Printer Ink drying up?

babiebeany

We don't use our printer that often, but each time we do we find that the ink has dried up and end up paying for new cartridges.

Any ideas on what we can do?

Lakeuk

That's one of the downfalls of inkjets, best to do a print every couple of weeks to keep the printheads clear

Alternative is to buy a laserjet that don't have these problems, although they are no good if you want to print photos

fwor

This depends on the make of printer, but something that has worked for me before is (if they get gummed up too badly for the head cleaning option to work) to gently wipe over the face of the print head with a cloth soaked in Isopropyl alcohol. If your printer has the head built into the cartridge it's easy to do. If not (as in my Epson) it's a pain, but is still possible.

masterkay

Print the test sheet every week and that should keep her running. Do a clean (an option in the printer properties) every so often as well. If you are not careful drying up the printheads can damage your printer for good. I have managed to save my printer when the printheads dried up because I didn't change a cartridge in time but it's hit and miss when you get to that stage.