ip4700 ink absorber clean

[lffoar]

Hi all,
I just got an on-screen message that my "ink absorber is nearly full" on my Canon ip4700. I've downloaded manuals etc but they don't help much. Can anybody point me in the right direction to get a detailed explanation how to clean/replace it?
Thanks

 

[PeterBJ]

Have you got the service manual for the iP4700? Here is a link to a simplified version: http://www.gondack.com.ar/media/useruploads/files/ip4700-ssm.pdf

The manual has an instruction on removing the top part of the case, but no instructions on separating the printer mechanism from the bottom plate to get access to the absorber pads. Maybe the inner works are similar enough to the iP4000 or iP4200 printers so one of these instructions may be useful?

For the Pixma iP4000: http://www.druckerchannel.de/artikel.php?ID=1831&seite=1&t=panic_waste_ink_tank_full . This is very a good English translation of an article originally written in German. It has got images you can click to enlarge. A few things have not been translated though : "Fenster schlieen" means close window, "NCHSTE SEITE" means next page, "VORHERIGE" means previous (page) and "ERSTE SEITE" means page one.

The instructions for the Pixma 4200 are here, but only available in German: http://www.druckerchannel.de/artikel.php?ID=1538&seite=1&t=wechsel_des_ink_absorbers
If you don't read German you could try Google translate or you can compare the the two articles, the operations are pretty much the same, and images don't need to be translated

I've taken apart Pixmas iP4000 and iP4200. My guess is that the printer mechanism on your iP4700 is attached to the bottom plate in the same way. Here is the procedure in short: When you have removed the top part of the case, disconnect the power supply and unclip it and can be removed by pushing it down. Then you will have to locate and remove 4 screws holding the printer mechanism to the bottom plate. Then lift the printer mechanism and place it on some newspapers. You now have access to the absorbers. I have tried cleaning the absorbers from a Pixma iP4000, but it is a very messy job, and the absorbers collapse, so their thickness is reduced. Contact between layers of the absorber pads is important, so I recommend getting new absorbers. Do not try to clean and reuse the old ones.

After changing the absorbers you will have to reset the absorber counter. The simplified manual has instructions how to do this. You will also need a special Canon service tool: Link to post with a link and a little explanation: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=42231#p42231 . You should also check out this thread: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=4707

Although you can get your printer working just by resetting the counter , I do not recommend doing so. You risk a horrible mess when ink starts flowing out from the printer.

Good luck with the repair
Peter.

 

[panos]

I could not find new absorbers, so I had cleaned my MP750 pads with warm water, detergent and chlorine. Then I dried them for 2 days under the summer sun. I did not notice reduction in thickness (they fitted perfectly) and this great machine still works fine after many years of service.

 

[PeterBJ]

Maybe the key to successful cleaning of absorbers is the use of warm water instead of hot water? I guess you by warm means less than 40 C or 104 F ? It is a couple of years since i tried cleaning the Pixma 4000 absorbers, but I think I tried rinsing them with hot water directly from the hot water tap. I just checked the hot water and it is close to 60 C or 140 F. so maybe my absorbers simply shrunk by being washed too hot ? But if I remember correctly the absorbers only shrunk in thickness, not length or width, as clothes do when washed too hot.

So if one doesn't mind the mess and trouble or cannot obtain new absorbers, the cleaning is worth a try.

 

[lffoar]

Thanks Peter for your help,
After asking around I found out the cost of having printer shops do the job is worth as much as the printer cost me new! Bugger that, I bought a new Canon ip4850 for $65AUD, that's less than the cost quoted for the absorber pad job. I'm going to follow your link and have a crack at disassembling my ip4700 and try to clean the pads anyway as that gives me a spare printer if needed..........and ongoing knowledge too (-:

 

[goers]

Hi guys, for those who need Canon printhead replacements, I have a contact in China who supplies them for around 1/2 cost of new ones in Australia.
He stands by his (genuine Canon) product and even supplied me with some extra printheads for nothing. I met him in Shenzhen, China.

 

[The Hat]

Hi guys, for those who need Canon printhead replacements, I have a contact in China who supplies them for around 1/2 cost of new ones in Australia.
He stands by his (genuine Canon) product and even supplied me with some extra printheads for nothing. I met him in Shenzhen, China.

The print head deal sounds too good to be true and guess what,
it is because therere all made in China and are not new OEM products..

 

[PeterBJ]

The Hat wrote:

The print head deal sounds too good to be true and guess what,
it is because therere all made in China and are not new OEM products..

See this thread, it explains it in more detail: http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=8598

 

[hceuterpe]

Where can you buy replacement absorbers?

 

[PeterBJ]

I guess you want an absorber kit for the MP610? The parts number is QY5-0181-000. A Google search on this parts number then finds many suppliers, for instance this American supplier: http://www.usglobecomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=5_6764&products_id=6981