Ink is a significant component of the computer printer. And like any part, it is vulnerable to damage problems. Also, the worst part is, most of these printer cartridges cost too much. Even the rise of refill kit system can also create some minus effects to ink cartridges. Provided in this article are basic tips which can prevent your printer cartridge from early replacement.
Simple Tricks to Save on Your Cartridges for Inkjet Printers
It is significant to keep in mind that ink is specifically manufactured to dry up easily so that your printed page is free from smudges.
There are certain occasions however in which the ink in the computer printer cartridge dries up in the nozzle of the printer cartridge before a secure seal can be put in place. And during this situation, you may notice on the test page that you got void areas, striped print or could be no print at all.
So what are the solutions to figure out this challenge before thinking to have it checked by a technician ?
The preliminary solution you can try is to get a Q-tip and put alcohol on it. Then, touch the print head with the Q-tip in a circular motion. Using another Q-tip with alcohol, clean the metal contacts on the cartridge as well. A vital requirement is that these contacts are truly clean and void of dried up ink to attain best quality prints.
[Read also: How to Properly Clean Your Gadgets]
If this step proves to be useless, then try taking the print head and hold it under very hot running water (hot tab water possibly sufficient) for around 20-30 seconds. Afterwards, do a cleaning routine and observe if there is any development with the print. If this is still no good, then try soaking just the print head in about 1/4″ of HOT water for 10 minutes more.
However after operating the print head for the second time under hot water does not fix the problem, then how about drenching it using about a 30% ammonia 70% water solution. Remember, every time you place the cartridge back in the printer, try operating a cleaning routing just to dislodge the dried ink.
[Read also: Say No to Inkjet Printer Clog!]
Turn Off Your Printer Properly
One hint here : Other consumers could not be aware as well that unplugging the computer before really turning it off can have negative effects to your print results. Doing this prevents the printer from “parking” the print heads in the right position so that they’re not contaminated with air. When you properly turn off the printer, the print head undergoes an automatic cleaning before being placed to lay in a cap which closes the nozzle.
In fact, losing ink may be the smaller of your problems if computer printers are not correctly switched off. Remember that the print heads can dry up and get their nozzles closed within as little as 30 minutes. Once this occurs, you may have to throw away the printer cartridge totally. So be certain to turn off the inkjet printer correctly before disconnecting it.
If you’re an avid user of refill kits, this will also damage your printer cartridge after some time. This is because refill kits require you to inject ink into the cartridges with a syringe, and open a small hole in the foil seal each time. After a few refills, you might perforate the ink tank so much that the ink will vaporize at a noticeable rate. This is not to discourage buyers from using refill kits, but it is necessary to know this fact.
These are only some of the most fundamental and usual printer cartridge troubles encountered by customers nowadays. The solutions presented above are temporary and fundamental answers to printer cartridge mishaps . Worse gets to worse, if these answers fail, you can always carry your printer cartridge to recognized repair or electronic shops, but usually it isn’t worth and better to replace it with a new one.
[Image via: Google Images]
