Print Head
Cleaning Solution Kit

Fix your clogged Epson printer and prolong the life of the print head!

If your printer won't print 'right' and you KNOW you've got working cartridges... your printhead is most likely clogged (or getting that way). You can easily fix that and keep from throwing your printer away. The landfills are full enough!

Signs of a 'clogged' print head:

• White lines occur when printing documents or pictures.
• Indistinctness or broken lines occur in the nozzle check pattern.
• Ink just doesn't come out during printing.
• Printer is used again after a long period of non-use.
• Having to perform a 'printhead cleaning cycle' more often than the usual one or two times!

Example of partially clogged print head:

How does this happen?

Epson printers have a high printing resolution (D.P.I. - dots per inch), this means that the printhead nozzles have to be manufactured much smaller than some of the other printer manufacturers' nozzles. The size of the actual nozzle hole is much smaller than the human hair and it does not take very much for them to clog. Epson printers are prone to having ink dry in the printhead nozzles causing streaking and void areas and over time, rendering the printer useless. Just running the printhead cleaning cycle is NOT enough!

Other common causes for head clogging are from infrequent use and not turning your printer off properly between uses To unclog and help prevent clogged nozzles, try our Printhead Cleaning Solution Kit..

INSTRUCTIONS
 1. REMOVE the cartridges you are having a problem with and set them aside. Cut 2 strips of paper towel approx. 6 in. long and 2 in. wide (your printer may only accommodate the thickness of 1 strip). Lay them inside the track in the bottom center of the printer. Slide the print head to the left, over the paper towel strip(s). You may have to hold the leading edge so the printhead head can pass over it. These strips will catch and absorb the solution you are going to inject in the next step.

2. Draw up a FULL syringe of the cleaning solutFULL syringe of the cleaning solution. Slide the clear plastic extension tubing onto the syringe tip so that it fits snugly. With the syringe facing upward, slowly squeeze the syringe plunger so that the solution is pushed to the end. ** Make SURE there is no air in the syringe or tubing.

Look in the cartridge holder and you will see a small black spike (one for each cartridge). These spikes are the feed tubes that puncture the bottom of the ink cartridge. GENTLY slide the plastic tubing on the syringe all the way over the spike and hold it firmly in place.

SLOWLY squeeze the syringe plunger until it is empty, being careful not to inject ANY air. Don't force the plunger! If there is resistance, just let it set for a bit and try again. Proceed to the next feed tube following the above procedure. Note: you only have to clean the nozzle that is giving you problems. If it's only the yellow, just inject the solution into the yellow spike (feed tube), etc.

3. Slide the printhead/cartridge holder back to the right side of the printer and REINSERT the cartridge(s). * Don't forget to remove the paper towel strip(s) when finished cleaning, it makes a mess in the paper rollers!

4. Plug the printer back into the AC power source and turn the printer on to let the print head / cartridges park to the right side again. Turn the printer off using it's on/off switch and let the solution work for a MINIMUM of 4 hours, overnight (6-8 hours) is best.

5. Turn the printer on and run 3 printhead cleaning cycles. *Be sure to print a nozzle check pattern after each head cleaning to check your progress. (If further head cleaning cycles are needed, wait a least an hour to let things "settle"). Print a "test page", a few colorful web pages should do nicely.

Note: When using step # 5 above make sure to print out enough "test prints" to ensure complete evacuation of the cleaning solution from the print head. * For severely clogged heads, several applications and cleanings may be needed. * Make sure you have plenty of ink in your printer cartridges. Cleaning cycles use LOTS of ink! ;)