Knowledge of Inkjet Printer Usage

I. Daily Maintenance

1. Maintenance of inkjet printers

• Ensure that the printer works on a stable and level surface, and do not place any items on top of the printer.
• The front cover of the printer must be closed during printing to prevent dust from entering the machine or other hard objects from obstructing the operation of the print carriage, causing unnecessary faults.
• It is forbidden to plug or unplug the printing cable with power on, as this will damage the print port of the printer and the parallel port of the PC, and even damage the motherboard of the PC in severe cases.
• If the print output is not very clear, with streaks or other defects, you can use the printer’s automatic cleaning function to clean the print head, but it will consume a small amount of ink. If you are still not satisfied after several consecutive cleanings, the ink may have run out and the ink cartridge needs to be replaced.

2. Ensure a clean usage environment

• If there is too much dust in the usage environment, it is easy to cause poor lubrication of the print carriage guide shaft, making the operation of the print head blocked during printing, resulting in inaccurate printing positions or collision with the mechanical frame, causing a crash.
• Sometimes, because the print head does not return to the initial position when the printer crashes, when the printer is restarted, the printer first makes the print head return to the initial position (some EPSON printers first let the print carriage run to the left to the ink cartridge replacement position after starting up, then reset or clean after resetting), and then clean the print head, resulting in unnecessary waste of ink.
• The solution to this problem is to often wipe off the dust on the guide shaft and lubricate the guide shaft. You should choose lubricating oil with good fluidity, such as sewing machine oil or WD-40.

3. It is better not to remove the ink cartridge when it is not used up, so as to avoid ink waste or inaccurate ink metering by the printer.
4. Before turning off the printer, let the print head return to the initial position

• When the printer is in the pause state, the print head automatically returns to the initial position.
• Some printers (such as Stylus Color, Stylus Pro XL, MJ-1500K, etc.) automatically move the print head to the initial position before shutdown; some printers (such as MJ-800K, Stylus-1000, Stylus Color II, etc.) must be confirmed to be in the pause state (i.e., the pause light or PAUSE light is on) before shutdown.
• Doing this can avoid the printer re-cleaning the print head when it is turned on next time, which wastes ink. Besides, because the print head can be sealed by the protective cover when it is in the initial position, the nozzle is not easy to be blocked.
• In addition, be sure to use the shutdown switch on the printer to turn off the machine, and never turn off the switch on the power socket first, which will cause the print head to fail to reset and damage the print head.

5. Some printers are in mechanical lock when in the initial position

• At this time, if you move the print head by hand, you cannot make it leave the initial position. Be careful not to forcefully move the print carriage, otherwise it will cause damage to the mechanical parts of the printer.
• For printers such as MJ-1500K, Stylus Color, Stylus Color II, etc., the print head is in a locked state when in the initial position. At this time, do not manually move the print head to replace the ink cartridge, so as to avoid faults.

6. When replacing the ink cartridge, be sure to follow the steps in the operation manual

• Pay special attention to doing it when the power is on. Because after replacing the ink cartridge, the printer will fill the ink delivery system with ink, which cannot be done in the shutdown state, making the printer unable to detect the re-installed ink cartridge.
• In addition, some printers use an internal electronic counter to count the ink capacity (especially in the statistics of the usage of color ink). When the counter reaches a certain value, the printer judges that the ink is exhausted.
• During the ink cartridge replacement process, the printer will reset its internal electronic counter to confirm that a new ink cartridge is installed. It is especially important to prevent replacing the old ink cartridge with a new one by yourself when the machine is turned off. This operation is invalid for the printer.

7. When plugging or unplugging the printer’s power cord and printing cable, be sure to do it when the printer’s power is turned off.
8. When the ink cartridge is not in use for a long time, it should be placed at room temperature and avoid direct sunlight.

II. Precautions during Inspection and                    Maintenance

1. Do not disassemble the nozzle with power on. Do not place the nozzle in a place where static electricity is easy to generate. When taking the nozzle, hold its metal part to avoid damage to the internal circuit of the nozzle due to static electricity.
2. The inkjet printer should be used in an environment with relatively clean air, especially to prevent rodent damage and avoid biting the ink pipe.
3. Suitable temperature. Case: The operating temperature of BJ-300 printer ink is -10℃~+35℃. When the ambient temperature is lower than -10℃, the printer ink may freeze; when the ambient temperature is above 35℃, it may also affect the chemical stability of the ink.

III. Use and Maintenance of Ink Cartridges

1. Instead of turning off the printer by pressing the power (POWER) button, often turn off the printer by pulling the power cord from the socket. This not only wastes ink but also may damage the print head. Remember this.
2. When turning off the printer while it is printing, you should turn off the printer when the print head is resting or in the capping state at the initial position.

IV. How to Identify the Quality of Ink

1. Add the ink into the empty cartridge as required (the cartridge electrode must be in good condition).
2. Install the inked cartridge into the machine for inkjet cleaning, and the self-test printing is normal (if the self-test fails, immediately clean off the inappropriate ink and replace it).
3. Use the Chinese operating system for typesetting, set the background of various size 0 fonts and add a screen.
4. Perform a printing test on paper in low-quality mode or high-quality mode. If there is no obvious problem of missing strokes or broken lines, this type of ink is of high quality and can be used.