Maintenance+Tank+-+Using+2+Saves+Time+and+Money

A full head clog that does not yield to the built-in cleaning cycles of the printer can get very frustrating. Usually the Maintenance Cartridge (MC) is not brand new, and will probably fill up at some point in your cleaning cycle or print head removal and cleaning process. There is no way to avoid using up a lot of ink, so be prepared with fresh carts for your nearly empty ones in the machine. Also I would suggest buying a new MC for reasons below. When your machine says to replace the R head, it is time to do the full job.

I also think that you are not reading this if an A or B cleaning can solve your problem.

My unit came with the PF-3 head. I have pulled the head and cleaned it twice. The wiki directions are excellent and will work. Go to the Replace Head R in the menu and select it. The lines will drain into the MC, and you can pull the head and put it in 1/4" of Windex. Let it soak at least overnight. If you have a syringe (no needle necessary), you can also inject cleaner into the ports firmly without harm. Just don't be brutal about it! Plus, the head is remarkably strong, so don't be worried that you will mess it up just by handling it for cleaning and running fluids through it. I never rub the heads themselves, but after I am done, I put it on a paper towel to wick away whatever it can. I have also used the syringe without a needle to gently push cleaning fluid through the color ports, and likewise to push the cleaner out at the end.

__**THE MAINTENANCE CARTRIDGE**__ If you are having clogging issues, you have probably done several cleanings etc. and then, to remove the head, you have caused the ink lines to dump into the Maintenance Cart (MC). Around now is when you may get the message that your MC is full. It can get really frustrating as each problem unfolds. My advice is to buy a new MC, and then ping pong between the new and the old. T**his entire post is simply to tell everyone that you can dry out the full MC and re-use it several times.** The machine resets itself with the insertion of the new MC. If either enough time has passed to evaporate the old MC contents, or you put it in a very low oven (mine goes down to 140 degrees), you can simply pull the new one out and re-use the old one. My original MC is now on its third life, and the replacement is barely used and held in reserve.

__**NOZZLE CHECKS**__ When my cleaning was done, I ran a nozzle check and found one color that was still clogged. (I rushed it and didn't let the head soak overnight.) I created an image using two blocks of just that color, and printed it a few times. (Note: I printed to letter sized plain paper in the cassette, and the two squares of color were around 2 x 4) I know that several related colors were involved, but I also know that I got a lot of activity to all of the colors in the range. I also did not want to run a lot of cleaning cycles. The specific head cleared excellently, and with a few prints, was perfect.

I have also started the practice of printing a nozzle check pretty frequently as the best way to keep all the heads exercised with minimal ink usage. With the nozzle check, I know every nozzle is being exercised equally.