant:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BLYLUSY
The 3-5mm bead size ensures that none slip through the slots.
This desiccant does not include beads that change color when it absorbs moisture. Since I already have a Dry Pod hygrometer, the color beads are hard to see through the slots in the Dry Pods, and the AMS also has a hygrometer built into it, I felt that there weren't any significant benefits to using desiccant with color change beads. Also, the color change beads in desiccant contain methyl violet and other unfriendly chemicals, so they should not be dried in an oven or microwave that you also plan to cook food in. Non-indicating silica gel beads are safe.
To refresh the desiccant simply run a drying cycle on the AMS 2.
The AMS 2 Dry Pods are narrower than the AMS 1 Dry Pods. The body of the Bambu Rectangular Hygrometer is the same width as an AMS 2 Dry Pod, and that does not include the hygrometer's bezel. The hygrometer can easily slide out of the pod so I currently don't support it.
The AMS 2 includes heaters which can go up to 65C to dry the filament. I have had PLA warp after 5 hours at just 50C, so I would highly recommend that you use ABS for any parts that go into an AMS 2. The Vicar Softening temperature for PLA is 57C, while the Vicar is 94C for ABS. The Vicar Softening temperature is where the filament can begin to warp. 57 is greater than 50, but the actual number for a particular batch of filament depends on many things. Obviously in my case, I used some PLA filament with an actual Vicar temp slightly lower than shown in the specs.
Ensure that the covers fit before adding desiccant to the Pods! Note, the cover are designed to be tight and may be very hard to insert the first time. I put a small bump in the corner of the covers to act as a detent to hold the cover in place. There is also a matching indent in the top (see images below) that it fits into. Note that this bump makes it hard to insert the cover into the top, especially the first time. But once you get a cover inserted, and work it in and out a couple of times, it slides relatively easily then clicks into place when fully inserted.
Here are some response to commonly asked questions:
Why are so many containers necessary for the AMS2? It has a drying cycle and is airtight. This seems like overkill. Is there a reason every available space should be filled with desiccant?
An AMS 2 is a wonderful thing, BUT... 1) A drying cycle takes 8-12 hours, 2) all the spools in the AMS must have the same filament type when drying, 3) the filament must be unloaded and stuck through holes in the side of the spools so they can be rotated during the drying process, 4) you can't print while you are drying, 5) you can only run a drying cycle on one AMS 2 at a time, and 6) it takes additional time to set up a drying cycle and to break it down. All these constraints make running an AMS 2 drying cycle sort of a pain. So the less often that you have to do it the better.
The minimal AMS desiccant packs from Bambu really don't do much. Inserting one damp spool can saturate them, causing the need to run a drying cycle.
By adding the pods, you will need to run drying cycles much less often, e.g., once every couple of months vs. weeks.
Finally, having dry filament really helps one to consistently get good prints. As far as I'm concerned, filament can't be TOO dry.
Does the hygrometer indicate that a drying cycle is necessary?
The cheap hygrometers that you can put in pods are not very accurate. The display of many bottom out at 10%, and I've found that putting several of them (different types, even the same type) in a plastic bag with some desiccant overnight, will result in +/- 5% readings across them. I would trust the hygrometer built into the AMS 2 the most. It can go down to 0% and it seems to be the most accurate. This hygrometer can easily be read in Studio or Handy.
With this said, there is no real need for a hygrometer in a pod, but they can provide a rough idea of what the humidity level in the AMS is with a quick look. And they do look cool...
Revision information:
4/15/25 V2
Corrected issue with Narrow Pods to allow the covers to slide properly.
4/24/25 - V3
Modifed Back Pod to minimize cover slides breaking and to allow it to sit more level. The Pod rests on the AMS 2 Power Board, however cables plugged into the left side of the board caused it to sit higher on the left.
Added support for Rectangular Hygrometers.
4/30/25 - V4
Added support for Vaikby hygrometers.
5/6/25 - V5
Implemented several suggestions by @aatreya.
- Fixed length of lids for the side pods.
- Fixed length of lids for the spool pods.
- Added horizontal elements to support rear container angled slats.
- Added missing covers on build plates.
5/24/25 - V4
Rearranged plates.
7/3/25 - V5
Updated Rear Dry Pod for Vaikby Plate.
7/18/25 - V6
Implemented changes and new pod types suggested by users:
- Updated the Rear Dry Pod with more cross-braces to improve print reliablity.
- Added Claymore with Round Hygrometer.
- Added Senckit WiFi Hygrometer large dry pod.
7/24/25 - V7
Corrected cover size on Plate 8.
7/25/25 - V8
Updated Spool Pod design to minimize breaking the clips when inserting the Pod into a spool.
7/29/25 - V9
Updated Large Pods that had missing cover indents.
9/23/25 - V10
Updated Spool Pod Cover design so it fits properly
11/5/25 - V11
- Modified Rear Pod to be more reliable when printing with ASA and added brim.
- Reduced height of the Small Dry Pods by 5mm. I had several complaints about the cover hitting them when closed.
26/1/5 -V12
- Changed Claymores to improve print quality of inside top surface.
- Added channel claymores to attach Claymore Hygrometer.
- Added Claymore Hygrometer part that can be attached to a large or small claymore.
26/3/5 - V13
- Changed height of Small End Pods. The spool trays of some AMS2 units are warped and curl up on the sides, causing 100mm Small Dry Pods (on the right and left ends of the AMS) to be raised up, preventing the cover from closing tightly. The new Small Pods are now 95mm tall and should prevent this problem from occuring in the future.
26/3/31 - V14
- Added support for SwitchBot Bluetooth Hygrometer large dry pod (Plate 7).
26/4/7 - V15
- Corrected covers of left Narrow End Pods.
- Added support for Govee H5110 WiFi Hygrometer large dry pod (Plate 8).
26/4/9 - V16
- Added support for Aqara Zigbee Hygrometer large dry pod (Plate 9).
26/4/17 - V17
- Added support for Analog Thermometerand Hygrometer in large dry pod (Plate 10).
26/5/20 - V18
- Modified Round Hygrometer body to accomodate a wider variety of hygrometer vent positions.
3MF Contents:
Plate 1) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Round Hygrometer, Rear Pod, w Funnel.
Plate 2) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Round Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 3) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Rectangular Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 4) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Xiaomi Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 5) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Vaikby Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 6) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Senckit Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 7) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 SwitchBot Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 8) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Govee H5110 WiFi Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 9) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, 1 Aqara ZigBee Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 10) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 1 Wide, 2 Narrow, 2 Analog Thermometer/Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 11) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, No Hygrometer, Rear Pod, w Funnel.
Plate 12) AMS 2 Dry Pods: 2 Wide, 2 Narrow, No Hygrometer, Rear Pod, No Funnel.
Plate 13) 4 Spool Pods.
Plate 14) 1 Large Claymore Pod.
Plate 15) 4 Small Claymore Pods.
Plate 16) 1 Funnel only.
Plate 17) Small Claymore with Round Hygrometer.
Plate 18) Claymore Couplers
License:
BY-NC
mcmaven
