If you are about to read this article it is because your printer is probably over two years old and you are having nozzle drop outs. This is extremely common with printers that have not been cleaned on a continual basis. You haven't  performed any cleaning because the printer manufacturer has not recommended any cleaning procedure. Think a moment. Do you not change the oil in your car about 3,000 miles to keep the engine running smoothly? Most of us do. So why doesn't printer manufacturers recommend maintenance procedures. 

There are three areas that cause problems with nozzles firing well:

1. The Capping Station Pads
2, The Capping Pump
3. The Dampers
4. The Head

Parts that should be replaced every two years:
1. Dampers
2. Wiper

Parts that should be replaced every three to four years:
1.Capping station
2. Flushing Box

The Capping Station is where the head rests and where the head gets cleaned. The capping station has a foam pad touching the head and a tube leading from the capping pad to a pump. Pigment ink gets sucked from the head through foam pad. When the printer is not used for a while the ink on the pad starts to dry which causes the nozzles in the head to dry as well. Most pigment inks are made of a group of chemicals which include resin. Liquid resin becomes solid plastic when it dries which it is hard to disolve and break up. 

The caping station pump can wear out which will result in insuficient suction. This will prevent proper cleaning.

The dampers are the first line of protection. The tubing from the cartridge goes to the damper which sits directly on the head. The damper has a filter inside it to capture any particles that could clog the nozzles. After a good deal of ink travels through the damper, you may have particle build up which will prevent the flow of ink causing nozzles to drop out. Dampers should be replaced at least every two years.

The Head contains extremely small nozzles that refined ink flows through. The surface of the head must be kept lubricated in order to prevent the head from drying out the ink. If ink inside the head forms solid particles it will block ink from flowing. It is imperative that the capping station pad be kept moist to prevent the head from drying.

We have heard people using hot water and windex. Hot water does not break down the resin and while cleaners like Windex will loosen the pigment in the pad, it will cause the head to dry again. CLF1 is comprised of chemicals that break down resin and pigment while lubricating the head and pad preventing them from drying.

How to use CLF1 and Tinted CLF2:

When nozzles are clogged we recommend placing 3 to 4 drops warm ClF1 on the capping station 3 to four times a day. This is accomplished by moving the head off of the capping station which you can easily do by pushing gently down on the cutting blade a pull the head to the left out of the way. First turn off the printer and unplug it. The images below will show you where the inside parts of  the printer are positioned. After placing the drops on the pad place the carriage back on the capping station. It should click in place. Redo this 3 to 4 times a day. Do not turn on the printer for a day. You may heat the liquid as warm as a babies bottle. The cleaning fluid slowly breaks through the nozzles and backs up into the head. This is what we want to happen. It will break up the particles and eventually open the nozzles to allow the ink to flow properly.

If the nozzles do not clear the next day you may have to perform this action for a much as two weeks. It depends on just how many nozzles are clogged. If you get about 1/3 of the nozzles breaking loose but not more than that after 3 to 4 days, you will need to use our cleaning cartridges. You place the Tinted CLF2 cartridges in the printer and perform a fill or a power cleaning. You may need to perform two fills or power cleans. When the tubes of the printer are filled with cleaning fluid, perform a nozzle check. If all nozzles are not firing let the fluid stay in the head for at least a day. You can also add to that by placing CLF1 on the capping station. If the head is not permentlypermantintlypermanently locked, this fluid will eventually break down the particles. This does not guarantee that the dampers are in good condition. Once all nozzles are firing, run our color bars to see if all the inks can maintain continuous flow. If not, change the dampers.

Nozzles  completely blocked and cleaning fluid does not help:

This may mean that either the damper, the head or the capping station pump are malfunctioning. Firstdissolveinsufficientpermanently change the damper. If that does not work and you have placed cleaning fluid on the capping station for over a week and check the pump. If the pump did not suck all the fluid through the tubes after two fills or power cleanings, the pump maybe failing. Change the capping station. If two weeks have passed and you are still having blocked nozzles with no improvement, the head will need to be changed.

This has rarely been the case. Usually by two weeks the nozzles become open and ink flows. If you are using third party ink other than Symphonic, you may have permanently locked up the head. Symphonic Ink uses Flo-Guard 5a and 6a to improve flow and shelf life. Other inks may have too much resin that is harder to break down.

Unclogging nozzles on Epson, Canon, Mimaki, Roland, and Mutoh printers.

The strongest inkjet cleaning fluid formulated to dissolve dried particles of resinated and non resinated inkjet water based inks. Replacement part available.

This diagram shows an overview of the inside of the 7600/9600 printer. In order to get access to the inside of the printer, we have prepared a step by removal of the covers. The capping station is where you place droplets of CLF1.

This is what it looks like when in use. With the use of cleaning fluid placed on the pads frequently it will remain clean .

Above the capping station to the upper left is the wiper. It should be replaced at least once every two years.

Next to the docking station is the Flushing Box pad. This pad will become saturated with ink over time and need to be replaced. It is important to make sure that the pad does not protrude upward. Replacement cost is about $90.00, expensive for a pad; however, it comes with a box attached.

In order to get access to the capping station you must first move the head to the left. Locate the cutting blade as shown below press down and pull carriage to the left to allow you to get to the capping station.

Price List:

Replacement Parts:
Wiper
Dampers
Capping Station
Flushing Box

Call for quotes.

Cleaning Fluids:

Symphonic CLF1 and CLF2 Tinted are the most effective cleaning fluids to clean print heads and tube lines.
It is the strongest and most effective formula on the market. 

Use Pinks for Magenta, Light Magenta, Reds, and any warm colors.

Use Blue for Cyan, Lt Cyan, Lt Black, Lt Lt Black, Black, Blue, and Green.

Use Yellow for Yellow and Orange.

New Clear *CLF1 - Stronger than ever!
8oz. $25  16 oz. $40.00  32 oz. $70.00  1 Gallon $210.00

New Tinted Cleaning Fluids Clear *CLF1 - Pink, Blue, and Yellow
8oz. $30  16 oz. $50.00  32 oz. $80.00  1 Gallon $210.00

 

Tinted Additives: Pink, Blue, and Yellow

2 oz $10.00  4 oz $20.00

  Cleaning Cartridges:  

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