How do I know if nozzle/head is blocked or damaged?

[bigpat]

Newbie alert!!

I have a Brother DCP-135C and I've done a REALLY stupid thing. My previous cartridges (non-OEM) just had a plastic cap on them, but the latest ones I got (different non-OEM) also have a peel-off seal. Trouble is, I didn't spot that at first and slotted the black cartridge in with the seal still on. I must have tried half a dozen prints before I realised what the problem was, peeled off the seal, and tried again.

But I still get no black ink. I'm sure the ink itself is OK, as my daughter had changed one a month or two ago (and did spot the seal!!) and it was fine. Also, the other colours from the same supplier are fine. So - am I likely to have damaged the print head/nozzle/whatever it's called and how would I check?

I've read a couple of the stickys on this site about soaking in alcohol etc. but how do I go about this? How do you get these bits out of the machine?

What if I swapped the blue cartridge in to the black slot? Would that at least determine if it's the ink or the printer that's faulty? Or would that just mess up the colours in a way the cleaning function couldn't handle, like putting diesel in a petrol engine?

As you can see I'm a complete novice at this stuff, so I'd welcome any suggestions!

Thanks

 

[Tin Ho]

I have seen an i560 that was used for more than a year with the CMY cartridges still sealed. The owner never found out why he never got colors printed. When I peeled off the seals for those cartridges for him all the colors came to life. I can't explain why the print head wasn't damaged. I don't think the guy never tried to print colors. The print head was lost a few months later after discovering the world of colors. Don't know what was done by the guy. The cartridges involced wer OEM BCI-6 cartridges.

You can swap the cartridges if the printer allows you to do that. You may be able to see if it has anything to do with the cartridges.