About PiezoFlush
For most third party ink companies, a flush fluid is a simple task. They take clear ink base and package it. We set out on a different mission. Our goal was to create a solution that was strong enough to clean dried print heads and yet safe enough to use as a long-term storage solution for print heads. Because we produce Piezography inks which have seven shades and are often used in printers with eight or more ink positions, we needed to supply an eighth “ink”. Because the eighth ink is not actually printed, it needed to have some unique properties that would allow it to remain in a large format or desktop printer potentially for a year or more. PiezoFlush is that solution. We stained it pink with some dye so that users could actually see it when it is printed during nozzle check tests.
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PiezoFlush is the strongest and the safest and the most effective flush, storage and cleaning fluid that you can buy.
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PiezoFlush is a premium product and is manufactured at a cost significantly higher then competing products.
How It's Used
In its simplest form, PiezoFlush can be used as a cleaning fluid that is a safer alternative to ammonia, simple green, windex and other home-made concoctions. PiezoFlush can not harm a print head. The same can not be said for ammonia based cleaning fluids such as Windex which can interact with the copper components of print heads. PiezoFlush can be safely injected into print heads with our PiezoFlush cleaning kit. For those who like to clean the bottom of the print heads, it can be safely used with our recommended methods. You can see a complete cleaning of a desktop printer in this video. For Roland printers which have a cleaning compartment for swabbing the underneath of the print heads - PiezoFlush is a safe alternative to the more expensive OEM solution.
Put in refillable cartridges, PiezoFlush can be used to both clean out ink lines, dampers and print heads or to fill the same with long term storage fluid.
One of the best uses of PiezoFlush is to take an extra set of refillable carts and fill them with PiezoFlush. These carts can then be used to flush the printer so that the printer can be stored safely for a few weeks or a few months. Users have reported that printers stored this way with PiezoFlush have been able to be revitalized even after one years rest. Many colleges and universities as well as studios with fleets of printers use PiezoFlush periodically to maintain their printers to peak condition. For these customers, we provide PiezoFlush by the gallon.
About Epson Printer Clogs
There are two types of permanent clogs of which one is easier to remedy than the other. The easiest clog to repair is an external clog on the surface of the print head. In most cases this type of clog is due to
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head contact with the media
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a physical obstruction such as lint, hair, (you would be surprised what can get on there...)
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dried ink due to low humidity conditions or leaks of air into the capping station
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streaks of ink left on the print head after it is wiped by the wiper blade during a clean operation; due either to
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the buildup of ink on the wiper blade
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cupping of the wiper blade
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buildup of ink on the surface of the print head
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Our external cleaning kit for large format printers give you safe materials with which to clean these areas. We have videos on how we apply this remedy Online. But, if you apply PiezoFlush to both the print head and the cleaning station including the wiper blade and the clog is not remedied, than its source is most likely internal and those are more difficult and costly to remedy. For very small format printers on which the cartridges are attached to and go back and forth with the print head we have a low-cost solution which can be used both internally and externally right here. Large format printers require using PiezoFlush in refillable cartridges to clean internally.
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If a clog permanently appears in a location that can not be remedied by external cleaning, then the clog may be located
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behind the surface of the jets such as in the tiny ink channel inside the print head
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just behind the print head where ink flows from the ink exchanger into the print head
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in the ink exchanger where the ink lines feed into the filters and dampers from the cartridge
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in the filters and dampers
PiezoFlush is usually successful when filled into cartridges and applied using the INIT FILL, allowing a rest period of from 24-48 hours, and then pulling out dissolved matter using a second INIT FILL. A nozzle test at that point should reveal a fully printed pink nozzle check (PiezoFlush is stained pink). If there is no change in the blockage, then it is possible that these jets are electronically dead.
PiezoFlush is more difficult to administer to the black channel in printers which use the same ink channel for both the MK and PK (which is nearly all Pro or Photo printers that use remote ink tanks (remote means that the inkjet cartridge is not actually riding back and forth on the print head). In this case, the MK and PK share an ink exchanger using a pair of valves, so that what affects MK affects PK and visa versa. To be successful with a black ink blockage PiezoFlush would need to be administered using both a MK and a PK cartridge, running INIT FILL procedures in both ink modes, potentially twice, in order to determine by nozzle check if the blockage is repaired. We have a guide that explains how to perform the INIT FILL in the instructions tab of this product.
The cost of performing an INIT FILL 4 times on large format printers can waste more expensive ink than the cost of a new ink exchanger. An ink exchanger is difficult to install yourself the first time. If you are mechanically inclined or want to learn how to be, it is possible to replace the ink exchanger by downloading the Field Service Manual for your model printer and following the step-by-step photo illustrations. These PDFs are produced by Epson for their service repair technicians. They can be located on the Internet or can be purchased from a users manual .com website such as 2manuals which sells repair manuals for nearly every appliance and device.
Unfortunately, there is no substitute for the INIT FILL procedure which drains the ink from all the ink lines of a printer and replaces it with whatever fluid is installed where the ink cartridges are. In most cases of attempting to repair an internally clogged printer there are usually both ink cartridges and PiezoFlush cartridges installed. There is no way to avoid expensive ink wastage. For example there is no single ink line INIT FILL. Printing with PiezoFlush is not likely to remove an internal clog. And while it is possible to flush ink lines using single channel print outs, printing PiezoFlush does not usually remove an internal clog because the forces exerted to the internal ink system during printing are micro-minute in comparison to the strong force produced by the suction pump during the INIT FILL.
On the positive side of things, you can use an INIT FILL opportunity to first remove and gently shake any ink cartridges that are going to left in place during the INIT FILL. This benefits the printer by bringing fresher, re-suspended pigment ink to the print head which can actually improve the printed quality or color management of your output. Likewise, applying PiezoFlush to all of your ink channels is an outstanding preventative maintenance strategy that dissolves agglomerated pigment matter that adheres to ink lines, filters and dampers, and ink channels. And if you have been printing with old outdated inks (and this may be a cause of your problems in the first place), take this opportunity to replace the inks in your printer. That may include draining your existing ink cartridges and flushing them with distilled water and allowing them to drain nearly dry before using newly purchased inks. Both your printer and your output (possibly your clients) will thank you.
The Amount of PiezoFlush Required Varies from Model to Model.
The best practice is to fill the refillable cart to its full mark so that the chip (which already reads 100% full) will be in sync with the cart contents. However, you can elect to under-fill the carts as long as you ignore the Status Monitor or the reported amount of ink remaining in the cartridge - and instead visually check the cartridge to make sure it does not run empty. The following is a chart indicating the amount of ink discharged per channel as well as the minimum level required to operate the cartridge for the following printers:
MODEL:QTY FLUID PER LINE PER INIT CHARGE
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R3000 / SC-P600:10ml per channel (x8 channels)
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Pro 3800 / 3880 / SC-P800:14ml / channel (x9 channels)
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4800 / 4880:18ml / channel (x8 channels)
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4900:18ml / channel (x10 channels)
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7800 / 7880 / 7890 / SC-P6000:28ml / channel (x8 channels)
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7900 / SC-P7000:28ml / channel (x10 channels)
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9800 / 9880: 40ml / channel (x8 channels)
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9890 / SC-P8000: 40ml / channel (x9 channels)
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9900 / SC-P9000:40ml / channel (x10 channels)
We recommend two Initial Ink Charge Procedures for clearing clogs, one for flushing for storage, and as many as two or three for preparing for Piezography to remove all residual color pigment stain. For example, if you wish to try and clear a clog in a 4900 you would need the following minimum amount of PiezoFlush per cartridge (30ml minimum operating amount, + two times 18ml = 66ml). However, you should allow yourself overhead for running nozzle cleans and nozzle checks, and or additional Init Charges.