Desiccant Drying Tray (X1/P1)

→ H2D Version available (larger) 

This is my take on a desiccant dry box to use with the filament drying option of the X1C.

• Using as much of the build plate to spread out the desiccant.
• small funnel to help getting the desiccant out into a container after drying
• Solid bottom (10x better heat conduction compared to air in “gridded” designs → desiccant gets hotter, gets dry quicker).

At least use PETG, you may also use ABS/ASA so you can crank the heat.

Storing desiccant:

I store the dry desiccant in IKEA containers like this: https://www.ikea.com/de/de/p/ikea-365-vorratsbehaelter-mit-deckel-transparent-weiss-90066708/. Seems to be working well, desiccant stays dry.

Results:

So far I have run two batches of desiccant with the dry box and I am very happy with the results.
Keep in mind, that desiccant can store up to roughly 20% of its initial weight in moisture. (Great video on this: https://youtu.be/6tHInlFfMcM?si=1hW3zq3PnBW0fCLs&t=586 ). In my optinion, for large batches, the X1 Drying option is way safer than the microwave.

Settings:

Use the “Filament Drying” Option of the X1C with the “PETG/PETG-CF” setting (80°C, 12h)

Result 1:

Premise: This batch of desiccant was not too bad (color not totally green yet).
Procedure: Leave in X1C with slightly open top glass (few mm) for the full 12h + 4h after program was finished.

Result: 66g of moisture removed (9.2 % of desiccant weight)

→ No further improvement after that, so desiccant was restored.

Result 2:

Premise: This batch of desiccant was saturated (very green, see pictures).
Procedure: Leave in X1C with slightly open top glass (few mm) for the full 10h.

Result: 65g of moisture removed (16 % of desiccant weight)

Both batches are perfectly orange again. I can not tell them apart in the same container.