HP Cartridge Preparation

[Richard Steinfeld]

We've often discuss ink system maintenance of printers that use built-in
print heads.

What I'd like to know is how to clean and prepare the customary
Hewlett-Packard cartridges for refilling. I'm talking about cartridges
that have the head built into the ink tank.

What I need to know is:

1. What to use
2. How to use it

Thanks in advance for all your thousands of helpful replies!

Richard

 

[Al Bundy]

We've often discuss ink system maintenance of printers that use built-in
print heads.

What I'd like to know is how to clean and prepare the customary
Hewlett-Packard cartridges for refilling. I'm talking about cartridges
that have the head built into the ink tank.

What I need to know is:

1. What to use
2. How to use it

Thanks in advance for all your thousands of helpful replies!

Richard

Use alcohol and a soft cloth. Put the alcohol on the soft cloth and
clean the contacts and the printhead. Don't wipe your face with the
cloth after or you will look like Hitler.

 

[Tony]

We've often discuss ink system maintenance of printers that use built-in
print heads.

What I'd like to know is how to clean and prepare the customary
Hewlett-Packard cartridges for refilling. I'm talking about cartridges
that have the head built into the ink tank.

What I need to know is:

1. What to use
2. How to use it

Thanks in advance for all your thousands of helpful replies!

Richard

Richard
As on of the "thousands" of helpful replies the only advice I have is this...
The fresher the better! Especially for the newer cartridges. Cartridges that
have stood for a while without a good seal will dry up and be very hard to
recover. Most succesful
refillers refill as soon as the cartridge is low and if they are not going to
put the cartridge into a printer immediately will carefully seal the print head
nozzles (this is easier said than done by the way).
Tony
MS MVP Printing/Imaging

 

[Richard Steinfeld]

Richard
As on of the "thousands" of helpful replies the only advice I have is this...
The fresher the better! Especially for the newer cartridges. Cartridges that
have stood for a while without a good seal will dry up and be very hard to
recover. Most succesful
refillers refill as soon as the cartridge is low and if they are not going to
put the cartridge into a printer immediately will carefully seal the print head
nozzles (this is easier said than done by the way).

But let's say that I have a cartridge that's been contaminated by an ink
that I want to replace. I want to get the remnants of the prior ink out
of the thing on the theory that it'll be incompatible with the ink that
I want to use.

What's the regimen for cleaning the old junk out of the cartridge in
advance of the new, wanted ink?

That's the thing.

Richard

 

[Richard Steinfeld]

Use alcohol and a soft cloth. Put the alcohol on the soft cloth and
clean the contacts and the printhead. Don't wipe your face with the
cloth after or you will look like Hitler.

But if Hitler had wiped his face with the cloth, would he have looked
like me?

Richard

 

[Arthur Entlich]

I think the OP should have been more exacting and stated "don't wipe
your upper lip..."

Hmmm...

Art

 

[Al Bundy]

But let's say that I have a cartridge that's been contaminated by an ink
that I want to replace. I want to get the remnants of the prior ink out
of the thing on the theory that it'll be incompatible with the ink that
I want to use.

What's the regimen for cleaning the old junk out of the cartridge in
advance of the new, wanted ink?

That's the thing.

Richard

I'll be interested in a good answer to this too Richard. If it's a
spongeless black cart like those old #45, you could wash them out with
alcohol and water, but mostly just draining and filling would be OK. A
sponge type color cart is another matter. The sponge holds so much
that flushing takes forever and purging the flush product is very
difficult. I have cut the carts open and pulled the sponges and
cleaned them. This is just too labor intensive for more than an
experiment. Spongeless after market cart are sometimes available.
Generally, I just keep adding ink on top of old ink and keep printing.
I have items exposed to light for years and never seem to have
problems. Others in this group are much more quality oriented than am
I though.