emergency Epson cx3600 needs service wont print - im gonna cry soon

loopy_lass

Ok i know its kinda my fault as the printer kept saying printer will need a service soon, due to print heads being used... but i thought as a true money saver i would push it to the max... anyways, i have a presentation at work today at 2pm.... and guess what... my printer has packed up saying it needs a service now..... ive done the online chat with epson who say ya gotta take it to an engineer to be serviced....

so any ideas how to either fix it myself or overide the problem...

thanks loops

aliEnRIK

If its THAT important id rush out and buy one

loopy_lass

thanks for that

PeteHerts

Just found this in a Google search -


Hi,
just for everybody that will run into this issue soon , we solved the "parts need service"-error on our Epson Stylus cx3600 printer (18 mths old) in an alternative way as described so far on the web.

We found on this site and other googled locations ("epson cx3600 parts service")enough hints to "repair" the printer ourselves. If you know how, it takes only 10-15 min:

Another user gave us the idea to have closer look at the back of our printer. On the backside is a little lid with one screw. Open it and you can see a white plastic part and 2 clear plastic tubes connected to it with clips (one going to the top, one to the right side). The other user suggested to puncture the tube twice and let the content flow into a bin. Have a plastic container ready for the waste ink. Open the clip of the the upper tube, move it upwards and disconnect the upper tube from the white plastic holder.

Instead we used a 5ml syringe (injection shot) to suck the ink off the system. After a couple of turns (about 25 ml) we found more air in the syringe and stopped. Fiddle all together again and it will work fine. It took us about 10 min to get the printer back to work. Just a tip: wear rubber gloves while you hold the tube.

Thx to this website, the guys of inkjetprinterhelp.us and the users of forums this was not such a big deal. Actually it took us much longer to find out what was going on.

So for everybody who is running into the error message "parts of your printer are coming to an end and need service" (forgot already the correct message)should first download the app "sscservervise" at inkjetprinterhelp.us to check the protection counter value for the waste ink pads. Ours was 47000 after 18 mths and the max printer value was 36000. As we use low-cost ink and therefore had to clean the printer heads more often, this may be ok.

First I got the error message on the status monitor but ignored it for about 2 weeks as I thought this based on an old recycled cartridge, suddenly the printer stopped printing and the LCDs didn't stopped flashing. Some extra research showed that the waste ink pads were actually the problem.

After I reset with the app "sscservervise" the protection counter (you have to close the main window of the app and rightclick on the icon in the qucik access bar of windows xp) and the printer was again accessible.

After the quick fix with the waste ink, the printer is now duty again for a week and no issues so far. It is looking good. We tried first to replace the waste ink pads as described by other users but found it to complicated to reach them as you have to demontage half of the printer to get them. The cost of rubber gloves (recommended) and a little plastic syringe is nothing in comparison to a service order at an Epson center.

See ya folks and good luck.

sillygoose

Simple.

Download SSC utility here..
http://www.ssclg.com/epsone.shtml

Install. Run it. It will add an icon in your icon tray, right click on it for a menu, use 'reset protection counter' and Exit.

Should be able to print now. Basically printer keeps count, when it decides the cleaning waste pad is full it stop until its serviced (replaced). This utility resets it. Its just a money making scheme by Epson, same happened to my CX3600 and I cleared it over a year ago without problems since.

After using it you could uninstall the program as you won't need it for a while.

loopy_lass

ok, now were talking, many thanks for your effort and information will have a go....

loops

esuhl

The error message probably appears after a certain number of pages have been printed - once you get to a certain amount the printer refuses to print. I am amazed that this is legal, but the following program should allow you to reset the counter.

http://www.ssclg.com/epsone.shtml

Probably a good idea to open the printer and check how the ink pads (which absorb wasted ink) are doing. Maybe lubricate mechanisms if required and clean out any dust...

Edit:
D'oh! Ya beat me to it!

sillygoose

esuhl wrote: »

Edit:
D'oh! Ya beat me to it!

hey... its the thought that counts.. LOL

DatabaseError

I also use SSC util, but I think it's worth cleaning the waste ink pads on my printer, which I do simply by dabbing them with tissue repeatedly, changing tissue until the tissue comes clean

loopy_lass

downloading programme now ;-) hopefull it will save me buying a new one ... tight wad i am. can i ask, as a non techie how and where do i find these waste ink head thingy you speak of?

update - downloaded programme, run it and hey hooooooooo printer working as new ;-) puts me cash back in me purse..... woooopppp de doooo thanks guys

thanks everyone ;-)

loops

andy2004

to stop the ink pads from filling up, you could add a extension tube to the tube inside the printer to the outside and have a external source for the ink to flow into, like a plastic bottle/tub and then wash it out when it gets filled or replace it with another.
I intend to do the above with my epson sx200 when the warranty runs out, and as i dont use the printer much the inkpads shouldnt get that dirty before i do.