Workshop guide / 03
The material is part
of the repair.
A shape can be dimensionally perfect and still fail because it softened in a conservatory or snapped after being flexed. Start with the environment, then choose the plastic.
Indoor and outdoor useHeat and UVRigid and flexible parts
PLA and PLA+
- Often useful for
- Indoor covers, knobs, organisers and low-stress trim
- Why choose it
- Crisp detail and a tidy finish
- Watch for
- Poor choice for hot cars, sunny windowsills or outdoor weather
PETG
- Often useful for
- Household clips, guides, brackets and damp locations
- Why choose it
- Tougher and less brittle than ordinary PLA
- Watch for
- Can still creep under constant load and is not a universal engineering plastic
ASA
- Often useful for
- Outdoor caps, garden fittings and UV-exposed parts
- Why choose it
- Better weather and sunlight resistance
- Watch for
- Not automatically safe for heat, pressure or structural loads
TPU
- Often useful for
- Feet, bumpers, flexible retainers and protective sleeves
- Why choose it
- Rubbery, impact resistant and able to flex repeatedly
- Watch for
- Too soft for accurate rigid clips, threads and bearing surfaces
The useful questions
Where does the part live?
Tell us whether it sits outside, beside a motor, in a sunny car, near steam, in contact with cleaning chemicals, or under a constant load. “Strongest material” isn’t a specification. The right answer depends on temperature, flex, UV, geometry and what happens if the part fails.
Material does not remove risk
Some jobs still get a no.
None of these materials makes a home-printed component suitable for brakes, body-weight support, mains electricity, gas, pressure, drinking water or medical equipment.
Read the safety boundaries →