print head cleaning

thenewoc · 8 Apr 2014 at 12:27

Hi,

I have a HP 8500a Plus inkjet which needs its print heads cleaned, well that opposed to buying new ones as they're quite pricey. I think they have mainly become blocked / deteriorated due to lack of use rather than them being mega old. There about £40 a pop to replace so cleaning would be preferable, with there being two of them.

I was thinking of resting the print heads in whatever appropriate cleaning fluid to soak for a while first before maybe investing in the repair / primmer tool or taking it apart to flush through.

In the past with a different printer I used some JR flush fluid but I recall at the time this seemed very much like methylated spirit.

Just wondering what people here recommended, I've also seen reference to Isopropyl / Isopropanol Alchol (IPA) whilst searching internet but wondered which would be better and if I need to ensure product is above a certain purity ?

RussD · 8 Apr 2014 at 15:30

Go to dpreview and ask in the Printers section. You'll get a Load of Good Answers in there.

thenewoc · 9 Apr 2014 at 19:40

RussD said:
Go to dpreview and ask in the Printers section. You'll get a Load of Good Answers in there.

Thanks, I managed to find a suitable inkjet flush fluid suitable for pigment inks and the issue has helped the decision to embark on a mini continuous ink system. Replacing all the ink will mean i'll know the integrity will be there right through from cartridge to print head. Just got to wait for the auto reset chips to arrive now from Hong Kong.

.one. · 9 Apr 2014 at 23:35

Windowlean will do the job the clear fluid version.

thenewoc · 10 Apr 2014 at 12:50

.one. said:
Windowlean will do the job the clear fluid version.

I think Windex would work better from what I've read as it has ammonia in it but is harder to get hold of in the UK.

Ripshod · 10 Apr 2014 at 13:07

I hardly ever use my printer so this used to come up really often - the printheads would clog with dried ink and I could never get them to clear properly with the printer's built in software. So buying new cartridges (or even a new printer) every time I wanted to print something became the norm.

Now however, I use an ultrasonic cleaning bath with warm distilled water. Managed to find a cheapo on the fleabay that only needed a new zener. 10 minutes in that then a quick clean on the printer to flush out any water makes them like new.