Does it stink in here?

N

N.V.M.

Weaksauce
Joined
Jun 7, 2003
Messages
68
guys, i'm a CNC woodworking guy. as a home hobby, i'm looking at getting a printer. my main concern is how noxious it will be, if at all? i rent a floor of a house, and it has central heating. would the potential odors create an issue? i would hate to get started and have to stop, that would be such a disappoint.
 
yes, you should vent it. easy way is to buy a grow tent on amazon. imo.
im a tech in schools, all ours are set up next to windows where venting isnt available. is is melting plastic...
 
It depends a lot of the type of plastic you want to print with. As a general recommendation, having ventilation and/or filtration is always a good idea.

That said, PLA filament has only a very slight odor if any and prints at low temperatures. It's the safest filament to use in a living space. PETG is also pretty good in this regard, though it prints at higher temps.

ABS and ASA are the popular filament types you'll want to avoid unless you get/build an enclosed printer and put some thought into proper air filtration. With an enclosure and proper filtration, you won't smell it and it's perfectly safe. Just pay attention to getting those things right.
 
PLA is not PUNGENT, i've heard there is odorless ABS but, you don't really wanna breath micro plastics either. some have a room or put in a shop
 
I put my printer in my closet in my room. There is a wood panel access hatch to the attic in the closet ceiling. I cut a hole in it and put a 200mm PC fan exhausting air into the attic. Its not efficient for heating and cooling, so its on a PWM controller and I keep the closet door closed when I'm not printing (I'll make a closable blast door for it later).
I have asthma and cannot be near a printer for too long, even when printing PLA or PETG, I cough up phlegm the next day (sorry for description). The micro plastics / VOC's produced even by the safer plastics that are boiled into the air are no joke. They may not affect you like they do to me, but you will be breathing in those particles, unless you place your printers in an enclosure or vent the air out.
 
MooCow said:
I put my printer in my closet in my room. There is a wood panel access hatch to the attic in the closet ceiling. I cut a hole in it and put a 200mm PC fan exhausting air into the attic. Its not efficient for heating and cooling, so its on a PWM controller and I keep the closet door closed when I'm not printing (I'll make a closable blast door for it later).
I have asthma and cannot be near a printer for too long, even when printing PLA or PETG, I cough up phlegm the next day (sorry for description). The micro plastics / VOC's produced even by the safer plastics that are boiled into the air are no joke. They may not affect you like they do to me, but you will be breathing in those particles, unless you place your printers in an enclosure or vent the air out.
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Interesting. I've never really noticed an odor with 3d printing other than abs and obviously SLA printing. My body is probably riddled with microplastics now. 🤔 Maybe I should look into some kind of air filtration for the space.
 
PLA definitely has a smell but it's not bad. ABS is pretty nasty, though.
 
There are gasses that will kill you that have very little or no smell (depends on your nose). Don't let the fact that the plastic is odorless fool you into thinking it's safe. Check the data and only make that determination after doing so.
 
I print a lot of ASA, and yeah—it definitely has a strong smell. I usually just start the print and leave the garage. Who knows what kind of long-term side effects it might have. 😬 Never really smell PLA or PETG, but ASA, the hemp PLA i bought from 3D-Fuel has a bit of a funky smell, as well as their coffee PLA.
 
If you're using PLA, odors shouldn’t be an issue, but for materials like ABS ventilation is key. Consider an enclosure with a filter to keep things safe and odor free in your space.
 
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