Canon IP5000 damages multiple printheads?

[zack23]

Hello all -

I have a Canon Pixma IP5000 printer (modded to print DVDs), and have been refilling my cartridges with Hobbicolors ink.

About a year ago, my images started printing with significantly reduced magenta. Repeated cleanings did not solve the problem. The nozzle test showed no clogs, but did show the magenta bars printing a bit lighter than they should, and the magenta bars also displayed a slight 'grainyness' -- the application of color to the bar wasn't as smooth with the magenta bars as it was with the other colors. Canon tech support diagnosed a defective printhead, and since my printer was still under warranty (just!) I was able to get a free replacement printhead. The new printhead solved the problem and worked fine for several months.

Two months or so ago, the same problem started happening with the replacement printhead. My images are severely lacking in Magenta, and the nozzle test shows no clogs but the magenta bars (and particularly the second, paler bar) are lighter than they should be, and instead of having a completely smooth appearance the magenta bars have a somewhat grainy, smeared appearance. Switching cartridges (including an OEM Canon magenta cart) makes no difference. I've tried cleaning and deep cleaning the cartridge; I've tried blowing compressed air through the magenta port, I've filled a syringe with windex and pushed/pulled the windex through the magenta port, and I've filled a spare cartridge with windex and run cleaning cycles with it. Nothing has made the slightest difference.

I conclude that, most likely, I'm not dealing with a printhead clog, but rather some sort of electronic malfunction -- presumably the same electronic malfunction that afflicted my first printhead. I'm quite willing to go out and buy a replacement printhead for $50. However, I'm concerned that there is something in my printer that is frying my printheads, or that there is something about the magenta ink I am using that is causing the problem. (This last seems unlikely, since I have not heard reports of anyone else having similar problems with Hobbicolors magenta ink, and Dave at Hobbicolors says they have not had any defective batches of ink which could cause any problems.)

Does anyone have any idea why I should be having repeated problems with IP5000 printheads and magenta printing? Should I just get a new printhead and hope for the best, or is there some other issue which I need to address?

Thanks for any help!

 

[ghwellsjr]

If you do a search on ip5000 and clog or magenta you will find that others have had problems with this printer and third-party inks. This has been blamed on the smaller nozzle size in this printer. You have stated that you don't have any clogs but this is very difficult to determine with the normal nozzle check because the printer overlaps ink drops when forming the dots that make up the nozzle check patterns for the dye inks. See this link for a complete description of this:

http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=1504

What you should do is the extended nozzle check from the service mode. This will print out patterns for the dye inks similar to the pigment black nozzle check. I'm not sure how to do this for the iP5000 but if you do a search you may find out how or maybe someone else will post it.

 

[zack23]

>>>>> You have stated that you don't have any clogs but this is very difficult to determine with the normal nozzle check because the printer overlaps ink drops when forming the dots that make up the nozzle check patterns for the dye inks. See this link for a complete description of this:

http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=1504

What you should do is the extended nozzle check from the service mode. This will print out patterns for the dye inks similar to the pigment black nozzle check. I'm not sure how to do this for the iP5000 but if you do a search you may find out how or maybe someone else will post it.<<<<<<

Thanks for the response, and for the very interesting link. I had already guessed that I was having a problem with the 'secondary', fine magenta nozzles, and the extended nozzle check confirms this. However, I'm still not sure what to make of this. My understanding is that this sort of nozzle problem can be caused by a faulty electronic component in the printhead as well as by a physical clog in the nozzle. I don't *think* it's a physical clog because, as I described in my original post, I've exhausted every method for cleaning the nozzles that I know of (and have seen described in this forum), and nothing made any difference. And if the problem is an electronic failure in the printhead, I'm concerned that I've now had this happen twice, with two different printheads, both time in the same set of magenta nozzles. Lots of people on this forum use Hobbicolors ink; if the problem lay with their magenta ink I think we would have heard repeated reports by now. Yet if it's not the ink, I do wonder whether there is something else in my printer that is causing the printheads to go south...

 

[zack23]

Well, I went ahead and bought a new printhead. Not surprisingly, installing it solved the problem (whatever the exact problem might have been).

One slightly surprising point that might be relevant: my old printhead developed a very quiet but audible 'clicking' sound, a click that occurred each time the printhead traveled back and forth while printing graphics or DVD's (not when printing text). The new printhead is silent. I had noticed that this clicking noise first appeared several months ago after I printed a bunch of DVD's, and had wondered whether there was not sufficient vertical clearance between the DVD surface and the printhead, and whether this might possibly damage the printhead. I'm using an OEM Canon CD tray, and in all other respects CD/DVD printing works fine, so this seems unlikely...

Lastly, does anyone want my old, non-working printhead for disassembly or other investigation? I'd be happy to contribute it in the name of science!

Zack

 

[Tin Ho]

Do not rule out the possibility of bad ink. Do not rule out expecially the possibility of bad ink cartridge. What kind of cartridge did you use? If you are using any Chinese made aftermarket cartridges they are sometimes problematic. You may want to begin with a new set of cartridges for refilling purposes for your new print head. Use a set of OEM cartridges is the best option. You will less likely have quality issues with OEM cartridges.

It has been suggested many times to save a copy of a nozzle check print away when your print head is new and is in perfect condition. You can always compare your nozzle check with is saved copy in the future, especially comparing the colors and the quality with the saved one. This enables you to spot any problems and catch them early. It is more likely than not to fix a problem when it is caught early on.

In addition to saving a perfect nozzle check print you can print an image containing large block of colors and save it for the same purpose. Keep the print small such as a 4x6. The reason to keep it small is so that you would not cause further damage by printing a large photo when there is an ink feeding problem.

 

[Grandad35]

...snip...my old printhead developed a very quiet but audible 'clicking' sound, a click that occurred each time the printhead traveled back and forth while printing graphics or DVD's (not when printing text). The new printhead is silent.

I had the same thing happen on an i9900. The noise comes from an aluminum heat sink that is trapped between the ceramic nozzle plate and the plastic print head assembly. It is initially glued in place, but if you soak the print head in hot water the glue can dissolve and the plate will be free to slide around slightly. Each time the carriage quickly reverses directions, you will hear a "click". The heat sink is clearly visible on the bottom of the print head - it will be free to slide around slightly.

Lastly, does anyone want my old, non-working printhead for disassembly or other investigation? I'd be happy to contribute it in the name of science!

If no one else wants it, I would love to tear into it. Contact me via PM.

 

[zack23]

Do not rule out the possibility of bad ink. Do not rule out expecially the possibility of bad ink cartridge. What kind of cartridge did you use? If you are using any Chinese made aftermarket cartridges they are sometimes problematic. You may want to begin with a new set of cartridges for refilling purposes for your new print head. Use a set of OEM cartridges is the best option. You will less likely have quality issues with OEM cartridges.

Thanks for the suggestion. However, as I mentioned in my initial post, I tried exchanging various cartridges (Hobbicolors, a refilled Procolor, and an OEM Canon) and it made no difference. And the new printhead works fine using the same cartridges that I had been using with the previous printhead.

Zack

 

[zack23]

I had the same thing happen on an i9900. The noise comes from an aluminum heat sink that is trapped between the ceramic nozzle plate and the plastic print head assembly. It is initially glued in place, but if you soak the print head in hot water the glue can dissolve and the plate will be free to slide around slightly. Each time the carriage quickly reverses directions, you will hear a "click". The heat sink is clearly visible on the bottom of the print head - it will be free to slide around slightly.

Interesting. So if the aluminum heatsink moves around and causes a 'click,' does this any visible problems with print quality? Also, note that I started hearing this clicking sound before I tried any cleaning procedures with the printhead (beyond the printer's own normal cleaning routines accessed through the printer utility), so it's not possible that the heatsink was loosened by any soaking or as a result of the windex I injected into it.

I'll be happy to send the printhead to you if I can figure out the PM stuff -- I know you will put it to good use!

Zack

 

[Grandad35]

Mine came loose after a hot print head soak, so I incorrectly assumed that yours also came loose in the same way. There was no problem with the print quality, but the heat sink was obviously no longer making good contact with the ceramic part of the print head. Since this would cause the nozzles to run hotter than usual, I popped the nozzle plate, removed the heat sink, put two dollops of RTV under the heat sink to push it against the nozzle plate and glue it in place and reassembled the print head. The repaired head has been running for the last 2 years.

To send a PM (Private Message), just click on the "E-mail" link under a members name. A PM has been sent concerning the print head..