Clogged epson printer heads- any chance of cleaning

brooksie

I have aquired an Epson CX5400 from freecycle, apparently only just out of warranty, black doesn't print. On closer inspection there is alot of clogged ink on the floor if you poke a cotton bud in a hole.!! and lots of clogged ink to the side of the cartridge carrier thingy!(sorry not a techie person). After searching on th enet have discovered that it is quite a common problem. Also discovered you can buy flush cartridges. Are these worth the money or is it best to just throw it out of the nearest window.New printerhead is £57 +vat so that isn't an option. Any help greatly appreciated.

DrSmutt

you need a piece of rubber tube and a syringe and some near boiling water.

the ink that is used tends to be water based so it should disolve.

make a hell of a mess though.

BillScarab

Try windolene (the stuff for cleaning windows). It's ammonia based (apparently) which is supposed to dissolve the epson ink. I've had to do this several times as the print heads on Epsons are built into the printer and they clog up easily if the printer isn't used for a while. I just use some cotton wool buds dipped in windolene and it seems to do the trick.

if you google it you'll find lots of references, some people use other products but I've always found this successful.

TimBuckTeeth

The ink is usually alcohol based, so it is best to use alcohol to dissolve it, pure alcohol will also evaporate completely and not corrode anything.

Isopropyl alcohol is the stuff used in the ink and is the contents of a flush cartridge. Can get some in an aerosol or bottle from an electronics store like maplin. Or this : JR inkjet flush bottle

A flush cartridge may work, but there are other parts that can be cleaned better manually with cotton buds and kitchen roll.
Can get to parts better if you can partly dismantle the printer to give it a good clean and soak the head in a small container of alcohol. Otherwise just liberally cover the heads, carrier and cleaner pad with alcohol, it will not damage anything.

Clean and soak the pad that the head stops against when at rest, this is connected to a tube which sucks ink through the head when the printer does its head cleaning procedure, so it is important that it is not blocked and can make a good seal against the head. It should work better if the suction tube contains fluid - wet ink or alcohol.

There is also a tiny squeegee-like head-wiper that gets covered in dried ink, this needs cleaning too.

The print head surface is delicate but can be wiped gently with a cloth soaked in alcohol.

If the head is soaked in alcohol for long enough and you get the printer to perform several head cleaning procedures (5+ with a full ink or flush cartridge) then it should work OK. I have revived a couple of Epson printers this way, it is a bit messy though.

jpvic

I found this a while ago, may be of some help..


http://www.computing-in-retirement.com/printer-repair.html

N9eav

I use methylated spirits and some cotton buds. I dab it on the top where the ink goes in and wait until it soaks through to some bog paper under the printer head. Works for me. Take a few sheets of paper before the ink runs true again after.

brooksie

Thanks to all, I have found a site which gives diagrams on how to take it apart, going to have to be brave and have a free day cos it could take a while but would love to get it going again. I have tried JR flush on the heads but try everything else listed. Thanks again.

johnmc

The most impotant part of the instructions is to wear rubber gloves and to do it OUTSIDE.

Cleaning the felt is VERY messy. Last time I put them in a bowl in the garden, slightly raised at one end so that the water runs into the drain and stuck a hose in, leaving to run until clear.

Any you do get on your skin will only come off with bleach.

brooksie

Hi Again.
Have cleaned all bits and parts and all clean, what a job, but now have another problem, when I switch on all is fine in menu but as soon as i go to copy it switchs itself off and can't power on, unplug it, leave for a minute then comes back on again, but try to print again and it goes off again, no error light or anything, just completely loses power. Thinking it might be something to do with the head? Thanks in advance.

Moneymaker

I'm not familiar with that model but I'll have a go.

When it tries to print, it has to move the carriage. If the carriage is stuck or if the carriage motor is faulty or connected wrongly, the power supply might shut down to protect itself. So I'd be looking at the carriage and motor that pulls it along (usually with a toothed belt).

If you dismantled the carriage drive system, you may have reassembled it incorrectly so the carriage can't move or is trying to move the wrong way.

Or the power supply may be faulty.
Or the print head may be connected wrongly.

johnmc

Powers off when scanning as well as printing?

Are you just scanning or trying to copy?

There may be a lever or slide switch that prevents the scan head from moving when the unit is being moved.