Starting the dryer

Before printing any hygroscopic material (PETG, rPLA, Nylon, PCTG), the pellets must be dried. This procedure covers how to start a drying cycle on a pellet hopper dryer.

For which materials need drying and why, see Dryer best practices.

Before you start

The dryer should be clean and empty from the previous session
Have the correct material and temperature settings ready (see table below)
If this is the dryer’s first use, check that the filter is clean and the hose connections are secure

Temperature and time reference

Material	Dryer temp	Minimum time	Notes
PETG / PCTG	65°C	3–5 h	Never exceed 75°C — pellets stick
rPLA recycled	55–65°C	4–6 h
PLA virgin	60–65°C	2–3 h
PP / Nylon	80°C	4–6 h	Use desiccant dryer for Nylon

Procedure

Load pellets into the dryer hopper — fill to the level marker or up to the recommended batch size
Set the temperature on the dryer control panel to the value for your material (see table above)
Set the timer (if the dryer has one) to the minimum drying time for your material, or leave it running manually
Start the dryer — press the power/start button. The fan and heater activate
Wait — the dryer fan circulates hot dry air through the pellet bed. For the first ~30 minutes the display temperature rises until it reaches the setpoint
Check readiness — after the minimum drying time, the pellets are ready. If you squeeze a handful, they should not clump and should feel dry, not tacky

Loading into the printer

After drying:

Load pellets directly into the printer bucket / hopper while still warm
If you must wait, seal the dried pellets in a bag with a silica gel desiccant pack immediately
Do not leave dried pellets in an open container or bucket — they reabsorb moisture within hours in humid environments

For how to fill the printer, see Loading pellets.

If the dryer doesn’t start

Check that the power cable is connected and the wall socket is on
Check the red emergency stop button (if present) — turn clockwise to release
Check the back power switch — must be in the ON position
If the display lights up briefly then goes black, or the dryer fails to boot after multiple attempts, this is a hardware fault — contact Ginger Additive support. In severe cases (SD card corruption on the dryer display unit), a replacement unit or SD card may need to be shipped

Dryer — dryer models, temperature specs, direct-feed setup
Dryer best practices — which materials need drying, how wet material fails
Loading pellets — filling the printer after drying
PETG foaming and moisture — what happens when PETG is wet