Printheads and Voltage Spikes ---iP4500

[mikling]

It appears that the iP4500 is very sensitive to voltage spikes damaging the printhead. During my recent and still uncompleted relocation but largely done, I have been able to lose two iP4500 printheads to electronic failure. One happened today and the other about two weeks back.

I am nearly sure it was due to some inductive spikes that another power supply sent out when I was attaching it to the label printer. In the future I am going to try as much as possible to power up printers without the printheads installed. This could be very hard to achieve when the printer is coming out of storage and it is stored with the printhead but certainly achievable during a relocation, rearrangement etc.

I have been told of other iP4500 chassis dying from power outages and restarts and that was the source of some of the spare printheads I am in possession of. Yeah, surge protectors should have worked but I largely never trusted these things anyways.

So when rearranging etc. you might want to consider this. Costs nothing and just might prevent a failure.

 

[turbguy]

Perhaps I missed something. What is your evidence that "voltage spikes" occurred?

If you really want to prevent spikes, then perhaps a UPS should be used...

Printers are supplied with sophisticated power supplies that should easily control same.

 

[mikling]

Perhaps I missed something. What is your evidence that "voltage spikes" occurred?

If you really want to prevent spikes, then perhaps a UPS should be used...

Printers are supplied with sophisticated power supplies that should easily control same.

All totally agreed with but nonetheless...very coincidental working perfectly hours before, a simple rearrangement of 3 racks of printers, unplugging and plugging in...then boom. Goner with the pigment channel quarter of the nozzles are kaput...clean nice very orderly pattern.

When I get a deal on some UPSes, each rack will be fed separately.

 

[Ron350]

It is sad that the iP4500 is prone to electrical failures.

 

[PeterBJ]

I've read somewhere that this also applies to the MP610. Both printers are equipped with the QY6-0067 print head from the factory, but the replacement print head is QY6-0075. Maybe the original QY6-0067 was flawed, so a more robust replacement type QY6-0075 was introduced?

 

[martin0reg]

More robust canon printheads would be really fine - but I had damaged 0067 as well as a new 0075..!

I think Canon PH could be electrical damaged as follows: bad ink flow > (more or less) burnt nozzles > (more or less) damaged logic board of the head.
Now there is a known risk that electrical damages of Canon PH can damage the logic board of the printer. And a damaged printer could vice versa damage a goood PH. A canon disease.

At druckerchannel some users are suspecting that damaging the printer's board could be prevented by a protection circuit - which these printes are missing.
So a possible reason for mikling's experience could be this "unprotected" sort of canon printer board..

..I am not an electrician, just speculating...but anyway Canon in general is prone to this kind of damages (never heard of such issues from epson) and - even worse - seems not to make any attempts to change this.

 

[berttheghost]

Did you have the electrical ground checked at your new location? Surge protectors are only effective if they are connected to a good ground at the outlet.

 

[Pentode]

Are you sure it's not the logic board? Sometimes Canon recommends changing this along with the print head.

I've got a iP4950 and getting a B200, whether I should take a gamble and just change the print head.

Canon power supplies are usually pretty reliable, what are the error codes or light flashings are you getting?

Dave