black ink position totally empty on nozzle check - a cure maybe?

[Paul W.]

I have a 1400 and am using the Eb6 inkset, ie one position is 100% Eboni black and the other five are varying dilutions of the black. Quite often I get a totally empty pattern for the K position. I ran across a YouTube video titled something like "Your printer is not clogged". It argued that I may have had a serious air bubble, not an ink clog, and that I should remove the filler plug and do one cleaning. I did that and got a perfect pattern in the K position. Then I replaced the filler plug.

I thought I might have risked getting a surplus of ink coming out somewhere but when I pulled the cartridge I could see no black spillage in the area around the spike.

Has anyone experienced this problem along with this solution? Seemed a little risky and I've only tried this once. TIA for any feedback!

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

did these refill cartridges work correctly before this problem ?
Are the missing nozzles moving their location when you do a nozzle check and a cleaning cycle or do they remain at the same location ?
It could be that nozzles are clogged - missing nozzles won't move or there is something with the ink flow - e.g. small bubbles somewhere , a clogged filter inside a cartridge or else and then missing nozzles may move in the nozzle print
You may try the WicReset software under Windows which allows you to run not just the cleaning function but a more intense cleaning - called 'ink charge'
Bigger air bubbles only would get into the ink channels of the printhead if the cartridges are not seated correctly and would let some air pass by, or if you print down a cartridge completely.
And there may be something with the black ink - too many pigments if the problem is reoccuring quickly within a short time - if the problem is only with the solid black ink and not with the diluted ones.

 

[Paul W.]

Thank you, @Ink stained Fingers .

Yes, the refill carts worked fine before this problem. But these carts may be old, I can't remember when I installed them.

Well, the whole pattern for the black cart is missing... totally blank. So missing nozzles moving their location doesn't really apply. I do understand that the missing nozzles moving around indicates air bubbles whereas stationary nozzle checks indicate ink clogs.

I do think the carts are seated properly... and I don't print them down to containing no ink at all. I think you have a good point about too many pigments, the fact that it's only the black ink leads me to think it's because that cart contains undiluted black. It is fresh however, has not reached its expiration date.

I will definitely have to try WicReset, I've seen that mentioned in several threads.

My main worry is that removing the filler plug runs the risk of ink spillage from the cartridge.

Thanks again!

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

Epson refill cartridges typically have a spring valve at the ink outlet, so opening the filler plug shouldn't do much.
If refill cartridges are used for a very long time - years - the filter inside may block the ink flow, this is not typical but I have seen that, a creamy pigment ink smear on such filter, probably difficult to see in a black cartridge. I got that with yellow and magenta, and I removed that by flushing a cleaner into the ink outlet, it's a kind of brute force attack to clean the ink path. It may not work in all cases and only with cartridges you would sacrifice otherwise. And it would be better to replace such cartridge later anyway.
Oryou may be able to swap cartridges with another 'color' if you can swap the chips as well, some cartridges have the chip fixed or latched on with a small plastic carrier, it depends. This would allow you to check if the cartridge is the blocking element.
Or it could be some blockage of the ink flow in the printhead itself which is more typical.
You can release the printhead from the parking position by turning on the printer, and then quickly pulling the power cord once the printhead starts moving. You place a piece of folded kitchen paper into the print path and slide the printhead carriage over it. You use a syringe and connect a short piece of fitting tube onto it, such tubing is available in hardware stores and shops with aquarium accessories.
You fill the syringe with a few ml of a window cleaner, rinsing solution or similar , push the tube onto the ink pickup rod in the carriage , first pull some ml and you should see some black ink coming up, and you push back your cleaner into the printhead, this a few times, the cleaner should collect in the kitchen paper underneath. The last action should be a push of the cleaner so that there is not any air in the PH.
You clean up, get back to normal, insert the cartridges, run a cleaning cycle to replace the cleaner with ink again, via WicReset and a nozzle check. That should show you the good or bad news - (some) success or none of such action.
(WicReset does not do any magic here, it's just one button to click for a cleaning cycle or a nozzle check, it's some more clicks doing the same via the driver on the utility tab. )

 

[Paul W.]

Thanks again, @Ink stained Fingers

I'll see if I can find a spare cartridge and I do know how to swap chips... have done that before.

I'm familiar with the procedure of using a syringe to push some cleaner into the head but have been reluctant to do so. I've read that too much pressure can be harmful. But it's time I learned how to do that safely.

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

the first move should be a pull - sucking some potential stuff back which would not fit through the nozzles if you would push first. I pull about 2ml (mostly air and remaining ink/cleaner) and push about 1ml of cleaner then, with 2-3 cycles, pushing/pulling slowly, with a 10ml syringe. I don't think I ever damaged the piezo actuators, the method worked in lots of cases but not in all problem situations so it is one of several practices in such situation but not a 100% fix for all.

 

[Paul W.]

Thanks for the quick reply! But I'm a bit confused. In this phrase,

(mostly air and remaining ink/cleaner)

If this pull contains cleaner, how does the cleaner get in there? There must have been a push before, in order for the cleaner to be there. So then the pull would have to be the second move. And after the pull, don't I need to discard that cleaner/ink mixture?

It was good to hear that this procedure did not cause damage!

 

[Ink stained Fingers]

I fill the 10 ml syringe with 4ml of cleaner, place the connected tube onto the ink receptacle in the carriage, first pull about 2ml which moves some ink and then air, I push 1-2 ml of cleaner , pull 2-3 ml back, push and pull again until the cleaner is gone soaking the paper underneath the printhead. No, I'm not discarding the cleaner during that cycle, o.k. - you can do that to get that part of the ink away, you can do that cycle a second time with fresh cleaner , I think everybody has a slightly different sequence of actions with this.

 

[Paul W.]

That helps a lot, thank you!

 

[Dean]

Yes when I clean a printhead I do similar. I usually first soak each nozzle for at least a few hours. Next I pump a few more ml of cleaning fluid in and finally try to pressurise the cartridge end to force the broken down ink out of the head. I find that Epson printers take the longest time to clean.