canon pixma ip4200 print head clogged

[kevindd992002]

If the print head is still clogged even after several deep cleanings, what could be the problem? When I perform print nozzle check, I see lines in the prints and it seems that the colors are mixed. Is this indicative of a defective print head?

 

[The Hat]

If the print head is still clogged even after several deep cleanings, what could be the problem? When I perform print nozzle check, I see lines in the prints and it seems that the colors are mixed. Is this indicative of a defective print head?

You have a much better chance of getting a reasonably good answer to your printer problem
if you post a nozzle check so we can see the affects and give you a definitive answer.

Dont print anything other than nozzle checks till you get the problem sorted one way or the other,
mutable deep head cleans waste a huge amount of ink and should be used once or twice and only as a last resort..

 

[kevindd992002]

If the print head is still clogged even after several deep cleanings, what could be the problem? When I perform print nozzle check, I see lines in the prints and it seems that the colors are mixed. Is this indicative of a defective print head?

You have a much better chance of getting a reasonably good answer to your printer problem
if you post a nozzle check so we can see the affects and give you a definitive answer.

Dont print anything other than nozzle checks till you get the problem sorted one way or the other,
mutable deep head cleans waste a huge amount of ink and should be used once or twice and only as a last resort..

Thanks. I'll post a screenshot of the nozzle check pattern later.

Meanwhile, I have another concern. Can you still use an ink cartridge if it is left unused, but the ink opening is opened, for quite a while? It serms that the ink has dried up.

 

[The Hat]

I will assume that youre talking about an OEM cartridge here and if so I can confidently say yes.

The best thing to do with an old OEM cartridge that has been neglected and forgot about is to purge all of the old ink from it
by using good clean water then dry and it will be ready for reuse like new again..

 

[kevindd992002]

Yes, it's an OEM ink I'm talking in question here. I have some spare OEM black ink cartridge with some ink left in it. What do you mean by "purge of of the old ink from it" specifically?

But the current ink cartridges I have installed in the print head now are all cheap ink cartridges so that might be the cause of the clogged print head. I'll post the nozzle check pattern when I have a chance.

 

[The Hat]

Yes, it's an OEM ink I'm talking in question here. I have some spare OEM black ink cartridge with some ink left in it. What do you mean by "purge of of the old ink from it" specifically?

But the current ink cartridges I have installed in the print head now are all cheap ink cartridges so that might be the cause of the clogged print head. I'll post the nozzle check pattern when I have a chance.

Here are several previous posts with quite a few threads dealing with different ways to purge a cartridge.
The first one below is on the subject of clogged print heads.

http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=63848#p63848
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=60778#p60778
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=63019#p63019

 

[kevindd992002]

Yes, it's an OEM ink I'm talking in question here. I have some spare OEM black ink cartridge with some ink left in it. What do you mean by "purge of of the old ink from it" specifically?

But the current ink cartridges I have installed in the print head now are all cheap ink cartridges so that might be the cause of the clogged print head. I'll post the nozzle check pattern when I have a chance.

Here are several previous posts with quite a few threads dealing with different ways to purge a cartridge.
The first one below is on the subject of clogged print heads.

http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=63848#p63848
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=60778#p60778
http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=63019#p63019

Thanks, I'll give those a good read. I just noticed though that purging will remove all old ink from the cartridge. Actually, my question is if I can still use the old ink in that cartridge?

Here's a screenshot of my recent nozzle check:



What do you think is the problem?

 

[The Hat]

I can deal with your cartridge question easy, the ink inside is useless and should be flushed down the drain;
ink is so cheap to buy its not worth trying to use any old stuff.

The nozzle print is not fairing so good however, the cyan and the magenta show signs of electrician failure in the top (Cyan)
and bottom of (Magenta) resulting in the two lighter colour shades showing hardly at all.

However dont give up on it just yet, you could try soaking the print head in a dish of Windex (Window leaner)
about 2.5 cm deep for 24 hours and see if that makes any difference to your nozzle check print.

If it doesnt then you are looking at a new print head to fix the problem, so please dry the head thoroughly before using it again
and can you also use two new cartridges in the cyan and magenta slots to rule them out for ink problems.

Using very cheap cartridges in your printer can lead to ink flow issues just like the one youre having now, or worse electrical failure,
so if dont want to use OEM cartridges then try get aftermarket cartridges that are from a good source and not use the ones for $8 with free delivery..

 

[kevindd992002]

Understood. Is it always recommended to purge used OEM cartridges before refilling them with good inks like Precision Colors?

Ok. When you say electrician failure, do you mean that the liquid shorted the circuitry inside the print head or something?

Is there any alternative chemical that I can use other than Windex? I don't have Windex lying around here. I can buy, but I'm wondering first if there is an alternative like 95% Alcohol or something?

I do have a brand new print head here but I don't want to use it yet if I can save the current one. I'll try replacing the cyan and magenta slots to rule out ink problems.

Yes, lesson learned. This was actually my first time buying very low quality inks and didn't know about this forum until I had several problems with my print head.

EDIT: Also, what is the reason behind not using old ink? Can it be dangerous to the print head also?

 

[The Hat]

Brand new OEM empty cartridges dont need to be purged and can be refilled right away and will give you no problems.

An electrical problem is mainly cause when you dont have sufficient ink passing through your print head
as it fires ink onto the paper which then causes the little nozzles to overheat and burn out.

What you need is a little bit Ammonia 3%, 10% Alcohol 87% distilled water and that will do the job also..