Canon MP640 won't use large black ink reservoir

[carolanivey]

How do I get the printer to switch to the larger black ink reservoir when the smaller one runs out? Thanks.

 

[The Hat]

How do I get the printer to switch to the larger black ink reservoir when the smaller one runs out? Thanks.

Thats a $64000 question and the answer to it is simply you cant.
When the small black cartridges runs out youll to replace it to continue to print safely.

The larger cartridge only gets used when you print on plain paper with text.
If you are printing photos on glossy paper your printer uses the cyan, magenta, yellow and the small black
but never uses the large black cartridge.

Your small black cartridge has dye ink in it and the large black has pigment ink
that is the difference between the two of them..

 

[carolanivey]

Thank you!

 

[stratman]

Some guidelines:

PGI-5 Pigment Black Ink is used ONLY For:
- Plain Paper Test (monochrome and grey scale)
- Envelopes
- Transparencies
- Duplex Printing On Plain Paper
- Camera Direct Printing on Plain Paper

CLI-8 Dye-Based Color Inks are used anytime color is printed and is used exclusively for:
- All Photo Paper types (including when Duplex printing)
- High Resolution Paper
- T-shirt Transfers
- CD-R's
- All Borderless Printing, on both PhotoPaper and Plain Paper

EDIT:

The Hat has reminded me that duplex printing on plain paper is considered to use dye-based inks instead of pigment-based black ink, ostensibly to prevent bleeding into the backside of the page and to decrease drying time before the reverse side is printed to prevent smearing. Whether there is any pigment ink used has been debated and believed by some. Based on use of a Sharpie Accent Highlighter, I believe there is pigment ink used in duplex printing.

 

[carolanivey]

Ah, ok. I have my laptop set to always print in grayscale/fast and never print photos, and I've never had a problem. I'm not sure what my husband's is set at, it could be a setting that uses the smaller reservoir.