A month ago I was storing spools in small sealed boxes with desiccant. Worked okay, but I kept forgetting which spool was where, and the humidity in each box was inconsistent.
Then I picked up a big cabinet that holds all my spools in one place, with a built-in dehumidification system. It sits at a steady ~25% RH now.
After a month:
Stringing basically stopped
No more popping/crackling during prints
My PETG actually feels dry now instead of brittle
Easy to find spools — everything’s in one place
Not a plug — just wanted to share what worked for me. If you’re in a humid climate and dealing with moisture issues, active dehumidification storage is worth looking at.
Nice that you found a solution for your workflow. Meanwhile, I just individually ziploc bag all my PETG, ASA, and ABS rolls with a bunch of 3d printed desiccant holders, and then put them in a sterilte container in my basement. The desiccant holders are printed in ASA and work very well for long-time storage. For context I am in northeast USA where it gets humid during the summer months and I don’t have AC in my workshop (next year’s project!)
That’s a solid DIY approach! I tried the bag method too, but I kept forgetting which spool was where. The cabinet just made it easier to keep everything organized in one place.
Be aware that the bags are not moisture proof. Humidity creeps in slowly but steadily and the desiccant saturates surprisingly fast. I think what really holds moisture out is your box and you just could skip the bags.
I currently still use a similar approach with those bags, 90g of molecular sieve in each bag and a bluetooth hygrometer in each bag. molecular sieve can take up much more water than silica gel at low humidity and still, after 2-3 months, the molecular sieve is saturated and I have to exchange it with fresh one.
I have to refill 1-2 bags a week, which is super annoying, so when I find the time, I will switch to a sealed box with 1 big desiccant holder where.filament will go in directly
Also, something I totally forgot to mention! I heavily utilize this Filament Swatch System for organizing my Sterilite boxes and keeping track of my spools.