I was going to print on my x1c using PAHT-CF, but then I read of the dangers from the fumes. I’ve searched and searched but I’ve found no one solution that is reliable and safe for me to extract these fumes. I would really appreciate help in finding a solid solution so that I can finally print using my filament.
I’ve heard good things about the Bento Box from Voxel. https://voxelpla.com/products/bento-box It’s a 2 stage filter that’s fully compatible with the X1 series.
https://www.printables.com/model/788572-ultimate-3d-printer-enclosure-filter-v2
I thought about using something like this but I’m not sure what I need to design to make it adapted to the x1c
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@Brock It’s up to you, but it looks like that filter costs around $45 to build + design work to make it fit your X1C. The Bento Box sells for $35 and there aren’t any modifications required.
Do you think it’s efficient enough to remove fumes on its own? Including the more harmful ones? The Bentobox, that is.
I’ve looked into this some, but as a scientist will tell you to take what I say next with a huge grain of salt…
First, I think almost anything emitted by hot plastics can be found to be “carcinogenic”, which isn’t to say one should be cavalier about these fumes, but rather, that people will need to arrive at some kind of standard that meets their personal risk tolerance. My biggest concern was the fumes from things like ABS, ASA, PA, and my own concern was raised the first time I was watching an ABS print, could smell the Styrene, and realized belatedly that my headache was likely related to styrene poisoning and not the caffeine withdrawal it felt like.
Now the most practical “consumer”-level solution to this issue is either exhausting the fumes to the outside (which I dislike on principle) or adsorbing the compounds to activated carbon. Then the next thing you will find is conventional “air filters” with carbon do not provide anywhere near enough surface area or dwell time to meaningfully absorb much.
My own solution then was to print and build a bento box- it has decent carbon volume and the recirc design means the air in the printer enclosure can get scrubbed enough despite the low air flow volumes.
Next I realized I could design and print a “cap” for my Levoit Core 300 air filter to just fill the middle of the filter with as much carbon as I could fit, and this constitutes my “Bento Box for the whole room”. These are both just running continuously and I leave the room with the printer when I start an ABS, ASA, etc. print and come back in giving the room a few minutes to hour to clear. I haven’t really smelled any Styrene since, nor felt any headaches from being in the room.
The ace up my sleeve, which I have not needed to use yet, is buy the carbon filter systems cannabis growers use for their indoor greenhouses. These are made to filter a lot of stuff out of the air by providing large volumes of carbon and air flow… look up AC Infinity on Amazon if curious.
My last comment for any and all of these activated carbon recirc systems is to buy bulk acid-free carbon, otherwise it seems like you will do bad things to oxidizable surfaces in the room.
I will have to look into it, just wish there was more well known info about this topic within this ever growing industry.
@Brock that video came up on my feed yesterday and i am watching with interest to see if theres a remix coming. At present I’m not keen on drilling the side panels out (only due to time constraints) and think the existing chamber rear vent may be a good place to start.
I’ve currently have a stock bento box and pretty sure its next to worthless as the chamber fan is, I leave it running the whole time as a result of its low performance. Personally I wouldn’t recommend the standard one and if anyone was printing beyond PETG daily I’d avoid it altogether as purely a noisy gimmick.
Exhausting the fumes outside is also a bit of a bummer if the smell travels, my neighbours window isn’t too far away and I don’t like the idea of virtually pumping my waste into their home.
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