Silica Desiccant Container (fits inside spool)

Why should I use this desiccant container?

1. It's sized to fit into any spool from .5kg and up.
2. It uses much less desiccant while also maximizing the water absorbing surface area.
3. The desiccant can be rapidly dried in a microwave, dehydrator, etc. without removing it from the container.
4. The infill screens print much faster than containers with modelled in screens, while also providing much better airflow and containing the smallest sized desiccant beads.
5. You get a visual humidity indicator if you use color changing desiccant and print the containers in transparent/natural PLA.

My preferred long term filament storage method with these containers is to fill them up with color changing desiccant that I buy in quantity, and then vacuum seal the filament and desiccant in a sous vide bag (as shown here).

I've uploaded the STLs and a step file, but you should print from desiccant_container.3mf, because the screen portions rely on specific infill settings. The default layer height in the file is 0.3mm with a 0.2mm height modifier for the threads; you could print a bit faster by running the whole thing at 0.3mm, but it tends to produce very rough threads.

The 3MF has eight containers, which will fit the bed of a Prusa MK3 or a Creality Ender 3, but you can just as easily reduce or increase that depending on your need and bed size. I print these in translucent/natural PLA. I wouldn't advise using another filament, because the open infill of the screens gets droopy with filaments that don't bridge as well.

I dry out the desiccant by just throwing the full containers as-is into my microwave or dehydrator. After a few drying cycles the PLA seems to naturally anneal, making it capable of withstanding even higher temperatures.

Version 2 Update

• Added knurling on the lid to make it easier to tighten and remove.
• Increased thread length, depth and added more tolerance, which makes the threads more durable and easier to print.
• Thinned out the ribs on the screens and reduced screen infill to 30%.