Canon Mg6220, Did I Break It?

[icarr757]

This is very frustrating. I have a mg6220 that has been printing great until recently. I have used the german method of refilling since I had a ip3000. Recently I have noticed when refilling my yellow and magneta carts I get alot of bubbles building up in the res tanks, and I have to syphon some air from the sponges when filling to prevent ink overflowing from the top vent, the hole I am filling from, or even from the main port. Now, my yellow has become very streaky. Run a clean cycle, nothing. Run a deep clean, it clears up. I print off 5-10 pages, yellow goes back to streaking. I have done enough deep cleaning cycles that I have almost drained all my other color carts twice. Yellow works for a few pages, then starts streaking again. I have even bought new yellow carts from local Staples. Same.

Highly frustrated. I print check pattern, it looks perfect every time. Print page, yellow streaks... Any idea why it would continue to gum up every few pages? Clean up for a few pages then go right back to shit?

Thanks!

Note, I only refill original canon cartridges that I have bought from local Staples (I swap chips that came w/ the printer original cartridges to 220/221 bought from Staples) and I have been using ink from Hobbicolors. And a chip reseter.

 

[stratman]

Sounds like you need to flush the cartridge(s) to return them to proper function. Dried ink and other unknowns (eg bacteria, fungus) can gum up the sponge resulting in poor refilling and ink starvation streaky printing as you described. A flush should fix your issues.

A couple links on flushing cartridges:

http://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/purging-cli-521-pg-520.5218/#post-37728

http://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/how-i-flush-my-521-520-cartridges-video.8452/

 

[PeterBJ]

For drying the cartridges after flushing, I use and recommend ghwellsjr's paper towel method: http://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/draining-a-canon-cartridge.4760/

It is my experience that the newer and smaller windowed and opaque cartridges need more frequent flushing than the older and larger transparent cartridges. I think flushing for around each 5 refills will be needed.

If you have a small digital scale with a capacity of 100g or 500g and with a resolution of 0.1g or 0.01 g you can use it for a health check of your cartridges/ quality control of your refill.

The weight of new and unused PGI-220/CLI-221 cartridges without the orange clip and vent sealing tape is 35.3g for PGi-220 and 20.3g for the CLI-221. The weights are the same for the opaque PGI-225/CLI-226 cartridges.

A properly refilled cartridge in good condition should have a weight close to these weights. If the cartridges are more than 2g underweight for the pigment black cartridge and more than 1g underweigt for the dye cartridges, then I recommend flushing and drying the cartridges before they develop ink flow problems.

 

[stratman]

For drying the cartridges after flushing, I use and recommend ghwellsjr's paper towel method: http://www.printerknowledge.com/threads/draining-a-canon-cartridge.4760/

Thank you for providing the paper towel link. Key information. I thought it was in my first link but it is not!

 

[icarr757]

Thank you, I will certainly give it a try tomorrow. Still, since this problem started, I have gotten a new yellow cartridge from Staples. But I am willing to try anything right about now. =P

 

[stratman]

Thank you, I will certainly give it a try tomorrow. Still, since this problem started, I have gotten a new yellow cartridge from Staples. But I am willing to try anything right about now. =P

New cartridge should hopefully resolve the streaking. Flushing the old one and reusing could save $$$ in the future. We like saving money.