The Finest Inkjet Cartridges On the Planet! Finest quality Products for your Office  Cleaning Kits, Refill Tools and More!

Cleaning Inkjet Printer Blockages

Ink can be forming blockages in your printer from the day you load in your first cartridge. Our cleaning fluid passes through the ink channels and through the print head, dissolving ink residue. The solvent (water based) is 100% compatible with your printer and any ink you may use. For years I worked as a field engineer for ESSC-Genicom, probably the largest printer maintenance company in the world. These kits are used by printer repair professionals, yet the instructions are so simple the kits can be used by anyone. These kits have performed flawlessly in Epson and Canon printers with very dried, very blocked print heads.

Canon and Epson inkjet printers have the print head built into the printer itself. What we refer to as cartridges for these printers are actually just ink tanks - little plastic containers filled with ink. 99% of all ink flow problems will be found in the print head assembly because the ink flows out of the tank by gravity*.

The actual print head design varies between manufacturers - as well as between models. However, all are basically the same in that there is a protrusion on the top of the assembly that contacts the "ink tank". This is where the ink enters the print head assembly. The illustration at the right is similar to that used in Canon and Brother Printers. Epson tend to be pointed. This is where most of the problems begin. Between the top of the head assembly and the actual print head is an ink channel that the ink flows through on it's way from the tank to the paper. Any blockage - even partial blockage will interfer with proper printing.

Inkjet inks are formulated to dry quickly to prevent smearing on paper. When you remove an "ink tank" for replacement and/or refill, air enters the channel between the ink tank and the print head and ink begins to dry. Dried ink forms "chunks" of ink which will block the flow of liquid ink to the print head. Never, Never, Never keep a cartridge out of one of these printers for more than a few minutes.

Click Here for a kit for your Epson Printer

Click Here for a kit for your Canon Printer

* The ink will flow due to the pull of gravity unless the breathing holes on top of the cartridge are blocked. If air cannot enter the cartridge to replace the liquid, the liquid will not flow.