FAQs

Yes, it is. It falls under the same classification as PLA. Both are bio-based materials. 

Yes, all members of the PHA family are biodegradable. PHA is compostable in soil, freshwater and seawater. 

Probably nothing… not in your lifetime anyway. PHA is biodegradable, but it needs a high bacterial load to start the feeding frenzy. 

No, it is not necessary. PHA is naturally hydrophobic (repels moisture). And while it does saturate at a 0.004%, unless it is sitting in a bath of water. It won’t get any wetter. 

To print with PHA successfully, we recommend the following.
A) Ensure to have a level bed, 1st layer height is just as critical as ABS or PET-G.
B) Bed heat set at zero, it does not like to be heated.
C) Print as cold as you can extrude, we print on Prusa’s MK3S from 190c to 200c.
D) Fan ON after 1st layer. We leave ours at 75~100% for all layer heights.
E) Best bed surface, a clean bed with some good old fashion PVOA glue (glue stick). We have also used the highly textured Build Tak brand surfaces or similar to Flash-Forge Style Sheet.
F) Adding a brim can help with addition with large flat surfaces.

PHA is a semi-crystalline copolymer with a low G/L, Low melt temperature, and more importantly, low crystallization temperature. Your finished part will continue to crystalize just sitting at room temperature. If you want to accelerate the process as to ensure high dimensional stability, we recommend having your print go into your filament dryer for 6~8 hours at 60c. Because the material as such a low crystallization temperature (~7 Celcius), it will begin to crystalize as soon as it is extruded. If this heat isn’t controlled and builds up layers on top of layers, it will potentially increase the crystallization rate and force the object to curl and detach from the bed. So unlike ABS that requires a heated bed and a heated environment for best results, PHA is the complete opposite. 

In practice, absolutely.  However, this assumes that you did not add layers of paint onto the discarded object in question?  Or applied a waterproof coating?  Or mixed in layers of non-PHA base filament to your print. We can only control the filament manufacturing and not its final application. So we recommend you think about the end-of-life for your object.  If you know that you will add paint or coatings, while you can use our material to build the object, please do not discard it into the compost bin, but into the regular trash.

Same goes if you are mixing filament materials to create the object (e.g. PETG - PHA) while the PHA portion will in fact decompose naturally.  The non-PHA material can potentially turn into microplastic into your compost bed.

1) Ensure your printing bed surface is
     A) Clean
     B) Clean and
     C) Clean.
A good wipe using Isopropyl Alcohol usually does the trick.

2) Using a glass or smooth bed will not improve addition alone. And neither will heating the bed. So, No heat please.

3) Use PVHA Glue Stick. A small layer of well spread glue will greatly improve the results.

4) Add a brim. We normally add from a 10 to 20 mm brim all around the print.

5) Put Fan ON after the 1st layer is completed, from 75% to 100% after

6) Highly Textured beds work great. BUT please lower your “squish” on the 1st layer so that a chisel and hammer isn’t needed to remove the print after.

7) Blue Painter Tape is not good for PHA, don’t bother.

8) Ensure your bed level is either good or bed mesh leveling is correct (1st layer calibration to test). 

Yes

Maybe...it's top secret.

No, never will. We only use natural or bio-Pigments. And no currently available “bright” pigments are sourced from mother nature. This goes back to our commitment to provide a 100% Bio-degradable material that will cause no harm if discarded in Nature. If we used an artificial bright red pigment say C18H10Cl2N2O2., the pigment could potentially turn the soil or water toxic; as it will not be re-absorbed by bacteria. So, our up-and-coming colors will only be made with earth-tones bio-pigments or bio-fillers (Hint: Almond Shell).

Yes, if you followed the above guidelines, absolutely. We have tested 100% recycled filament without major issues. As long as the material was not thermally degraded (burned).

You are way too hot. (Not you, the nozzle temp setting). Back off, and use the recommend settings, and not for ABS.

Sure, just don’t be in a hurry for the result. You would need to bury the print in a compost bed and allow 3 to 12 months for the support made of PHA to be eaten away depending on the thickness. So not very practical, but heck. Why not. 

Should not be necessary, PHAs are hydrophobic in nature. But it won’t harm it either. 

We don’t want to use any Petro-polymer for our products. Only recycled cardboard, soy based inks and PHAs with inert minerals. The material does not require special storage conditions. It's hydrophobic. You should never feed the neighbor’s cat Silica pellets.

If you opened the box, it's yours to keep. But we will be more than happy to walk you through the print setup issues and resolve them. Unopened boxes can be returned. Send us a contact email.

With another PHA?
Yes.
With PLA?
Maybe…….TBD.
With PETG? And ABS?
We doubt it, and why would you?

No, you are thinking of Beer fermentation and yeast pooping CO2 and Alcohol.
PHAs are a natural polymer that bacteria make to store excess energy.
As we humans store excess calories into body fats. Bacteria do the same as PHA.

All-natural biomass can be used as food, including, sugars, starch, vegetable oils, biogas (Methane and CO2) and waste (yes poop can make PHA with the right bacteria, but we don’t use poop made PHAs…….yet…but we did trademark CrapPHA just in case). 

We kill them, as humanly as possible using soft background music and relaxing sceneries...we aren’t savages.

Identical or better than cellulose (paper). Or minimum 30% mass within 180 days. However, this also depends on the thickness and size of the object. If your intent is to bio-degrade your print, we suggest you lower the resolution and reduce the infill to the lowest setpoint possible. Increasing the contact surface area of a print, will increase its degradation rate.

Not recommended, we don’t even suggest you do it. No double or triple dare either. 

Oh! Stop it!