3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

BVOH vs PLA Wood

Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.

BVOH (soluble support) guideWood-filled PLA guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore BVOH comparisonsMore PLA Wood comparisons
BVOH vs PLA Wood — documented properties and sources
PropertyBVOH (soluble support)SUPPORTWood-filled PLAPLA
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots$165.72/kg median; $165.72–$165.72/kg across 1 dated product listings$34.49/kg median; $13.99–$76.40/kg across 6 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryButenediol vinyl alcohol copolymer — a vinyl alcohol copolymer that dissolves faster and in cooler water than straight PVA[1]PLA filled with wood powder — 10–18 wt% (Bambu Lab SDS); colorFabb woodFill uses a PLA/PHA base with recycled wood fibre[2][3]
Densityg/cm³Not documented1.15 (colorFabb) to 1.23 (Fiberlogy), ISO 1183; Bambu Lab 1.21[4][3][5]
Typical priceUSD/kg1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 166[1]1 kg spools cluster near 25; counting the 0.5 kg specialty spools the middle of the market is about 34[6][7][8]
Price range across brandsUSD/kg166 at Fiberlogy's 500 g pricing on 3DJake[1]14–76 across brands; SUNLU 14, ELEGOO 19, Bambu Lab 25, Prusament 44, Filament PM 49 on 0.5 kg spools, colorFabb 76[7][6][9][10][11][8]
Market availability1–5Niche, a handful of specialist brands[1]Stocked by most mainstream brands[6][7][10][5]
Spool sizes & diameters1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5 kg spools[1]1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.6, 0.85 and 1 kg spools[10][5][6]
Typical applicationsDissolvable support where PVA dissolves too slowly, and for materials PVA bonds to poorly[1]Decorative and model-making prints that are sanded and stained like timber[4][3]
Diameter tolerance± mmNot documented±0.03 (Bambu Lab)[4]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°CNot documented190–240 (Bambu Lab); colorFabb advises 195–220 for its PLA/PHA base[4][3]
Bed temperature°CNot documented35–45 (Bambu Lab); 50–70 (Fiberlogy)[4][5]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Open frame is fine[12]Open frame is fine[4]
Part cooling fanNot documentedFan on[4]
Warping tendency1–5Not documentedNone[4]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Intermediate — dry filament and a tuned profile[13]Easy — minor profile tuning; pre-drying is required and the wood content chars if it sits hot[14][4]
Extruder requirementA second extruder or a tool changer[12]Nozzles below 0.4 mm are not compatible; Bambu Lab does not recommend the AMS lite[14]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Brass fine indefinitely[12]Brass acceptable; hardened steel for volume work — Bambu Lab's PLA compatibility table lists no hardened-nozzle requirement, but its nozzle guide names wood among the abrasive filaments hardened steel exists for[14][15]
Abrasiveness1–5Non-abrasive[12]Moderately abrasive — wood fill[14]
Nozzle clog risk1–5Very high — frequent jams without careful setup[13]Moderate — needs dry filament and a clean nozzle; wood particles char and block small nozzles[14]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Very high (>2 %) — the vinyl alcohol backbone is what makes it soluble[13][12]High — 1.25 % saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH, the highest in the PLA family[4]
Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH%Not documented1.25 saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab)[4]
Drying temperature & timeNot documented55 °C for 8 h in a forced-air dryer; Bambu Lab lists pre-drying as required[4][14]
Symptoms when wetNot documentedBambu Lab flags pre-drying and ventilation as specific requirements for this grade[14]
Effect of moisture on strengthNot a structural material; no dry-versus-conditioned data is published[13]No dry-versus-conditioned figures are published. At 1.25 % saturated uptake the practical loss shows as poor layer adhesion, rough surface and weak layers[13][4]
Storage requirementSealed with desiccant at all times[13]Not documented
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPaNot documented26 ± 5 (Bambu Lab) and 28.4 (colorFabb) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberlogy quotes 35 at yield[4][3][5]
Young's modulusMPaNot documented2360 ± 190 (Bambu Lab) and 2479 (colorFabb) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberlogy 2950[4][3][5]
Elongation at break%Not documented4.5 (colorFabb) to 15.3 (Bambu Lab) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberlogy 6.5[4][3][5]
Flexural strengthMPaNot documented55 ± 4 printed XY, ISO 178 (Bambu Lab)[4]
Flexural modulusMPaNot documented2780 ± 120 printed XY, ISO 178 (Bambu Lab)[4]
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²Not documented3.81 (colorFabb) and 6.3 ± 2.2 (Bambu Lab) printed XY, ISO 179, notched[4][3]
Other impact dataNot documentedCharpy unnotched 12.28 (colorFabb) and 15.7 (Bambu Lab), printed, ISO 179[4][3]
Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPaNot documented15 ± 4 printed Z, ISO 527 (Bambu Lab); flexural Z falls to 28 against 55 in XY[4]
Brittleness1–5Not documentedBrittle — snaps with little warning[4]
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5Not documentedPoor — no wood-filled creep test; plain printed PLA sagged from 12 to 16.2–21.8 mm over 5 days at 1.25 kg[16][17][18]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Not documentedPoor — no grade-specific S-N curve; plain printed PLA ran 38 000–49 000 cycles at 30 % of tensile strength and the wood filler cuts elongation and the parts snap without warning[19][4]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Not documentedRigid[4]
Z strength as % of XY%Not documented58 by tensile, 51 by flexural (printed, Bambu Lab)[4]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°CNot documented60 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa)[4]
HDT at 1.8 MPa°CNot documented57 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[4]
Glass transition (Tg)°CNot documented54 (Bambu Lab, DSC); Fiberlogy quotes 55–60[4][5]
Melting point / Vicat°CNot documented156 peak melt (DSC)[4]
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Not documentedDegrades within weeks outdoors[20]
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Dissolves or disintegrates — by design[1]Not documented
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; none of these materials was in the chamber study[21]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission[21]
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Open a window / occasional ventilation[21]None needed in a normal room; Bambu Lab specifically advises ventilation for this grade[14]
Post-Processing
Sanding & machiningNot documentedSands and stains like timber — the usual reason for choosing it[3]
Support material pairingThis is the support material[1]Support for PLA (Bambu Lab)[4]
Dimensional accuracy & detailNot documentedWood grain hides layer lines; colour darkens with nozzle temperature[4][3]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inWater: about 1 g of BVOH per 20 g of water, several hours; warmer water is faster but must not be too hot.[22][1]Chloroform dissolves the PLA matrix (10 % w/v, 2–4 h at 23 °C) and leaves the filler as loose sludge; laboratory reagent.[23]
Softened or crazed byNothing else — a vinyl alcohol copolymer resists organic solvents, so IPA or acetone will not touch it.[24]Acetone, ethyl acetate and toluene plasticise the matrix but dissolve <1 % even at 65 °C; acetone submersion crazes parts.[23][25]
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — water is a removal solvent, not a welding one.[22]Chloroform vapour attacks only the resin fraction, so the filler is left standing proud; no workshop-safe agent exists.[26][25]

Material entries describe families or representative grades, not an interchangeable specification for every spool. Test methods, orientations and conditions may differ. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.

Sources for this comparison

  1. Fiberlogy BVOH Natural — product page 3DJake International · 2026-08 · vendor
  2. Safety Data Sheet SDS20250723SA16 — Bambu PLA Wood Bambu Lab · 2025-07 · msds
  3. woodFill technical data sheet colorFabb · 2026-08 · tds
  4. Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet — PLA Wood Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
  5. FiberWood technical data sheet Fiberlogy · 2026-08 · tds
  6. PLA Wood — product page Bambu Lab US Store · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. ELEGOO product catalogue ELEGOO · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. PLA+ WOODJet - Natur (1,75 mm; 0,5 kg) Filament PM shop · 2026-08 · vendor
  9. Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
  10. woodFill — product page colorFabb US · 2026-08 · vendor
  11. SUNLU Optimized Wood PLA 3D Printer Filament 1 kg SUNLU · 2026-08 · vendor
  12. PolyDissolve S1 Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  13. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  14. PLA Usage Guide Bambu Lab Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  15. Nozzles — material and compatibility Bambu Lab Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  16. BambuLab PLA Basic vs PLA Tough vs PLA-CF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  17. Polymaker PLA Pro vs PLA-CF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  18. Carbon Fiber PLA vs META-PLA vs PLA+ vs PLA by Sunlu — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2026-08 · test
  19. Mechanical Properties of Additively Manufactured Polymeric Materials — PLA and PETG — For Biomechanical Applications Polymers 16(13):1868 · 2024-06 · paper
  20. PLA — material guide Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  21. Emissions of Ultrafine Particles and Volatile Organic Compounds from Commercially Available Desktop Three-Dimensional Printers with Multiple Filaments (Azimi et al.) Environmental Science & Technology 50(3) 1260-1268 · 2016-01 · paper
  22. Water soluble (BVOH/PVA) — Knowledge Base Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc
  23. Solubility Study of Ingeo Biopolymer Grades in Common Organic Solvents (NWPD003) NatureWorks · 2019-10 · tds
  24. Polyvinyl alcohol — KURARAY POVAL application guide Kuraray · 2026-08 · tds
  25. Improve your 3D prints with chemical smoothing Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc
  26. Effect of vapour smoothing in trichloromethane on 3D printed PLA — surface, mechanical and chemical structure Pitale, Keche & Chopra, Engineering Research Express 6(4) 045579 · 2024-12 · paper