Filament Drying Guide: Times and Temperatures by Brand

Wet filament is the most common hidden cause of failed prints. It disguises itself as stringing, rough and dull surfaces, weak layers, pinholes and even clogs — problems people chase with slicer settings for weeks when the actual fix costs one drying cycle.

How to tell your filament is wet

Crackling or faint popping at the nozzle — that’s steam escaping.
Visible wisps of steam at the hotend.
Stringing that appeared over time on a spool that used to print clean.
Dull, grainy, bubbly surfaces and weak, snappable layers.

Any of these means: dry first, tune later. No slicer setting compensates for water boiling inside the nozzle.

Drying times and temperatures by material

These are the values our diagnosis engine recommends, based on how hygroscopic each material is and how much heat it tolerates:

Material	Temp	Time	Notes
PLA	55 °C	8 h	Only mildly hygroscopic — dry spools older than a couple of months
PLA-CF	55 °C	8 h	CF blends absorb more than their base plastic
PETG	65 °C	8 h	Moisture is the #1 cause of PETG stringing
TPU	70 °C	8 h	70 °C is the ceiling — TPU cannot take more
ABS / ASA	80 °C	8 h	Only moderately hygroscopic; dry after weeks in the open
PC	80 °C	8 h	A single day in open air is enough to matter
PA (nylon)	80 °C	12 h	Extremely hygroscopic — assume wet unless just dried
PVA	55 °C	12 h	The thirstiest filament there is; never hotter, it softens easily

Official drying specs by brand

Manufacturers publish their own drying recommendations, and they differ more than you’d expect — Prusament dries PLA at a gentle 45 °C while Elegoo says 50 °C for 8 hours, and ASA recommendations span 70–80 °C. When your brand is in this table, prefer its numbers:

Brand	Material	Product	Drying temp	Time
Polymaker	PLA	PolyLite PLA	55 °C	6 h
Polymaker	PETG	PolyLite PETG	65 °C	6 h
Polymaker	ABS	PolyLite ABS	70 °C	6 h
Polymaker	ASA	Polymaker ASA (tidl. PolyLite ASA)	70 °C	7 h
Polymaker	TPU	PolyFlex TPU95	70 °C	8 h
eSUN	PLA	eSUN PLA+ (PLA Pro)	—	not published
eSUN	PETG	eSUN PETG	60 °C	4 h
eSUN	ABS	eSUN ABS+	—	not published
eSUN	ASA	eSUN eASA	—	not published
eSUN	TPU	eSUN eTPU-95A	55 °C	≥4 h
Prusament	PLA	Prusament PLA	45 °C	6 h
Prusament	PETG	Prusament PETG	55 °C	6 h
Prusament	ASA	Prusament ASA	80 °C	4 h
Prusament	TPU	Prusament TPU 95A	60 °C	4 h
Overture	PLA	Overture PLA Basic	50 °C	7 h
Overture	PETG	Overture PETG	60 °C	5 h
Overture	ABS	Overture ABS	75 °C	7 h
Overture	ASA	Overture ASA	75 °C	7 h
Overture	TPU	Overture TPU 95A	70 °C	7 h
SUNLU	PLA	SUNLU PLA	50–55 °C	6–8 h
SUNLU	PETG	SUNLU PETG	60–65 °C	6–8 h
SUNLU	ABS	SUNLU ABS	75–85 °C	6–8 h
SUNLU	ASA	SUNLU ASA	80 °C	6–8 h
SUNLU	TPU	SUNLU TPU 95A	50–60 °C	6–8 h
Elegoo	PLA	ELEGOO PLA	50 °C	8 h
Elegoo	PETG	ELEGOO PETG Pro	60 °C	8 h
Elegoo	ABS	ELEGOO ABS	70 °C	8 h
Elegoo	ASA	ELEGOO ASA	80 °C	8 h
Elegoo	TPU	ELEGOO TPU	70 °C	8 h
Bambu Lab	PLA	Bambu PLA Basic	50 °C	8 h
Bambu Lab	PETG	Bambu PETG HF	65 °C	8 h
Bambu Lab	ABS	Bambu ABS	80 °C	8 h
Bambu Lab	ASA	Bambu ASA	80 °C	8 h
Bambu Lab	TPU	Bambu TPU for AMS	70 °C	8 h

“Not published” means the manufacturer doesn’t list an official drying spec for that product — use the per-material table above instead.

How to actually dry it

A filament dryer is the simplest option: set temperature and time from the tables and print straight out of the dryer if it has a feed port.
AMS 2 Pro and AMS HT can heat and dry spools in place, so you don’t need a separate dryer. The original AMS can’t apply heat — treat it as a dry box: keep the desiccant fresh and the lid closed.
Nylon and PVA need active management: PA reabsorbs moisture from room air within hours, so print it straight from a dry box or an AMS with fresh silica. Store PVA airtight with desiccant even between prints — wet PVA turns sticky and can clog the nozzle.

Storage: don’t re-wet what you dried

Store opened spools airtight — vacuum bags or sealed boxes with silica gel.
Swap or recharge desiccant when the indicator changes color; saturated silica does nothing.
Drying is not permanent. A dried PETG spool left on the printer for a couple of humid weeks is a wet spool again.

Dry before you calibrate: moisture changes flow behavior more than any slicer setting, so flow or temperature calibration on a wet spool is wasted work — the numbers go stale the moment the filament does. Dry first, calibrate second.

Frequently asked questions

How can I tell if my 3D printer filament is wet?

Listen and look at the nozzle: crackling or faint popping is steam escaping, and visible wisps of steam confirm it. Other tells are stringing that appeared over time on a spool that used to print clean, dull, grainy or bubbly surfaces, and weak layers that snap easily. Any of these means dry first, tune later — no slicer setting compensates for water boiling inside the nozzle.

What temperature and how long should I dry filament?

Per material: PLA and PLA-CF 8 hours at 55 °C, PETG 8 hours at 65 °C, TPU 8 hours at 70 °C (its absolute ceiling), ABS/ASA and PC 8 hours at 80 °C, nylon (PA) 12 hours at 80 °C, and PVA 12 hours at 55 °C. If your filament brand publishes its own spec — Prusament PLA is 45 °C for 6 hours, for example — prefer the manufacturer's numbers.

Can the Bambu AMS dry filament?

Only the AMS 2 Pro and AMS HT can actively heat and dry spools in place, so you don't need a separate dryer with those. The original AMS cannot apply heat — treat it as a dry box: keep the desiccant fresh and the lid closed. Very hygroscopic materials like nylon and PVA should be printed straight from a dry box or an AMS with fresh silica.

Not sure moisture is your actual problem?

Answer five quick questions about your printer, filament and build plate, and our rule engine turns them into a prioritized fix list with exact slicer values — the same knowledge these guides are written from.

Get a personalized fix list in 2 minutes — free Works with Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer, PrusaSlicer and Cura. No account needed.

Sources

Filament Drying Recommendations — Bambu Lab Wiki
Filament drying guide for AMS 2 Pro and AMS HT — Bambu Lab Wiki
AMS Desiccant Status — Bambu Lab Wiki