One way to unblock an Epson printer Print Head.

Here's a suggestion for a way to unblock your print head. (Recommended for Epson printers, not tested on other models - may be dangerous with printers that use heat - the Epson uses sound instead.)

Inject about 2 ml of Methylated Spirits or alcohol into each affected ink cartridge.

This will:

• Remove blockages from the Epson print head
• Probably cause the ink to leak through the head whilst the printer is not in use. If the head is parked correctly, the excess should be absorbed by the sponge / pump mechanism underneath.
• Dilute your ink a little - colours will be a little less vivid until your next refill.

- after -

Here's the full story.

I'm a happy owner of an Epson Stylus 500 printer, and make heavy use of refill ink from Mr Inkjet.

In  February, '98 I decided to print 1,000 full colour advertisements for the residents of Bourke. But at the end of all that, the printing quality was rather shocking. (See below.)

Several cleaning cycles and removal of the printhead from the printer didn't help fix the blockages. So I decided to try metho, the only cleaning agent I had with me at the time.

Didn't make much difference straight away, but over a few hours of sitting, quality was fully restored.

(Note - the after image was done in low quality mode, so is still a little streaky.)

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