Refilling question

[Celso]

Dear All,

I am using refilling carts in my MX721.

Some weeks ago the cyan ink was low and I took the opportunity to refill all carts. Now I see that the ink level of all carts, except for the cyan show wrong levels. This is fine, as it was expected to happen.

The question is how I control the ink levels of the carts now. I see that the magenta is very low but the ink level in the printer shows something different. I am afraid that the magenta may end without warning and I end up burning the head...

Do I need from now on either check the carts with a light in order to avoid running out of ink or refill them more frequently? Is there any other solution?

Thanks.

 

[jtoolman]

You say nothing abnout your refilling work flow. Did you reset all the carts before refilling them? They should all show as full.
Joe

 

[Celso]

Thanks. Only the cyan was low when I refilled all carts. At that time the red light of the cyan cart was also blinking. Only the cyan reseted. As far as I know the carts have automatic reset mechanism that works when the red lights are blinking.

Do the red lights at the carts work together with the ink level shown in the windows driver? Are they independent from each other?

 

[jtoolman]

Wait! You are using refillable carts on your canon??
For best reliability you should modify, reset and refill your original carts and not use compatible or refillable carts on a canon printer. Though they may work OK they are not the best way to go.
Joe

 

[msmart]

@Celso, your 150/151 ink carts should have Auto Reset Chips (ARC). Wait until the printer says the cart is out of ink (Red X). When it does, remove the cart then reinsert it and the printer will now read it as full.

The only drawback to this method is that you have to keep checking the ink levels visually so the carts don't go empty.

 

[Celso]

Yes, 150/151 carts.

As far as I know there were no resetters for them, so that I am using refillable carts.

By visually you mean looking the ink level at the cart, may be using a light to help, or checking whether the red light of the respective cart in the print head car is blinking?

There four ways to check the ink level.

- at the computer (software of Canon) ;
- at the LCD of the printer ;
- at the printer head car (red light that blinks)
- at the carts (looking with a light direct to the ink level in the carts) ;

I know that the level at the computer is wrong and, thus, probably is also the level at the LCD.

Can I trust on the red light? Do I have from now on visually check the carts? When the light blinks does it show on the LCD, even if the red level previously reported was wrong?

Thanks.

 

[The Hat]

These new ARC chipped carts are a real nightmare, because you should be able to refill the carts when the low ink warning appears, that’s the best time to refill which also prevents the sponge from drying out leading to ink starvation on you next refill.

Then there are those ARC chip that only show the red X when it’s time to refill, these types can be very misleading but they won’t cause the print head to run dry once you act immediately on the red X warning...

Wait! You are using refillable carts on your canon??

The Canon printers that use the 250/ 550/ 750 type carts are very difficult to refill, and so the easier and best option is to use compatible carts, O’ how times have changed Joe...

 

[Celso]

Hat, based on what you wrote I understand that the level of ink will be incorrectly informed in the LCD of the printer, as well as in the software (driver) in Windows 10.

However, when the print head car identifies that the ink is low it will inform it in the LCD and in Windows 10.

In other words, the LCD and Windows 10 may inform half full and, suddenly, show the red X.

Is it what you said?

 

[msmart]

Are your carts clear or opaque/black? Hopefully clear.

Your fourth option is the only/best way to check ink level. Ignore what the printer/Windows tells you. Fill with more ink when the reservoir is low regardless of what the printer LCD or Windows or LEDs show.

When the red x shows on the printer/Windows, remove/insert the cart. That's when the level on the ink level will *magically* reset to full.

Rinse, repeat.

 

[Vorkolor]

If you use refillable carts with autoreset chips you can absolutely not trust the ink level reported by the printer. You must inspect the physical ink level in each cartridge manually.