I try to store my filaments in zipped locked vacuum bags. But vacuuming them is really hard. I tried manual pumps, and usb charged one (the one in the pic), my kitchen type vacuum machine with its attachment and even with vacuum cleaner.
When i watch 3D printing videos showing this approach, all they do is; they lay the bag flat, put the usb pump on the hole and start pumping. In my case, in all methods except vacuum cleaner, pumps fail to suck even a tiny bit as if the hole is closed. The usb pump works perfectly on purpose build food storage boxes. Also worked well with the jars and covers provided but not with bags.
Even the vacuum cleaner can not start sucking immediately and i need to squeeze and manipulate the grid part of the bag. Once it got the hang of it, vacuum cleaner sucks the hell out of the bag. So i know that zips are perfectly locked and bag has no puncture.
Is there something i miss like priming the suction hole. What is the trick.
Carrying the vacuum cleaner around the house just to vacuum a bag i will reopen in a few days becomes tedious.
99% of the time, I have no problems…but sometimes the hole is closed & you just need to lick your finger & rub it…I’m not making a joke, sometimes you have to get it wet.
If you’re pushing down hard with the vacuum when trying to pull air from the bag, you may be sealing the hole against whatever is inside the bag. If you’re pressing the area around the hole down tight against an underlying surface, little if any air will to get past that seal to be extracted. Works on jars/lids because pushing on them doesn’t deform them like the plastic bag can be deformed…
You shouldn’t need to apply any pressure, the act of turning on the vacuum pump should suck the bag up tight all on it’s own.
If that’s what you’re doing already, then I got nothin’.
I have found bagging isn’t worth it. Unless you are going to use the filament again fairly soon, the bags don’t hold a vacuum and ambient environment slowly diffuses in and it’s impossible to tell how much that’s happened until you start to print. Gave it up.
I have some desiccant in the tub to keep my PLA from getting too brittle, but that’s it. Now, I just load the filament in to the dryer a day in advance whenever I’m going to use it. That way, I can be reasonably certain the filament is as dry as the last time I used it and I don’t need to rerun manual calibrations.
Water is a very good insulator as well. I did not lick any thing but used some “tap water” for the effect . It did not worked either.
After posting my OP, I compared the bag with the vacuum bags i use kitchen vacuum sealer. The grids for the machine are much bigger than the ones on these zip lock bags. So i decided to make a test. I put a piece of tissue paper under the hole which will create a better space for air to be sucked out. It kind of worked. I managed to suck the air out with USB pump sufficiently. Then remove the tissue and retried it. It did work but it was much slower.
I tested one other variable too if i put the bag on a hard surface and pres the pump down tightly it can not suck anything. If I put it on a softer surface like a mouse pad and press gently it works.
I do not why they prefer to do this way but finer grid of these bags just do not allow enough air to come out and if forced harder, the two faces of the bag totally blocks the hole to work.
It is not the ideal solution but better then carrying vacuum cleaner around the house daily basis.
We do not have large storage boxes with air tight gasket here and the cereal boxes are both expensive occupy a lot of space. I have only six of them to use for the filaments i will use soon.
I missed your post. I did some testing and posted just after your post. My conclusions are inline with your recommendation. If had seen your post, it would have save me testing and writing the post.
What’s a good place to buy the bags? I use an old food saver with its roll and I think I’m overpaying. The food saver has the hose hand attachment to use on those bag holes. (Lol)
I am from Turkey and i have to order them from local dealers. Aliexpress has both roll and envelop types of bag to use with vacuum machines, much cheaper than branded ones. Unfortunately their prices are above the limit our government allows to import. In the past, when we were able to order they were OK. With aliexpress (and with amazon lately) you can never be sure of the quality with Chinese products.
Though the ziplock versions we were discussing have somewhat different texture. I order many from different dealers, amazon, aliexpress etc. They are all same. So cheapest is better.
. It did not worked either.
