The 60-hour Myth on Canon printers (Not Here-say)

[The Hat]

Print Head Explanation: -
HB-A:... PM, PBK, MBK, PC, GY... HB-B:.. M, Y, C, G, R... O’ you may Grey and GO instead of R and G.

The alarm bells ring, this then panics a lot of Canon users, over this 60-hour cleaning cycle thing, but what it comes down to is nothing, I would like to put this whole Feckin nonsense to bed for once and for all.

Firstly, YES, your printer will do a cleaning cycle after 60 hours of non-use, that is fact, BUT it will also do a cleaning cycle each time you use the printer before the mythical 60 hours’ time has arrived anyway, so what’s the problem.

The amount of ink that the printer will use for cleaning on start up after 60 hours has lapsed has also been overly exaggerated, it uses no more that it normally uses on a regular cleaning cycle, so panic over.

Here it is in English:- Quote “ If 60 to 120 hours have elapsed since the previous cleaning cycle, till the start of the next printing, then the printer uses 1.4 ml on the (H B- A side) and 1.8 ml on the H B- B side)” If the time lapse is 480 hours then the amounts doubles.

When an ink tank is replaced, the printer will use approx. 2 ml of ink, but that can vary wildly, like: PC or GY.. 1.9 ml, PBK or MBK.. 2.2 ml, PM..2.5 ml, M or Y.. 2.1 ml, C or G.. 2.4 ml, R.. 2.8 ml.

Wait there’s more: - When You Frig around with your print head by trying to clean it externally the printer will use 8.8 ml, and that’s not the end of it either, any power outage will result in an instant cleaning cycle.

There is one further action that cause a big cleaning cycle to occur, if the print head was not capped when you powered on the printer it will do a huge clean cycle, a whopping 8.8 ml is used, so don’t clean the purge unit to often...

BUT, if you power off your printer with the button provided, or allow it into sleep mode, (Same thing) the printer can still remember the last time it did a clean cycle, so it won’t automatically clean on start-up, but it may clean before it starts to print anyway.

Putting the printer to sleep or leaving the printer powered on 24/7, achieves exactly the same thing, except one uses far more electricity, but pulling the plug from the power socket every night will cause an automatic clean cycle on start-up, Ouch 4.7 ml...

All ink usage is measured in Grams, and 1 Gram of ink is equal to 1 ml of ink, and the amounts quoted are for each individual cartridge...

Because this information was taken from a Canon Pro 9500, you can dismiss the amounts of ink used for cleaning purposes, unless you have a 9500 yourself, this printer was used as a prototype (Or guinea pig) and all other pigment and dye ink printer will use approx. half of the stated amount above, phew...

Foot note: if you do anything out of the ordinary with your printer, then expect it to run a cleaning cycle and the newer model are worse for that, for instance, cancelling the ink monitoring will cause excessive amount of cleaning, this will double the ink wastage...

The only sure way of getting back at your printer is to change all your cartridges together when one become low, that’s a huge saving over 12 months...

P.S. Isn’t it Just Grand that we can use 3rd party inks, it saves my sanity anyway...
E&OE..

 

[stratman]

That's a lot of ink purged if electrical power to the printer goes out.

So... don't pull the plug to keep the print head in the middle of the carriage when changing out cartridges or refilling and returning the same cartridges back into the print head?

When I refill and return the same set of cartridges back into the print head, I never pull the plug or turn off the printer. If I do not get the cartridges back into the print head before the PH returns to parking position then I close and re-open the lid and the PH slides out to the middle once again. Automatic maintenance seems to be the same whether or not I get the cartridges back in the PH before it moves back to parking position.

 

[palombian]

That's a lot of ink purged if electrical power to the printer goes out.

So... don't pull the plug to keep the print head in the middle of the carriage when changing out cartridges or refilling and returning the same cartridges back into the print head?

When I refill and return the same set of cartridges back into the print head, I never pull the plug or turn off the printer. If I do not get the cartridges back into the print head before the PH returns to parking position then I close and re-open the lid and the PH slides out to the middle once again. Automatic maintenance seems to be the same whether or not I get the cartridges back in the PH before it moves back to parking position.

Agree, retracting the printhead does not seem to cause problems.
I only pull the plug when removing a printhead for cleaning.

When refilling I try to mimick as much as possible how it is done with OEM cartridges.

A second set of cartridges is a big help, since you will not be tempted to do a quick refill of one or two carts, but change all together (something you can't with OEM ).

I still have limited experience with autoreset chips, but their advantage seems also to let the printer run as much as possible as designed.

 

[stratman]

A second set of cartridges is a big help, since you will not be tempted to do a quick refill of one or two carts, but change all together (something you can't with OEM ).

True. A second set of cartridges is convenient and fast to get back to printing. It is the optimal method.

But my point was not to fear refilling cartridges without pulling the mains. I use only one set of cartridges and refill all relevant cartridges at one time when one goes to empty by ink level monitoring (not the forum consensus method) and return them to the print head.

What's the big deal about the print head returning to the parking station if I cannot finish the refill in time? Drying is minimal to the print head and any effect of drying is resolved upon of cartridges and a "new cartridge" purging occurs.

The information provided by @The Hat reinforces my process of not pulling the mains. Nor do I pull the mains when I have flushed a print head. i wonder what effect that has on ink purging?

 

[palombian]

True. A second set of cartridges is convenient and fast to get back to printing. It is the optimal method.

But my point was not to fear refilling cartridges without pulling the mains. I use only one set of cartridges and refill all relevant cartridges at one time when one goes to empty by ink level monitoring (not the forum consensus method) and return them to the print head.

What's the big deal about the print head returning to the parking station if I cannot finish the refill in time? Drying is minimal to the print head and any effect of drying is resolved upon of cartridges and a "new cartridge" purging occurs.

The information provided by @The Hat reinforces my process of not pulling the mains. Nor do I pull the mains when I have flushed a print head. i wonder what effect that has on ink purging?

You are right, the Canon instructions to change a printhead do not mention to pull the mains.
With or without a printhead, the carriage of most printers returns to the parking position after a while and comes back to the center when (re)opening the cover.

 

[stratman]

Refilling has its myths, as to be expected since we are unable to address every concern or know every operational detail. Our advice is based on observation, which may not be obtained and processed within acceptable scientific methodology.

Refilling may have some mystery still, a little bit of voodoo mixed with a dash of superstition. In that vein, communicating on the forum sometimes seems like a seance.

 

[BruceW77]

There seems to be a contradiction in the following statement:

BUT it will also do a cleaning cycle each time you use the printer before the mythical 60 hours’ time has arrived anyway, so what’s the problem.

Are there some words missing, because I have read it several times and can’t work out what is meant or link it to anything in the Service Manual?

Because this information was taken from a Canon Pro 9500, you can dismiss the amounts of ink used for cleaning purposes, unless you have a 9500 yourself, this printer was used as a prototype (Or guinea pig) and all other pigment and dye ink printer will use approx. half of the stated amount above

For the Pro-100 and Pro-9000 the timers are also different, as there are only 2 timers; the shortest timer is 120 hours and the longer timer is 480 hours.

I had assumed, based on the difference between the Pro9500 and Pro9000, that pigment printers would tend to follow the rules of the Pro9500 and Dye printers would follow similar rules to the Pro9000. Are there Service Manuals or experiences that suggest the Pro9500 is different to other Canon pigment printers?

Has anyone ever tested the possibility that the Pro9500 has the same 60s cartridge timers as the Pro9000 and Pro-100? It may just be an omission in the Pro9500 Service Manual.

Bruce

 

[The Hat]

@BruceW77, you seem to have gotten the wrong end of a stick somewhere, what difference does it make whether the printer does or does not do a cleaning cycle, its all part of having a good reliable printer isn’t it.

There seems to be a contradiction in the following statement:
Are there some words missing, because I have read it several times and can’t work out what is meant or link it to anything in the Service Manual?

No words are missing from the manual that I used, and it does state that cleaning cycles do occur on or before every print run is initialise, ** and the cartridge timer for the 9500 machine is set to 100 seconds, but that refers to how long you have to change a cartridge before the head moves back to the parking station.


For the Pro-100 and Pro-9000 the timers are also different, as there are only 2 timers; the shortest timer is 120 hours and the longer timer is 480 hours.
I really don’t know why you insist on grouping the Pro 9000 and Pro 100 together, because these two printers have a completely different set of rules when it comes to print head maintenance.

I had assumed, based on the difference between the Pro9500 and Pro9000, that pigment printers would tend to follow the rules of the Pro9500 and Dye printers would follow similar rules to the Pro9000. Are there Service Manuals or experiences that suggest the Pro9500 is different to other Canon pigment printers?
No that assumption is completely wrong, because the Pro 9000 does not use the same maintenance schedule as the newer Pro printers do.

All the newer Pro models now use a similar purge cycle to the one that was first developed for use in the Pro 9500, the only amendments Canon made to that programme was to reduce the length of time and ink it used.

Has anyone ever tested the possibility that the Pro9500 has the same 60s cartridge timers as the Pro9000 and Pro-100? It may just be an omission in the Pro9500 Service Manual.
** See the explanation above..

Now just in case you’ve missed it, The Pro 9000 manual states quite clearly on the top of the page that print head cleaning is preformed before the start of printing when the clean flag is active, and the printer also does a purge when any cartridge has been replaced, so the myth has been hit on the head once again.

Your Pro 9000 does a cleaning purge when any chipped cartridge has been replaced...

 

[stratman]

"Replacement" is the operative word. Does this pertain only to a different chipped cartridge or does it apply to anytime a cartridge is removed and a cartridge of any origin (re)inserted??

While the forum has discussed this previously, it seems like a good time to review two other scenarios with cartridges when an ink purge may or may not occur.

1) When the same ink cartridge is removed and reinserted without any other change, such as the chip reset or a totally different cartridge reinserted?

2) When a cartridge is removed and the chip is reset and the same cartridge is reinserted?

 

[The Hat]

We seem to be going around in circles with this question.

If you remove a cartridge for 10 or 20 seconds and replace it without altering it in any way, then the printer doesn’t react. Nothing changed so no purge cycle.

But if you do anything at all to the cartridge like, Reset the Chip, Refill it, or Both, then the printer will do a purge, whether or not you can do it in only a few seconds, because it’s now seen as a newly installed cartridge.

Lastly if you insert another cartridge in its place, the printer will do a purge, once Canon installed chips on their cartridges all printers react in the same way now, but with the older BCl-6 cartridges you could get away with doing this without the printer knowing, but not anymore...