To Fit or not to Fit a Waste ink Tank on a Canon Printer ?

[websnail]

If there are any hidden dangers in using this kit, well its early days but I havent found any yet.

I'm confident there are no hidden dangers and I doubt very much that you will, as much because your printers are getting a regular workout which was certainly the issue when the iP4000 popped it's connector 5+ years ago.

Because the tubing exits right next to the on/off switch I can regularly monitor the progress of waste ink flow when turning on and using the printer, no more wondering about the strange whirring noises and what the printer is doing while making them, it has now become another very welcomed ink monitor.

Given the discussion about the strength of the waste pump itself I'd be interested in your observations on the waste ink flow within the tube though.

Now I have heard the question asked in the past before whether or not the waste ink could be collected and reused again for black ink and I can say very loudly definitely not, well regards pigment ink anyway..

Agreed... It's just not worth it.. Fluff, dried, clumped particulate matter and absolutely no control over the colour of the waste either.. Greenish black seems to be the norm though.

Some of my ideas have also been used in the past for commercial gain but as so long as they dont claim the credit for them then they are all welcome too..

Opening the Pro-1 to fit a waste kit?... Oh that's your idea... No chance of any other crazy person claiming that one.. No Sirreeee!

 

[ghwellsjr]

The waste ink tube on the Pro 1 was about 40cm long and travels some distance to an enclosed internal waste ink cartridge...

That sounds like the significant difference between the MP780 and the Pro 1 so I doubt that you will have the same problem I had.

 

[The Hat]

Given the discussion about the strength of the waste pump itself I'd be interested in your observations on the waste ink flow within the tube though.

I only mentioned that because your waste ink tank is such an easy system to fit that if there were any problems I would have noticed them straight away, more to the point it was working for the Canon Service people also.

The waste tubing fitted on the Canon printers are an opaque black so therefore you cant see if they are bunged up or free flowing but this waste kit has all clear (See-true) tubing so when the purge pump is working to clean the heads, I can actually see the ink flowing right in front of me.

Opening the Pro-1 to fit a waste kit?... Oh that's your idea... No chance of any other crazy person claiming that one.. No Sirreeee!

As far as opening the Pro 1 is concerned well I never did find out what caused the printer to stop, I paid for the repairs but unfortunately they wouldnt say what the problem was or what they had to reset, (Sensors)
so the same faith will awaits me if I ever try it again..

Edit:- I found out what caused my printer to work after fitting the waste ink tank, There is a battery in this printer that keeps the EPROM chip active and if disconnect, then the printer needs a factory software reset to function again.

 

[websnail]

Given the discussion about the strength of the waste pump itself I'd be interested in your observations on the waste ink flow within the tube though.

I only mentioned that because your waste ink tank is such an easy system to fit that if there were any problems. I would have noticed them straight away, more to the point it was working for the Canon Service people also.

The waste tubing fitted on the Canon printers are an opaque black so therefore you cant see if they are bunged up or free flowing but this waste kit has all clear (See-true) tubing so when the purge pump is working to clean the heads, I can actually see the ink flowing right in front of me.

Sorry, should have been clearer myself... I was meaning if you could keep an eye on the flow within the extended tube and tank to be sure there's no signs of restricted flow. More importantly though I'm interested in how much visible pressure is being applied by the pump. A lot of previous discussion about other models postulates that the pumps are quite weak and unable to push significant volumes through a longer tube so it would be useful to see if this is indeed the case or not.

Obviously the Pro-1 is a significantly different design compared to the earlier Pixma models like the MP760 so it's going to be important not to make any sweeping generalisations without further data but the more available, the better to provide some evidence based suggestions on things like tube length, path, etc..

so the same faith will awaits me if I ever try it again..

Try again?! Oh boy!

 

[jtoolman]

Would this work for either CANON or EPSON?
If you believe it would, what do you all think would be the best orientation for the bag? Hangin or flat at bench level.
Assuming the tube fitting abosultely does not leak, of course! The Epoxy is still drying!

These bags hold just over 4 fluid OZ of baby food and they get tossed out after they are empty.
So might as well find a use for them.
I checked them and they seem to be as strong as the EPSON Cartridge ink bags.

Joe

 

[mikling]

It will work but for a limited time before the bladder is full with more air than ink. After the printer extracts ink from the printhead. It then separates the printhead from the purge station. After that the pump is run again, this time moving the liquid as well as the air down the line towards the waste ink pad. So although the bag can hold 4oz of liquid, it will be filled with more air than liquid when inflated and it is full.

If this is considered, it will be seen that a catchment tank is more practical. If the ink empties into a catchment container then the air within the container will be 100% saturated eventually. This 100% saturation will prevent further evaporation of the ink within the container. The only exception is when there is air displacement via the vent hole in the catchment tank. This will occur during barometric pressure changes if the other end at the printer is sealed or if the temperature fluctuates casuing a pumping effect due to expansion and contraction of the air inside the container. Both of these conditions can be mitigated if one introduces a serpentine system towards the vent just like a canon sponge cartridge has in its air vent system. The serpentine will be considered overkill (especially on an Epson because Epson has long purge cycles in general) but a long coiled tube through which the air escapes will fullfill that. The catchment tank only holds liquid and no provision and space is needed for the air that a bladder will require.

 

[jtoolman]

Could it be oriented vertically and a small vent hole drilled in the cap so if stood vertically slightly below the printer table air could vent as will a regular waste ink bottle????

I've seen a commercially produced system using a similar bag inside a Rubber Maid looking container.

I need to find that link.

Are you saying that it would also not work?

Joe

 

[websnail]

Short version, my opinion only, yes it could work BUT there are a couple of things you need to take into account that haven't been mentioned yet.

1. The stiffness of the bag material and resisting pressure it presents to the waste ink/air flow. If the pump isn't providing enough pressure to "inflate" the bag to take the ink/air you will get some backflow to the resting pads which you want to avoid.

2. Yes, there's the fact that the bag will eventually hit capacity but frankly that's only an issue if it is allowed to do so.. Getting into a regular routine of emptying the bag out is definitely required and while it could be inconvenient it works.

3. Last thing is that emptying the bag is going to be an interesting issue... I'd recommend NOT planning on disconnecting the bag at the lid but think about sourcing a couple of tube clamps and a male & female luer with barbs. That would create a sealable disconnect with clamps either side of the luers and avoid the potential problem of a bag squeeze creating a fountain!



As for alternative designs, I have a ton I've thought about, considered, tossed away, dragged back, recycled and so on... There's no one simple solution that doesn't create problems or leave you open to issues caused by clogging, vent overflow or similar.

Welcome to my world!
*locks the door*

 

[websnail]

Could it be oriented vertically and a small vent hole drilled in the cap so if stood vertically slightly below the printer table air could vent as will a regular waste ink bottle????

Not really no... a flexible container that can compress would spurt ink out of the vent hole if you weren't careful or if the container was forgotten and filled up. You would find out only when your wife screamed about the dark stain on the carpet (Yes, been there, done that too!)

I've seen a commercially produced system using a similar bag inside a Rubber Maid looking container.

I think you may be thinking of a very early kit of mine I used to call the "bag in a box" kit... It didn't vent but was intended to correct and mitigate the potential for someone squashing the bag. In essence it was just a protected bag tank.

 

[jtoolman]

I'll simply have to test in various ways.
One would be to let it hang over the side of the table and see what happens. I would only test it on my old R340 to see how it behaves.
Two would be to drill a tiny vent hole on the cap pre inflate the bag and stand it up inside a tin can. When almost full, recap it with a unmodified cap and dispose of it.

No biggie, it's just a thought. Never stop thinking and trying.

Joe