Hi,
I bought some colour changing filament, the idea was to make mugs and things, but as it turns out 3d printed parts aren't great for food, what other cool things could I make with it?
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Hi,
I bought some colour changing filament, the idea was to make mugs and things, but as it turns out 3d printed parts aren't great for food, what other cool things could I make with it?
3d printed parts are fine for food. Most of the objections would apply to just about every food item you own.
The biggest non-foodsafe issue with abs is (wait for it) when you burn it - it gives off toxic fumes.
Well the last time I had a meal I don't remember burning my cups and plates afterwards.
The other often given excuse is that 3d oprinted objects have lots of crevices for bacteria to live in. News flash - so does everything else in the world.
Don't want bits of food on your 3d printed stuff - wash it.
The trick is making them watertight. And that takes a bit of application. abs paint really helps as does printing with multiple shells/layers.
Also you need to print at the highest resolution you can to reduce large gaps and maximise water tightness.
But essentially most of the objections to abs are based on ignorance and kneejerk reactions.
For cold drinks, foods - there are zero issue with abs.
For hot drinks - you might be better off with something like pet. Abs is non-toxic (unless you burn it) so apart from watertightness there are no 'real' reasons you can't use it for coffee cups. And at some point I will make one :-)
thermo chromatic abs makes great coffee coasters.
Also great for jewellery that changes colour with the wearers bodyheat.
I've got a couple rolls of thermochromatic abs - it was stupidly cheap. But it's great filament.
And the green to yellow one isn't a bad colour either. the grey to white is pretty naff. But good for playing about with :-)
Most filaments are not food safe. Plastics produced in a clean and food safe environment without contaminants that can leach into your food or drink, and are tested and rated according to established guidelines and procedures, are food safe. The stuff most of us have access to? Not so much.
Edit: just came across a very good thread on reprap.org discussing food safety.
The main issue seems to be voids for bacteria.
To put this into perspective every single surface in the world - unless it's copper (apparently even kills mrsa) is covered in bacteria.
It's part of our environment.
Every item you own that has been used more than once - is scratched and has noticeable places for things to get caught.
So the thing to bear in mind is that - legally you can't sell anything that isn't certified foodsafe.
In reality most things you make are perfectly safe for use.
abs won't kill you, hell crunching it up and eating it neat is probably much safer than drinking coke - that shit has phosphoric acid in it !
But for legal purposes I have to say: DO NOT EVER EAT OR DRINK ANYTHING FROM ANY SURFACE OR VESSEL - EVER.
We live in a mad world - and yes I have studied chemistry and biology to degree level.
Also worked in a food factory and a laboratory that specialised in microbial analysis for the food industry. And i can assure you we did not throw the stuff away after taking samples. Oh hell no :-)
One thing to bear in mind: every single thing that comes out of an extruder is sterile until it cools down :-)
Even industrial autoclaves do not go as high as 230c
There's a lot of crap based on government specifications that are really thinly disguised legal documents designed to avoid some idiot prosecuting some other idiot because one of the idiots got real drunk threw up and blamed the restaurant for poisoning him. And instead of saying: 'you got drunk and threw up - piss off'. The legal system looks for someone else to screw over.
Pretty much ALL food poisoning is human based. Wash your hands people and don't go to work when you are ill.
So to summarise: never eat anything, ever. never touch anything, ever. And for gods sake never go within 10 feet of bowls of nuts in a bar. Especially if they're in a 3d printed plastic peanut shaped bowl !
It's not the 25 traces of urine and faeces that'll kill you (obviously) - it's the plastic !
Ahhh that's better. A good health and safety rant once in a while, is incredibly catharrtic.
I'm off to see if I can find a peanut shaped bowl on thingiverse - it's a good job salt is such a good antibacterial agent - or thousands of people who don't wash their hands after visiting the little persons room would be suing bars for poisoning them.
lmfao :d:d:dQuote:
Originally Posted by curious aardvark