[White Ink Printing on DTG Printers] Please share your white ink secrets
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[White Ink Printing on DTG Printers] Please share your white ink secrets
Hey white ink users! I was hoping you might share your methods for keeping your white ink flowing freely. Please let us know what you do to maintain and keep your print head white ink nozzles from clogging.
In my case, I own a T-Jet 2 with white ink, but I am not satisfied with the life I get out of the print head. I end up replacing it not because it just wore out from 20,000 prints, but because I finally have a clog in my white ink nozzles I can’t recover from. I also do not like how much ink is wasted in head cleanings just to keep the white nozzles clear. Below is what I do.
I keep the humidity between 40% and 70%, and the temperature between 50 and 85 in the room the machine is in.
I agitate my white ink regularly.
I maintain my machine meticulously and clean the print head and capping station every day.
If the machine is not going to be used for any extended period of time (like more than a weekend off), I completely flush the ink out of the print head, capping station, vacuum pump and waste lines with special head cleaning solution.
I have Printer Jockey software. For me it has not worked out as I hoped. In the vast majority of the clogs I have in the white ink nozzles, Printer Jockey cannot clear the clog by just basically high ink volume printing using only white ink. The only way I can clear most clogs is by using the suction method built into the machine using the vacuum pump and capping station. Thus the wasted expensive ink. Is there something I don’t know about Printer Jockey?
The next thing I don’t like is the cost of the special head cleaner solution if I wanted to flush my print head every night. I would take the time to do this every night if the stuff was not so expensive its self. It might be cheaper than new print heads though, I guess I should take a look at that.
Other than regular head cleanings during the day, making sure to print every day or flushing out the heads, capping station and waste ink lines, I don’t have anything better. And still my print head will finally clog irrecoverably before it wears out from regular use. Please share what you have learned and what methods you use to keep your white ink flowing freely.
And, if you have discovered a inexpensive alternative to any of the special head cleaning solutions out there please share that to.
soo your complaining you only got 20thous. prints on an Epson head.....
Yea surprised you even got that, print head prob. died, sometimes if it doesn;t recover from head cleans than head has lived as long as it was meant to.
If you wanna recover head, you can try cleaning head directly will swab soaked in cleaning fluid.
You will wanna massage it in for few minute, than put some cleaning solution in capping station, let set for few hours.
Do a few head cleans and if that don;t work, will it def. dead
Are you using the refillable cleaning cartridges? Which cleaning solution are you using? Which bulk system do you have on your machine - how many ink bottles on it?
Dampers have alot to do with it, so does capping station.
I don't know how any ties I said this this to people but print heads should last longer than you think, ties when you think print head is bad, isn't because head it bad, it is due to other things.
Dampers are what give ink to heads, if your damper was junked than will appear you got misfires and head not working properly.
Capping station, can be bad, not sucking ink fro heads properly, and not getting heads cleaned right.
Dampers/capping station are consumables.
Just because head aint working right, don't think head is junked, most likely it ain't.
I went through a month battle with solvent printer, where I constantly thought heads were bad when I was having head barley firing.
It was first a capping station, than bladder of damper was crap, and manifold had break.
I head the heads, laying on floor, kicked around and guess what, now those heads work better than ever after changing a few things.
Are you using the refillable cleaning cartridges? Which cleaning solution are you using? Which bulk system do you have on your machine - how many ink bottles on it?
I have all your stuff Harry. I got the refillable cleaning cartridges and EZ PRO ink system from you.
I used US Screens HD Cleaning Solution until I ran out of stock. Now I use Fred’s (American Screen Supply) Heavy Duty Cleaning Solution.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrbigjack50
Dampers have alot to do with it, so does capping station.
I don't know how any ties I said this this to people but print heads should last longer than you think, ties when you think print head is bad, isn't because head it bad, it is due to other things.
Dampers are what give ink to heads, if your damper was junked than will appear you got misfires and head not working properly.
Capping station, can be bad, not sucking ink fro heads properly, and not getting heads cleaned right.
Dampers/capping station are consumables.
Just because head aint working right, don't think head is junked, most likely it ain't.
I went through a month battle with solvent printer, where I constantly thought heads were bad when I was having head barley firing.
It was first a capping station, than bladder of damper was crap, and manifold had break.
I head the heads, laying on floor, kicked around and guess what, now those heads work better than ever after changing a few things.
The only problems I have at all are with white ink clogging. I keep everything (capping station, vacuum pump and waste line) pristine and make sure the waste ink is flowing freely. I have replaced all that stuff several times over the life of the machine so far to keep them pristine.
The dampers are built into the ink cartridges on my machine. I know I get ink through them because I prime them with a syringe, but I don’t know if that is the only or best way to know if the flow is adequate through them.
- Don't let your machine sit for more than 48 hours with white ink in the printhead
- Make sure every night you have a good nozzle check, if not fix it then before it hardens.
Belquette has some red cleaner that works way better than standard HD cleaner. You soak the printhead for an hour or so in it and it gets most clogs out.
Please share your white ink secrets 
