Cleaning solution application/methods for Canon Print heads?

[websnail]

Question... How are people applying any cleaning solution to their Canon (not touching Epson here) printheads?

As near as I can tell there seems to be a couple of standard approaches:

• Droplets to the ink receiver/inlet
• A bath of cleaning solution that the printhead sits in
• A pad of paper towel or similar, soaked in a cleaning solution which the printhead sits on
• Via a tight fitting PVC tube that fits on the inlet/receiver (solution then poured in and allowed to sit)
• Cartridge filled with cleaning solution
  (on this last I don't rate this for trying to "print through" a clog, more as an alternative passive delivery system, to the PVC tube approach above)

I'm not sure if anyone else tries this approach for particularly nasty clogs but a couple of things I've tried over the years..

1. Bath head in solution (in a sealed container to avoid fumes and evaporation)
2. Remove from bath then place on a pad soaked in same solution
3. Gently press printhead down onto the pad. This forces solution into the nozzles and quickly indicates which ink channels are blocked.
4. Apply droplets of solution to the inlets that have most issues
5. Repeat press down then release
   Again this indicates which channels will receive the cleaning solution
6. Return to bath (step 1.) and leave for some hours/overnight
7. Repeat 2 through 5 to see if any improvement

Key to the above is patience... Trying to scrape a burned on bit of food from a grill pan is a lot more likely to cause damage to the pan than allow the pan to soak and then gently applying less scouring to shift it. Same applies here.

Oh and critical point... Ensure the solution is not an aggresive type likely to attack the electronics on the printhead. This last due to the need to seal the printhead into the unit and more importantly for health reasons as noted earlier (Thanks for the reminder on that point btw!)


The other approach I adopt from time to time is to use a silicon attachment (I'm trying to find out what the heck it is called and where it came from) which fits on a luer slip syringe, and use that to pull cleaning solution into the nozzles by pulling a little suction on the ink receiver. The silicon attachment produces a nice seal around the top of the receiver and allows you to reverse the flow such that any larger material has a better chance of being pulled out (gently!) through the receiver than pushed out through the nozzles.


As for Ultrasonic cleaning, that resulted in seeing the internals of a printhead fragmenting into a cloud of copper and other metals so I've remained VERY wary of that method. It's one that I would really appreciate some expert guidance on using, assuming it would be possible to apply to delicate components such as printheads.


Anyone got any other approaches when it comes to cleaning solution delivery?

 

[stratman]

@websnail

Terrific summation of techniques!

 

[fotofreek]

@websnail, I've always used the technique you've described. multifolded paper towel in a plastic refrigerator container with original windex in the bottom, just enough to cover the nozzle plater area for a soak. Then pump the printhead up and down several times to move the windex in and out of the printhead channels. You can see the fluid rise and fall at the ink inlets. Add more windex on top of the ink inlets that still remain somewhat clogged. You can also see the individual ink colors on the paper towel. Replace with clean toweling and repeat. At first you should see all ink colors on the paper towel. As you continue with this routine you will see less and less ink on the toweling til you see none. Time then to wash with clear water thoroughly, vacuum excess water out of the printhead, replace in the printer with ink carts, do some cleaning cycles, and then give it the acid test with a nozzle test print.

 

[martin0reg]

4. Apply droplets of solution to the inlets that have most issues

In addition you can put pieces of tube on the inlets and fill them with an eyedropper. Then you can wait and see how (or if at all) the solution sinks into the printhead.

 

[Roy Sletcher]

Good subject.

I currently have a cyan channel that gives trouble from time to time on my Pro100. The processes that seem to work best for me as below and in sequence listed:

• Droplets to the ink receiver/inlet (Windex or Pharmacist`s solutions - Nothing wildly corrosive)
  
• A bath of cleaning solution that the printhead sits in about 3mm deep to cover outlet nozzles only
  
• A pad of paper towel or similar, soaked in a cleaning solution which the printhead sits on and gently press printhead into padding to see surge of colour on non-blocked tubes
  
• Pour cleaning solution via a tight fitting PVC tube that fits on the inlet/receiver (solution then poured in and allowed to sit)
• Apply droplets of solution to the inlets that have most issues
• Repeat all processes several times -
  
• PATIENCE, patience and more patience. Usually follow the above sequences over about 48 hours. So far have brought current printhead back about three times.
  
• The only quick fix is a new printhead. Which I have ready in original thermo sealed baggies if all else fails. - So take that MR Printer!

The thing that I have realized, is that this is psychological warfare. My printer hates me with passive aggressive fervour. His worst outbursts of clogs, bad nozzle checks, misfeeds, weird colour, etc always seem to come when I have several large prints to make in a hurry.

Right now score is me 3, printer 0.

RS

 

[3dogs]

It seems to me as a non Canon printer that whilst the Pro-100 is reputed to deliver great colour and exceptionally smooth gradients it is indeed a vexatious beast. That @Roy Sletcher has assigned gender to his iteration and its a MALE Do I presume too much to suspect it to be so bad that it could not be a she?
or are uoy just being a Gentleman?

On a serious note again from the outside, Patience and Persistance seem to be the key ingredients.

{Q} how many of you have the ability to magnify the 'out' side of your print head sufficiently to identify treminal erosion?

 

[websnail]

Do I presume too much to suspect it to be so bad that it could not be a she?
or are uoy just being a Gentleman?

*steps carefully out of range of the thermonuclear weapon now tasked on @3dogs location*

On a serious note again from the outside, Patience and Persistance seem to be the key ingredients.

Rumours that chemists have been attempting to distill these key qualities into a potable and saleable item are strenuously denied but suggestions indicate that female gender assignment to "difficult" printers has alienated female team members while the men apparently can't read the instructions...

{Q} how many of you have the ability to magnify the 'out' side of your print head sufficiently to identify treminal erosion?

That would be a no from me... What would you suggest as viable tools?

 

[3dogs]

If no is your answer, as above, then how in hell does one eliminate erosion issues from the equasion. Some time ago I followed a link in one of the other forums to a technical paper being made by a researcher at a University in the USA.

The teams' proposition was that the bulk of head failures on Canon printers was due to the charge that fires the ink. Buried within the paper were cross section images of failed, failing and good nozzles.

This must have been two years ago, and then they were well on the way to proving that Canon had themselves moved from a resistant alloy to a more vulnerable alloy, and had graphed the timing and statistics related to the evidence.

If they did in fact publish one questions if it would ever have seen the light of day as University Ethics Committees are litigation averse especially in the USA.

Having never poked my finger into a print head nozzle I am thinking that it would be very small, requiring something like a school grade of microscope......seen from time to time in thrift stores.

 

[The Hat]

This thread is mainly about the need to clean the Canon print head, but has no one asked this simple question: - why do I need to clean my print head.

The Canon printer is well capable of doing all it’s own cleaning and maintenance and surprisingly most guys complain when it does carry out this necessary cleaning ritual (Howls of it’s wasting all my ink).

If you are getting constant so called clogs in your print head resulting in poor output then could it be something else rather than a head clog that’s causing you so much headaches.

Try looking at your cartridges for the answer instead, if you use new OEM cartridges you don’t get clogs so why then does it magically happen when you refill your own OEM cartridges.

It’s the same print head the same cartridges much the same inks but the elephant in the room here is you, simply because you have filled the cartridge yourself.

The clog print head syndrome is more in likely cause by poor ink flow in your cartridges, yes I’ve said it, imaging all you veterans of many a printer campaign getting it wrong.

We are human after all, so why is it we can make stupid mistakes and then not see the problem that is of our own making but blindly try to blame something else for our own poor output issues.

Let’s get back to basics lads here and see the glass is half empty and unless someone calls for action before someone else shouts it only half full then we’ll never get to the bottom of this problem, i.e. those pesky reliable OEM cartridges.

Yes they are very reliable and that’s the problem, we think we can go on filling them Willie Nillie and not give them a second taught, because 99% of all our problems are cause by these same reliable cartridge not been refillable enough for our way of thinking.

So what I’m say is, concentrate more on cartridge awareness and maintenance and less on the print heads and maybe we wont burn out as many nozzle on our expensive print heads as we tend to be doing constantly..

P.S. I wonder if this post would be better off in the Rant Thread ?

 

[websnail]

If no is your answer, as above, then how in hell does one eliminate erosion issues from the equasion.

Good point... My viewpoint has been focused on clogging issues rather than component failure. Time to address that..

Some time ago I followed a link in one of the other forums to a technical paper being made by a researcher at a University in the USA...

I hadn't heard of that but given the way that printer designs have changed over the last few years the point about changes in printhead design/specification/materials would make sense.

Having never poked my finger into a print head nozzle I am thinking that it would be very small, requiring something like a school grade of microscope......seen from time to time in thrift stores.

I guess the problem side is finding one that has the space underneath to look at the nozzles without hitting the scope stand, etc...