Digital BW, The Print

I mostly print black-only with MIS ebony.  Since I'm only using the
black ink, the color cartridges last a long time, but I had a
situation the other day where one ran out mid-print, and three others
were at the lowest marker (in the print manager screen) at the same time.

I know the cleaning cycle seems to waste truck-loads of ink.  Should I
replace everything that's low when one runs out to avoid cycles or do
each one separately as it goes?  I did the latter in this case, and
after the 2200 went back to printing, the levels on the screen for
other inks didn't seem to change.  Is that typical?  My hope was that
it could tell which cartridge you just put in and just prime that one.

The whole changing/cleaning process has me in fits; I can't stand to
see that precious ink get wasted (I'm cheap!).  If wine could be used
as ink, you could probably substitute Chateau Latour in the magenta
slot for the same price!

Hello andy,

>I mostly print black-only with MIS ebony.  Since I'm only using 
>the black ink, the color cartridges last a long time, but I had 
>a situation the other day where one ran out mid-print, and three 
>others were at the lowest marker (in the print manager screen) 
>at the same time.

>Should I replace everything that's low when one runs out to avoid 
>cycles or do each one separately as it goes?  

Only swap what's completely empty.  Here's a way to avoid the cleaning
cycles:  After swapping the cart, do NOT press the ink button.  Let it
sit for 5 minutes for the ink in the new cart to flow down into the
head (this prevents air from blocking a nozzle and requiring a
cleaning cycle).  Then turn the printer off for a few seconds, then
turn it back on. It will start back up in ready mode without a
cleaning cycle.

Regards,
Clayton


Info on black and white digital printing at    
http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Clayton Jones"
<cj@c...> wrote:
 
> 
> Only swap what's completely empty.  Here's a way to avoid the cleaning
> cycles:  After swapping the cart, do NOT press the ink button.  Let it
> sit for 5 minutes for the ink in the new cart to flow down into the
> head (this prevents air from blocking a nozzle and requiring a
> cleaning cycle).  Then turn the printer off for a few seconds, then
> turn it back on. It will start back up in ready mode without a
> cleaning cycle.

So simple! Yet that approach (to avoid wasting ink) is something
that's escaped my notice even after using my 2200 for several years
and spending countless hours in various printing forums. Thanks for
the tip!

Phil

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "aardema497" <andy.aardema@g...> wrote:
>
> I mostly print black-only with MIS ebony.

Can you define "mostly". Do you do color twice a week, twice a month, or twice a year?

> Since I'm only using the
> black ink, the color cartridges last a long time, but I had a
> situation the other day where one ran out mid-print, and three others
> were at the lowest marker (in the print manager screen) at the same time.
> 
> I know the cleaning cycle seems to waste truck-loads of ink.  Should I
> replace everything that's low when one runs out to avoid cycles or do
> each one separately as it goes?

I replace the low ones when doing a change.

> I did the latter in this case, and
> after the 2200 went back to printing, the levels on the screen for
> other inks didn't seem to change.  Is that typical?  My hope was that
> it could tell which cartridge you just put in and just prime that one.

It can, so as long as it doesn't do a cleaning, you're OK. But it will do cleanings periodically, and this wastes ink from all carts. So you'll be interrupted at random times to change carts. In many situations, time is money, just as ink is money. Sometimes time is more money, and changing all the low carts once, instead of on three separate occasions, can make the difference. 

> The whole changing/cleaning process has me in fits; I can't stand to
> see that precious ink get wasted (I'm cheap!).  If wine could be used
> as ink, you could probably substitute Chateau Latour in the magenta
> slot for the same price!

Or cleaning solution. That's why I asked you what "mostly" meant. If you're months between color printings, get 6 empty carts, with the chips for each position except the Eboni, fill them with MIS cleaning solution, and load the printer with those. That way, it will do all its cleaning with cleaning solution, and the printer will never clog.

I have been imprudent and let a 1400 sit with Carbon 6 for too long. 
What is the best way to unclog the heads? I do have Paul's Clear Base at 
hand, since I mix the inks myself.

Does anybody know what the active ingredients in Windex or Simple Green 
are, since I don't have those brands in Switzerland? (Or what additives 
to avoid...)

Many thanks
Louis

I use Windex, which is probably not much more than water, a wetting agent and a bit of ammonia.  So, since you mix the base, you could probably do the same thing with it and a bit of ammonia on the parking pad over night.  

Be sure it's a clog and not an empty cartridge.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com 



--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, Louis de Stoutz <loudest@...> wrote:

>
> I have been imprudent and let a 1400 sit with Carbon 6 for too long. 
> What is the best way to unclog the heads? I do have Paul's Clear Base at 
> hand, since I mix the inks myself.
> 
> Does anybody know what the active ingredients in Windex or Simple Green 
> are, since I don't have those brands in Switzerland? (Or what additives 
> to avoid...)
> 
> Many thanks
> Louis
>

Hi Louis,

 

I resolved a serious clog in my 1400 by using a mix of 2 parts ammoniated
Windex with 1 part 91% isopropyl alcohol on a piece of folded paper towel
under the print head for a couple of hours. Since you don't have Windex
where you are any window cleaner that has ammonia should work.

 

All the best,

Tom 

From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Louis de
Stoutz
Sent: Saturday, January 21, 2012 11:33 AM
To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Digital BW] Unclogging 1400 with Carbon 6

 

  

I have been imprudent and let a 1400 sit with Carbon 6 for too long. 
What is the best way to unclog the heads? I do have Paul's Clear Base at 
hand, since I mix the inks myself.

Does anybody know what the active ingredients in Windex or Simple Green 
are, since I don't have those brands in Switzerland? (Or what additives 
to avoid...)

Many thanks
Louis





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks Paul and Tom!

Since I want to avoid damaging the plastic parts of the heads with 
unknown additives, Clear Base + Ammonia seems like the way to go. How 
much of 10% ammonia solution should I add to the clear base?

Louis

Shame of all shames! You were right on, Paul. Although my carts were not 
empty when I last used them, now they are! I feel like those clients who 
used to call me for a computer problem when it was simply unplugged...

Does this mean that carts just empty themselves over time? A combination 
of leaking and evaporation?

Anyway, I now have a new task at hand: cleaning the carts and flushing 
the ducts and heads. Having gathered info from old posts, here is what I 
plan to do, please correct me if there is a better way to proceed:

1- rinse carts with distilled water (necessary?)
2- rinse carts with flushing liquid, possibly using ultrasound to loosen 
old ink
3- empty carts
4- fill carts with flushing liquid and do head cleansing cycles
5- empty carts and refill with ink

Questions:
How do I mix flushing liquid, I have:
- clear base b (with Edwal)
- ammonia
- isopropyl alcohol

Are all of these mixable? Should I avoid Photoflo and Edwal to get in 
contact with ammonia and/or alcohol and thus preferably start from water 
and glycerol?
What proportions?

Thanks for your kind help
Louis

Louis de Stoutz <loudest@...> wrote:
>
> ... Although my carts were not 
> empty when I last used them, now they are!


I confess I dislike the auto-reset chips.  They seem to get out of sync with the actual amount of ink in the carts.  It's all too easy, particularly if you use QTR, to simply miss the fact that a chip reset.  I didn't have these problems with the older manual-reset chips.


> Does this mean that carts just empty themselves over time? 
> A combination of leaking and evaporation?

I have occasionally been suspicious of carts emptying themselves, but I've never been able to pin down whether it really happened or I just forgot to check.  The latest instance of this was my old Dad's printer, where I found 5 empty carts.  He keeps his room at the old folks' home at close to 80 degrees F. all the time, so that could be a factor, but I just don't know. Low viscosity might cause ink to pour through a printer.  But there, the Eboni 100% is actually lower in viscosity than the Carbon-6 mid-tones, and I don't hear any complaints about Eboni flowing through printers.  (It did in a 1400 that was taken the a workshop on a mule's back.  But that is hardly a normal situation.)

 
> Anyway, I now have a new task at hand: cleaning the carts 
> and flushing the ducts and heads. 

If you're not changing inks, you might just consider re-filling the carts (and priming them).

 
> Questions:
> How do I mix flushing liquid, I have:
> - clear base b (with Edwal)
> - ammonia
> - isopropyl alcohol
> 
> Are all of these mixable?

Yes.  Don't leave a significant concentration of ammonia in the head too long.  At some point it could cause damage.  (I have no idea what that point is - just repeating what I've been told.)

> Should I avoid Photoflo and Edwal 

They are your cleaners.  Edwal is particularly impressive.

You may be doing more work here than is necessary.  Are you sure you have any clogs?  If so, Windex (dilute ammonia) on the parking pad overnight may be all you need.  Typically, it's only the 100% Eboni that is a problem where Eboni/Carbon-6 is left un-used in a printer for extended periods, and the parking pad trick almost always is enough to take care of that.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com

Paul, how can I thank you for all your contributions over the years, 
your generosity in sharing your experience and wisdom is unprecedented!

On 23.01.2012 18:28, Paul wrote:
> I confess I dislike the auto-reset chips.
> They seem to get out of sync with the actual amount of ink in the carts.

That's right. The Epson utility was showing everything quite full, 
except for K and Y. I got suspicious though when the next day Y 
miraculously showed to be full too...

> If you're not changing inks, you might just consider re-filling the carts (and priming them).
> You may be doing more work here than is necessary.

I was proposing this because even the higher dilution carts show dark 
marks in the corners. What happens to the carbon pigments when all the 
liquid is gone? Will they just nicely spread out again in the new ink, 
or do they form clusters that will stick together and irreparably clog 
some inaccessible duct? (I'm a bit influenced by the interesting thread 
on old inks, hence the proposal of U-sounding the carts.) Of course, 
less work is always welcome.

Louis

Louis de Stoutz <loudest@...> wrote:

> ...
> 
> > If you're not changing inks, you might just consider
> > re-filling the carts (and priming them).
> > You may be doing more work here than is necessary.
> 
> I was proposing this because even the higher dilution 
> carts show dark marks in the corners. 

Did they totally dry out?  I suspect that is just ink in the corners, not necessarily dried of overly concentrated inks.


> What happens to the carbon pigments when all the 
> liquid is gone?

If they have dried, I'd recommend buying new carts. When a cart is empty there is still residual ink in the corners.  If the printer had sat for a year, then it might be time to start over.  If you just ran the carts empty and it has sat even months, I doubt the ink in the corners of the carts is bad ink. 

> Will they just nicely spread out again in the new ink, 

Probably so if they are still liquid.  I've never seen a cart actually dry out inside.


> or do they form clusters that will stick together and 
> irreparably clog some inaccessible duct?

If they are dry or if we're talking about ink that is years old, then you may have a problem.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com

Everything fine, thanks again.

Last little question: I never know how paranoid to be about handling 
equipment and inks. Is it ok to wash the syringe with tap water at the 
end of the session, or could this leave particles behind and contaminate 
the next ink load?

Louis

Louis de Stoutz <loudest@...> wrote:
>
> ... Is it ok to wash the syringe with tap water at the 
> end of the session, ...

I use tap water to wash things.  


Paul
www.PaulRoark.com

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, Louis de Stoutz <loudest@...> wrote:
>
> Paul, how can I thank you for all your contributions over the years, 
> your generosity in sharing your experience and wisdom is unprecedented!
> 

What this guy said!!!  

Harry

> What this guy said! 

Thanks, but I'm just one of many contributors to this forum.  I learned a great deal of what I know about printing from the people on this forum.

So, thank you all for sharing your knowledge.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com