I’m looking for fire retardant filaments for outdoor use. There hasn’t been much discussion of this here since 2024. Does anyone have any recommendations? I’m fairly neutral on if it’s ASA or something else, but I’m hoping for something that is also UV resistant and tolerant of direct summer sun. UV isn’t a deal breaker, I can always cover with a UV-blocking paint.
Thanks!
Ive used This (PC-FR Polymaker) for some electrical enclosures.
I cant comment on the UV resistance, Ive only used it inside. But the fire resistant properties are pretty good, it has additives that make it self extinguishing.
The downside is how hard it is to print. It needs high chamber temps. A stock Bambu will struggle with printing it.
Out of curiosity, what is the specific use case?
Thanks, that’s helpful! My intent is to use it for a light fixture body. It would be simpler to just buy an off-the-shelf outdoor wall light, but the options are either underwhelming, or several hundred dollars. Boooo.
The actual bulb and wiring will be normal UL-listed components from the big box store. (I won’t risk wiring or fixtures from random Amazon sellers. Reports of spontaneous fire are far too high for my comfort. I’ll stick to a vendor that actually vets its supply chain.)
I think I will try some ordinary PC and see how my P1S handles it, whether I can maintain chamber temp with auxiliary heating. PC does seem like a good material choice, if I can print it. If not, then maybe ab ABS-FR.
I also just realized that Bambu Lab sells a PC-FR too. I recently had good experience with Polymer’s Fiberon brand ASA-CF, though, so I’m inclined to try that.
The Bambu stuff is probably better, I see Elegoo also has a PC-FR. Which both of those options do not require such a high chamber temp.
I only went with the polymaker because that is where I buy most of my filament nowadays.
Honestly an ABS would probably do the job, PC might be a little overkill. I just dont have any experience or know who sells a FR variant.
Just a quick tip: good solutions / bulbs respectively electronics that generate less heat are available, so only need to withstand the ambient temperature rather than the heat from the light bulb itself.
If you don’t feel like dealing with fire safety, you can get around it by using light bulbs respectively electronics that don’t get as hot. I don’t know the exact technical details, but I’m just throwing this out there as an idea.
The best fire protection is simply no / less heat and electronics that can’t burn. No idea if this comment will help you - it just popped into my head because I’ve tinkered with all kinds of light setups myself.
Since I don’t want anything to catch fire at my home, I always use electronics - or bulbs, lights, whatever - that can’t burn and don’t generate heat - that is, when it comes to DIY solutions.
Good comments, @RetroSharky. I prefer when possible to do things “right” even when it’s overkill. For a fixture that will be hardwired to the house electric system and exposed to the elements, I decided I definitely want it fire retardant. Probably nothing will ever happen. I’m going to use a “weatherproof” socket and a low-power smart LED bulb that will draw maybe five watts. But… I’ll sleep better knowing that every part of it will resist burning.
I’ve made some nice wall fixtures for our living room using PLA, but they are plug-ins, easy to remove if there is any trouble. I’m not worried about them. But the outdoor fixture might well outlive me. The original one I’m replacing outlived the house’s original owner by several decades!
Now that Elegoo stuff looks intriguing … claims to work with a less intensely hot chamber.