Polymaker 3D Printing Filament Dryer and Storage Box - PolyDryer and PolyDryer Box for Filament Drying and Sealing with Heat Control, Compatible with PA Nylon, PLA, PVB, PETG, ABS, TPU 1.75mm 2.85mm

I like to leave a review when one is worthy, and spoiler alert, this will be glowing.3D printing is loads of fun with unlimited creativity, but there is knowledge that is gained along the journey. One little tidbit is that filament needs to be dried if you live in a humid area...And some, in not as humid as you would think area. After looking at the design of several devices from Creality, Anycubic, Sunlu, Comgrow and Giantarm (Filament Bags) I finally settled on the Polymaker.As I own an Ender 3 S1 Pro, I'm currently only feeding one filament at a time, so a multi-strand dryer while cool, didn't really make sense to me. I also am limited on permanent space. This lead me to the reduction of choice to single spool.I chose the Polymaker because it allows me to store the dried filament separately from the drying system (Which is partially built-in). The ability to see the humidity level in the box was a big part of my choice and know that the desiccant changes colors so you know when to recharge it. Yup, the desiccant is reusable, not just an individual pouch. And if that wasn't enough, each case comes with a good PTFE lead pipe so you can draw directly out of the case.The case itself is sealed really tight. The seals on the feet (Where you set it on the heated air flow device) also seal very well and have a rubber non-slip base as well. They stack very well too.As for the performance, well it was way better than I expected. When I received the unit, I had some prefoamed LW-PWA that had been out in the open air for weeks. When I put it in the container and let it sit for a few hours, it showed to be at 54% humidity in the container (UP from the 49 when I loaded the filament). I ran it on the forced heated air base for 6 hours as instructed. It dropped down to 41% after the first run. I decided to run it again, just for the heck of it, and it came down to 36% after the second run. After leaving it overnight it was down to 29%, just using the desiccant. Total reduction from 54-29% in less than 24 hours (About 22 hours total). I was very happy with the 25% reduction in that short period of time.Each box can be used without pulling the roll out. There are two options: 1 you can use the ball bearing rollers that are setups in the case, and they are so well designed that in an empty case, the airiflow will turn them, OR you can use the included roll post that ankers very well in the side of the box. The PTFE tubing allows for either vertical or horizontal tapping of the filament. I have minie setup to feed from behind the printer, but may make some changes in the future. Regardless, I know that the system will support whatever setup I choose.The base unit is very easy to operate, has recommendations for the filament drying temps and times listed, and allows you to set it according to that, or you can just set it for constant untimed running if you really wanted to drive it down faster.The foot print is very small as compared to the others I looked at. The power source is a bit large, but designed to not take all the slots on your power strip if using one. It will take up 3 depending on how close together they are.Overall I very much love the design of this unit, along with the well thought out engineering. The whole system seems very sturdy and strong which encourages me on its longevity.The only change I made to the setup was the desiccant color. III already had 2lb of Blue silica gel which turns to pinkish red, so i used that vs the orange that turns green. This was done for two reasons. 1. the color of the box is Blue/Black/Clear and it just looked better. 2. having the silica gel turn Pink/Red just made more sense to me with Red meaning "Stop" in my mind.Thank you for bearing with me ini what is the longest review that i have written in a long time. Should you choose to purchase this system, and it is a system, it wont let you down.Print Happy Days, and everyone will love your prinits!!

I have been drying filament in a modded food dehydrator for a long while now and it has been fine for PLA and PETG, but lately I've been printing more TPU and switching between spools more, so it's gotten to be more inconvenient. I saw the PolyDryer system on YouTube and liked the two-part approach: a "Dryer Dock" for heating and a "Storage Box" for both drying and long-term storage, so I gave it a shot. After using it for a few weeks, I can say it's a solid solution that addresses many of the pain points I had.What it does well:- The base heater unit (Dryer Dock) does the job well without being flashy. The simplified 3 heat settings and an adjustable timer make it rather straightforward to use. The chart with common filament settings being a sticker right on the dock is a nice touch that saves time looking up settings. Really couldn't be much easier than this.- The storage box box seals well and accommodates all my usual spools. It includes rollers for the filament to spin on, plus an attachment for center-hole support. I don't typically need to use the center hole, but it seems like a thoughtful touch. The boxes do stack on top of one another well, but they don't latch together. They don't seem to fall off of one another sitting on the rolling table I have two X1Cs printing on, for what it's worth.- You can feed filament into a 3D printer while you are drying with this system, or while the filament is stored/sealed to keep it dry. This is especially useful for very hygroscopic materials, but it's also convenient for even moderately hygroscopic filament since you don't have to dry it before each print.- During drying the included hygrometer lets you know how wet the air is inside the box since it and the color-changing desiccant are visible through the front of the box. And since the same box is used for long term storage, both act as a nice at-a-glance check to ensure the filament is still dry without even removing it from the shelf.- Two exit holes with included PTFE tubes make it easy to guide filament from the box to your printer. The air in the box stays remarkably dry after the initial drying process.What could be improved:- There's no way to switch the temperature or mode mid-cycle without either letting the timer run down or turning it off and on again. It's not a deal-breaker, but it's an odd omission.- The lid latches are extremely firm. While this ensures a good seal, it might be challenging for some users (like children or those with arthritis) to open and close.**Addressing some misconceptions:**Some reviews I've seen seem to misunderstand what they're buying or have unrealistic expectations. Let me clear a few things up:- There are two options in the listing. You can get either the storage box alone, or a combo with the dryer dock and a storage box. You only need a single dryer dock (though having more lets you dry more spools simultaneously), but you'll want a storage box for each spool you want to keep dry at a given time. This modular approach makes more sense than a single bundled offering because you typically need more than one storage box.- Noise Levels: In my experience, the beep isn't excessively loud, and the fan noise is reasonable for this type of device. I've used other food dehydrators and filament dryers that are much louder than the claimed 41dB.- The LCD display is functional and easy to read from most angles. While it's not a fancy full-color display, it does the job without introducing unnecessary complexity that could lead to failures down the line, and I appreciate that it keeps the cost of the unit down.- Some reviewers have compared this to units with more "granular" temperature controls. In practice, the three-setting approach, combined with the provided chart, works great. The additional settings of other units are really not any different than the dial on a cheap food dehydrator which often leads to false precision rather than better results.This all said, who is this good for?I think if you're willing to plunk down a bit more than you'd spend on a basic food dehydrator this is the way to go. Dedicated filament driers are rarely providing much more than added convenience, but the PolyDryer system is a well-thought-out solution that addresses the real world inconveniences of 3D printing with hygroscopic materials without getting caught up in unnecessary bells and whistles. It's a tool that does its job well without being flashy, which is exactly what I needed, and you might as well.

All the stars: Dryer wastes no time warming up and driving the moisture out of your filament.Read the directions as you will need to set your filament, thus your temperature setting by pressing the button below the play/pause (start) button BEFORE you start the unit. Set the time you want it to run or accept the default and it's that easy. This dryer made a noticeable difference in my print quality. Smooth layers with good adhesion.The color changing dessicant plus the seals at the bottom of the drybox ensure that you filament will stay in top shape for weeks before needing to be recharged on top of the base unit again.Not all the stars: The fan makes as much noise as your printer, so if it is the only thing running you will hear it. If other devices are running in your workroom, you probably won't notice it.I recommend it and I plan to buy more dryer units and dry boxes.