Once a person starts in the world of 3D FDM printing, begins consume filament coils and encounters a problem: what to do with all those empty coils? Certain manufacturers use materials that are easily recyclable, such as the SAN (StyreneAcrylonitrile). In case the spool is not recyclable or you do not want to generate waste, there are several ways to reuse them.

Storage system

One of the most widespread uses within the 3D printing community is to use the spools as the basis of a storage system. To create this system it is only necessary to print the drawers and screw them to the spool. In the best known repositories of 3D models there are simple designs, just two drawers, and more complex designs with compartments for SD cards, for different diameters of nozzles, for USB or even with two heights to take more space.

Image 1: Storage system. Source: Cults3D

Spinning plate

An empty coil can also be reused to make a rotating platform, very useful when it comes to painting printed pieces comfortably and making 360º videos. Wildrose Builds shows in the following video how it has created this great way to give a new life to an empty coil.

Video 1: Spinning plate. Source: Cults3D

Clock

Surely many users have an old clock that no longer uses it and is picking up dust in a corner. With that old clock, an empty coil and a little imagination you can create a clock to your liking and in a matter of minutes.

Image 2: Recycle clock. Source: Reddit

Wind cables

Some users of 3D printers had the great idea of using empty coils to wind any type of rope or cable. This past Christmas we have been able to see curious images on social networks, where users rolled the Christmas lights around the spools.

Image 3: Wind cables. Source: Rigid.ink

Another method of reducing the number of waste is not to generate them. The community is becoming more aware of the environment, that is why they have created the masterspool and certain filament manufacturers offer their rolled materials without spools. The masterspool is a removable spool in two pieces, in one of them the previously mentioned filament is introduced, the other half is joined and the filament clamping elements are cut. With this system the consumption of new spools is avoided.

Image 4: Masterspool. Source: Thingiverse

In certain cases, this type of solution is not feasible and the filament must be wound on a new spool, a spool that is usually manufactured with some thermoplastic, material that can be recycled easily.

If you know any more idea of how to reuse an empty coil, leave it in the comments and do not hesitate to share your images of reuse of spools in our social networks.