Printing with PETG

[ToeCrusher80]

Has anyone printed with petg? I wanted to create drinking mugs. I normally print with pla, and wasn't sure if it was safe to drink from.

[derekbrewsbrew]

I'm paranoid, but I don't think I would ever drink from a printed plastic item. That said, you can always look up the material safety sheet for the material. It seems PETG is food safe, with some considerations.

[ralphzoontjens]

Yes most PETT and PETG filaments are food-safe as is PLA. Look for grading for this specific brand as they still may contain some volatiles.
And it's best making sure you deburr the part well of course. With 0.10 layer thickness you have the best chances of it being watertight as well.

[SamIAm]

I've been surprised in the past at how easily prints were watertight, but it occurs to me that water might get trapped inside a print. Is going with 100% infill a good idea? Bad idea?

[curious aardvark]

actually the thicker the layer, the greater chance of it being watertight. Fewer layers = fewer chances for holes.

Print fairly slowly, no infill (important) and 0.3-0.4 layer thickness.

I have managed to print water tight pet-g vases, so it is doable :-)

With pet-g you want the lower end of the printing range for better layer bonding.

[Dasha]

Guys, I want to print this mug, but I'm not sure that PETG is solid enough. Has someone already printed this?

https://www.treatstock.com/3d-printa...or-fathers-day

[ralphzoontjens]

Why not. Make sure the filament is FDA approved though, for example T-glase, Guidel!ne and Nylon 680 are ok. For smoothing you can use a Masterbond food safe epoxy. Let us know how it worked out!

[TommyDee]

Everyone is talking filament material but how clean is your machine? The FDA also looks at the process by which the food or food container is made. What if your machine has occasional over-temp conditions that you didn't know about, possibly exposing a disqualifying condition of making the material "food safe". I remember seeing burned ABS on the outside of my nozzle before. Those are released toxins... and could continue wafting toxins over every layer of your pristine PETG mug getting excellent dispersion!

No, I'm not seriously suggesting this one mug will kill anyone in the sense that walking outside would probably expose me to 100x that level of toxin depending on where I live. I'm just saying that when someone calls something FoodSafe, it is a bigger picture than some people realize. Would you knowingly give your family member (whom you like, of course) a dubious gift that may in some minuscule way contribute negatively to their future health? Of course not!

Basically, food safe plastics require a solid paper trail. We're not talking one or two instances or people, we are talking when millions are affected by the oversight of a handful of workers in couple of plants. These processes are vetted and documented to the degree that the population will not be harmed in huge clusters. Or the old saying, there'd be hell to pay! At one time I believed that too. However, for the most part, the guidelines and accepted processes are followed because liability really is a bear.

You'd do better to mind printing ABS in an enclosed area than worry about your PETG mug. I know you'll clean that nozzle up nicely before printing it Post a pic!

[curious aardvark]

for some reason ralph is resurrecting all the old threads about food safe materials.
personally I think it's just to get his website link on the front page of the forum.

Not quite a spammer - but rapidly getting there :-)

[Zorn88]

I'm pretty paranoid about it as well. Is PLA actually food safe?