Canon I850 Ink Question

[david]

When the printing box appears and states that one or two of the color ink
tanks are low should I change them then or will it tell me when they are out
of ink? Also is there a way to check on the status of the tanks before one
starts to print. I have only been able to see the box when it pops up just
before it prints.
Thanks david

 

[beezer]

When the printing box appears and states that one or two of the color ink
tanks are low should I change them then or will it tell me when they are out
of ink? Also is there a way to check on the status of the tanks before one
starts to print. I have only been able to see the box when it pops up just
before it prints.
Thanks david

I would definately change it or refill the tank now. You can refill
yourself very economically with high quality matched ink for mere
pennies. The low ink indicator refers to the liquid tank that is
empty. Your sponge is still saturated but its not advisable, IMO to
use it much after the warning.

You will keep getting a warning each time you try printing.

I sure wouldnt print many photos thats for sure. You can bring up the
status check any time by right clicking on the printer device and then
properties.

 

[david]

I would definately change it or refill the tank now. You can refill
yourself very economically with high quality matched ink for mere
pennies. The low ink indicator refers to the liquid tank that is
empty. Your sponge is still saturated but its not advisable, IMO to
use it much after the warning.

You will keep getting a warning each time you try printing.

I sure wouldnt print many photos thats for sure. You can bring up the
status check any time by right clicking on the printer device and then
properties.

Thanks beezer for the quick and helpful reply.
In your reply you said "I could refill very economically with high quality
matched ink for mere pennies" can you elaborate more on were and how I
require the ink?
Also Properties,Maintenance (Start Status Monitor) this will only show the
status of the ink when you start to print and not when just want to just
check it?
Thanks again david

 

[SleeperMan]

david typed:

Thanks beezer for the quick and helpful reply.
In your reply you said "I could refill very economically with high
quality matched ink for mere pennies" can you elaborate more on were
and how I require the ink?
Also Properties,Maintenance (Start Status Monitor) this will only
show the status of the ink when you start to print and not when just
want to just check it?
Thanks again david

When you start status monitor, it tells you that printer is on standby. If
you press power button, it shows ink status and tells you it's online.
And, yes, refilling is extremly easy in this printer. You can get ink in
many places, but get high quality one, not some cheap crap.

 

[beezer]

Thanks beezer for the quick and helpful reply.
In your reply you said "I could refill very economically with high quality
matched ink for mere pennies" can you elaborate more on were and how I
require the ink?
Also Properties,Maintenance (Start Status Monitor) this will only show the
status of the ink when you start to print and not when just want to just
check it?
Thanks again david

Im sorry, as SleeperMan mentioned, just turn the printer power on and
look at your status monitor.

As far as the ink, I highly suggest using www.alotofthings.com for the
bulk ink and www.inkjetgoodies you can get blank cartridges that are
made for refilling and sealed with a rubber plug. They also have exit
hole caps that clip on as well.


Refilling your genuine cartridges is not hard to do but for the sake
of ease, I would suggest the buying the blank cartridges and avoid any
accidents that you may have since you are not familiar with refilling.

Either way, it will save you a bundle of money and the ink is
fantastically matched. I would guarantee you could not tell a
difference in your photos

 

[SleeperMan]

beezer typed:

Im sorry, as SleeperMan mentioned, just turn the printer power on and
look at your status monitor.

As far as the ink, I highly suggest using www.alotofthings.com for the
bulk ink and www.inkjetgoodies you can get blank cartridges that are
made for refilling and sealed with a rubber plug. They also have exit
hole caps that clip on as well.


Refilling your genuine cartridges is not hard to do but for the sake
of ease, I would suggest the buying the blank cartridges and avoid any
accidents that you may have since you are not familiar with refilling.

Either way, it will save you a bundle of money and the ink is
fantastically matched. I would guarantee you could not tell a
difference in your photos

Just small comment...
I refill original carts and as supplier of ink told me, i drilled small
(1mm) hole at the top and each time i seal it with electrical tape and it
holds like a blast. Canons is really the easiest to refill - dum easy, i
would say.

 

[beezer]

Just small comment...
I refill original carts and as supplier of ink told me, i drilled small
(1mm) hole at the top and each time i seal it with electrical tape and it
holds like a blast. Canons is really the easiest to refill - dum easy, i
would say.

Very true.. I also refill my genuine cartridges. I drill a hole large
enough to vent as I inject ink. I then seal it with clear good
quality box tape.

You can then squeegie it with your fingers and be assure there are no
air pockets to be seen.

OH, just another point if he is considering refilling originals, save
your old breakoff seals and hold them in place with a rubber band. And
for storage, dont forget to tape over the vent hole as original
cartridges are and or store in a airtight ziplock bag to be sure.

 

[Gayle Faraday]

I have a Cannon i850 and it seems as though the nozzles are blocked. I
tried using the printer software to clean them many times but without any
luck. I did a head aligment and still it won't print. I can't even get it
to print a nozzle pattern that makes much sense. Anyone have an idea of
what could be the problem?

 

[TR]

Anyone have an idea of
what could be the problem?

The first thing I would try would be to clean the contacts on the
heads and also clean the mating contacts on the printer. It may be as
simple a thing as the heads not making contact.

Regards,
TR

 

[beezer]

The first thing I would try would be to clean the contacts on the
heads and also clean the mating contacts on the printer. It may be as
simple a thing as the heads not making contact.

Regards,
TR

If it does turn out to be clogged nozzles and not the contacts then
try this..

http://216.219.159.185/clean.html

 

[TR]

http://216.219.159.185/clean.html

Great Link! Leanred a lot on that one. I think the most important
thing that link left me with was: "Never, Never, Never keep a
cartridge out of one of these printers for more than a few minutes."

Regards,
TR

 

[Gayle Faraday]

Gee Thanks for the quick reply. Now I'm now sure what you mean when you
refer to the mating contacts. Are these the electrical contacts on the back
of the plastic thing that the heads are in? Somewhere in my manual it
advised not to touch these so I was being very careful not to. What do I
clean these with?
This could be the problem because when I try to print the nozzle pattern it
looks like dots and dashes and streaks of color. If it's worked there are
no signs of letters same thing kind of like dots and dashes. I did wonder
if the software could be corrupt so I did an uninstall and reinstalled it.
Thanks again
Gayle

 

[TR]

What do I clean these with?

I use a lint free rag (a square cut out of an old cotton T-Shirt) and
put some rubbing alcohol on it (not saturating to the point its
dripping, just damp with it) and rub the head contacts and mating
printer side contacts with that, making sure not to touch anything
else. I used this method for years on the HP carts (built in heads)
and the mating contacts on the printer side with success. When I got
this new i960, I cleaned the head contacts and mating printer contacts
on it before even inserting it for the first time just in case.

Now, some have told me not to use alcohol but they can't tell me why.
They use clear bottled water instead.

Keep us advised......

Regards,
TR

 

[TR]

Now I'm now sure what you mean when you
refer to the mating contacts. Are these the electrical contacts on the back
of the plastic thing that the heads are in? Somewhere in my manual it
advised not to touch these so I was being very careful not to.

Sorry, forgot to answer the other part of your question in my last
reply...

Yes, those little contacts on the back of the plastic housing the
heads are in and the contacts on the printer that they would press up
against when installed.

Yes, they say not to touch them but they mean with your fingers
because your natural body oil will get on them and they will not make
good contact then. From my HP days, I leaned that these contacts are
real sensitive about getting contaminated. We have a printer in the
hanger where it is exposed to all kinds of grit and grime and engine
exhaust. It doesn't last more than a week without needing those
contacts cleaned. And we aren't doing any more than printing out
black ink maintenance reports and schedules with it.

I have a friend that still smokes and still smokes around his
computer. He's also always having to clean those contacts more than
normal and I would say it has something to do with his smoking in
close proximity to the printer.

Regards,
TR

 

[Gayle Faraday]

Thanks a lot for the information I can't wait to see if it works. I'll be
keeping my fingers crossed.

Gayle

 

[david]

Very true.. I also refill my genuine cartridges. I drill a hole large
enough to vent as I inject ink. I then seal it with clear good
quality box tape.

You can then squeegie it with your fingers and be assure there are no
air pockets to be seen.

OH, just another point if he is considering refilling originals, save
your old breakoff seals and hold them in place with a rubber band. And
for storage, dont forget to tape over the vent hole as original
cartridges are and or store in a airtight ziplock bag to be sure.

Thank you beezer and SleeperMan for you replies.
I will order my next ink refill from the web sight beezer suggested and
inkjetgoodies for the blank cartridges.
Thanks again david

 

[beezer]

Now, some have told me not to use alcohol but they can't tell me why.
They use clear bottled water instead.

Keep us advised......

Regards,
TR

The reason would be that alcohol leaves a film and its not the best
cleaner for electronics as it may cause corrosino over time. In this
case, there are no components to corrode but the film will exist.

Given the life and age of these printer, I highly doubt that alcohol
will cause any problems during the printers usefull life.

 

[TR]

The reason would be that alcohol leaves a film and its not the best
cleaner for electronics as it may cause corrosino over time. In this
case, there are no components to corrode but the film will exist.

Okay, got ya'..... Then distilled water (bottled drinking water)
should do the job just fine.

Given the life and age of these printer, I highly doubt that alcohol
will cause any problems during the printers usefull life.

Probably not, but the film thing could be of concern although I don't
think it has ever played a factor in my old HP unit which is the one I
did this ritual cleaning to before going with this new i960.

Back to the original reason for doing the cleaning.... With that old
HP-952c, every time it would start doing funny things, leading me to
contact cleaning, I would always get a little coloration (black
mostly) on the cleaning rag after swiping it across the contacts.
That led me to believe that over time, these inkjets do a buildup of
ink "dusting" around the immediate area to the heads. In other words,
with every page printed, you get a infinitesimal amount of "over
spray" so to speak that starts building up with time. Or at least it
seemed so on the HP-952c. Whether it does on other
brands/makes/models I don't know but I did get this discoloration on
the cleaning rag when cleaning the contacts on the HP-952c every 2-3
months of usage.

Regards,
TR

 

[beezer]

Okay, got ya'..... Then distilled water (bottled drinking water)
should do the job just fine.


Probably not, but the film thing could be of concern although I don't
think it has ever played a factor in my old HP unit which is the one I
did this ritual cleaning to before going with this new i960.

Back to the original reason for doing the cleaning.... With that old
HP-952c, every time it would start doing funny things, leading me to
contact cleaning, I would always get a little coloration (black
mostly) on the cleaning rag after swiping it across the contacts.
That led me to believe that over time, these inkjets do a buildup of
ink "dusting" around the immediate area to the heads. In other words,
with every page printed, you get a infinitesimal amount of "over
spray" so to speak that starts building up with time. Or at least it
seemed so on the HP-952c. Whether it does on other
brands/makes/models I don't know but I did get this discoloration on
the cleaning rag when cleaning the contacts on the HP-952c every 2-3
months of usage.

Regards,
TR

Ive never cleaned my contacts and never removed the 960 head yet but
when i decide to do a full pressure cleaning for the hell of it, I
will certainly check out the contacts for dirt and let ya know.

 

[Gayle Faraday]

I cleaned the contacts on the printer today but it didn't seem to help. The
contacts on the printer are like needles sticking out and a bit difficult to
clean. That are on an angle pointing downward so I just moistened a piece
of knit fabric and rubbed them in a downward motion. The contacts on the
head are flat and were easy to clean. I did try wiping both of them a few
times. I guess the only thing I can do is try ordering the cleaner and see
if that helps. I hate spending the money if it doesn't work. After this I
don't know if I would buy another Cannon printer. The printer is only about
15 months old and has problems. I had an Epson about 4 years and whenever I
had a printing problem I just used the software and cleaned the nozzles and
everything was fine. I really liked the speed of the Cannon but this
problem is a bummer.