So do the Printer Potty be a substitute for the waste ink unit?

[user5800]

As I understand the printer potty is a substitute for the printer waste unit?

Or better to say, it's something that you put in the middle of the waste tubes and waste tank in order to check how much the printer will drop in terms of ink and prevent the real waste tank to being filled?

If that's so, it could be possible to just reset the waste counter and print theoretically endlessly given that you don't have problems with the printheads?

Thanks for the furthcoming replies

 

[PeterBJ]

Yes the Printer Potty is an alternative to the ink absorber pads, which are very messy to clean and reinstall and replacement absorbers are often hard or impossible to find.

A Printer Potty is only of any use if you are able to reset the absorber counter from service mode. If you can reset the absorber counter, you can continue to use the printer until it fails for other reasons.

Many Canon printers are dumped because of a failed print head or other defects long before the ink absorbers are full.

 

[The Hat]

As I understand the printer potty is a substitute for the printer waste unit?

A Printer Potty is a marvellous thing to aid in keeping your printer in good working condition, BUT
There’s no point installing it your Pro 9500 if you don’t have at least one spare print head, I have two Pro 9500’s both with a Potty installed, and I also have spare print head, my Pro 9500 is over ten years old..

 

[user5800]

A Printer Potty is a marvellous thing to aid in keeping your printer in good working condition, BUT
There’s no point installing it your Pro 9500 if you don’t have at least one spare print head, I have two Pro 9500’s both with a Potty installed, and I also have spare print head, my Pro 9500 is over ten years old..

Fun, I have 2 9500 too however no spare printheads, I wonder why canon discontinued them so fastly while the mx870 ones are still sold

 

[palombian]

Fun, I have 2 9500 too however no spare printheads, I wonder why canon discontinued them so fastly while the mx870 ones are still sold

The original 9500 dates from 2007, the update PRO-9500 Mark II was released in 2011 (with an updated printhead backwards compatible with the Mark I), and replaced 2 years later by the the PRO-10.
I bought the last printhead in stock from C1 supplies in July 2018, 5 years after the printer was discontinued.

The printhead was the weak point of this printer, according to Mike Lee (@mikling) the head of the PRO-10(S) is redesigned and much more reliable.
This must be Canon's opinion too since based on our observations (during @Keith Cooper 's test of the PRO-300) the same printhead is used in this printer.

Use the 9500's as long as they last, replenish your stock with inks compatible with the PRO-10 and look out for a used PRO-10(S) on the cheap (even with a clogged printhead, there is plenty stock).
Waste ink counter of this printer can be reset also and a printer potty added too.

 

[user5800]

Thanks for the PRO-10 suggestion. (but, fun canon printers lose the capability of feed from back with linear path, I always hate when features are removed instead of added)

Can I ask you how much print you did since the original purchase with these 2 printers? did you needed to change the printheads until
now?

 

[palombian]

Thanks for the PRO-10 suggestion. Can I ask you how much print you did since the original purchase with these 2 printers? did you needed to change the printheads until
now?

I never bought a printer new.
Let's say I printed about 5000 photos (150-200 A3(+), remaining A4 and 10x15) in 5 or 6 years using 2 not new printheads. More than half a liter of ink a year, refill every 1,5-2 months.

My PRO-10 is at 1300 after 15 months (included nozzle checks).
Plus about 300 A3 and A4 matte and office prints and a few 100 10x15 with my last 9500II I installed with a new printhead about the same time.

IMO printhead life is more determined by age than by the number of prints.

The printheads do not wear progressively, they suddenly get an electronic malfunction in one of the colours.

 

[stratman]

I would think heat and vibration rather than time are the root causes for "natural" non-clog print head failure. Number of printed pages are proxy for these variables.

If time were the primary variable then the new old-stock print head you may have (> 5 years age?) should have already failed or will fail any day now.

I suspect all these variables and more are at play.

 

[The Hat]

I would think heat and vibration rather than time are the root causes for "natural" non-clog print head failure. Number of printed pages are proxy for these variables.

Nope, @palombian is right, same thing happened in my Pro9500, I turned it on one morning and after a previous days printing and the print head gave an error, (Installed new head) then I later gave the same head to @rodbam and it now has also failed, shit just happens..
4 to 5 years is just about right..

 

[palombian]

Nope, @palombian is right, same thing happened in my Pro9500, I turned it on one morning and after a previous days printing and the print head gave an error, (Installed new head) then I later gave the same head to @rodbam and it now has also failed, shit just happens..
4 to 5 years is just about right..

The loss of half of the nozzle check in one or more colors happens without an error message.
You can continue to print with limitations (ex B&W), but it is unrecoverable.