Epson printers "service required"

[contink]

Just had an interesting chat with Epson sales after a contact of mine in the USA pointed out that Epson America are now supplying the reset utilities necessary for resetting printers "waste ink counters" which is the primary reason for the "service required" message you get with Epson inkjets. (ref: Epson America, Inc. - Epson Ink Pads Info)

 

Turns out the UK are not planning to offer a similar utility but it seems the whole WEEE thing may be shaking things up because I was informed that whilst the original option of "take it to an official Epson service centre" is still on the table they will now accept your printer and replace it for a small fee with a refurbished model.

 

Now I didn't specify printers so it's hard to say exactly whether this fee would apply equally to all models but the figure mentioned was "say £15" (direct quote).

 

 

I thought this nugget might be useful to any techs who are dealing with Epson 1400, 2400, 1800's and the like (as I suspect most Epson inkjets in schools are A3 or wide format).

 

Oh and I'm in the process of developing a comprehensive knowledge base of how to fit waste ink tanks to all Epson inkjet printers as these printers really are capable of lasting 4 or more years with their piezo electric printheads. More on that later.

[steve]

Have a look here for a nice free program we use to get past the Service Required issue.

[contink]

Have a look here for a nice free program we use to get past the Service Required issue.

 

Yeah, that's not a bad little util but it has a tendancy to be a little hinky with some printers and won't be compatible with most of the newer models (usually 12 months old or younger).

 

Add to that I've recently learned that some of the newest printers have a new wrinkle which could include blowing the chip on the cartridge when it reaches 75% used. You just gotta love Epson...

[john]

and actually in some cases the pads do need changing, I reset one once and got a nice black puddle under the printer 6 months later

[contink]

and actually in some cases the pads do need changing, I reset one once and got a nice black puddle under the printer 6 months later

 

Ah I have just recently developed a rather useful adaption to the old favourite of external waste ink tank...

 

Waste ink bag..

Ebay link

Nb: sorry about the fact it's an ebay link but at the moment it's the only place that has all the data and pictures..

 

Instructions for various Epson printers (well links to..)

ContinuousInk.info :: View Forum - Waste Ink Tank Support

 

 

Works really well, but the irony is that I was originally using the bag for CIS kits but finding it didn't work properly... 3 months it took me to realise it could be used like this... Fast I ain't...

[john]

Well I never thought of eBay when I chucked that last Epson R300 that was 14 months old and demanding that doing to it, well you live and learn.

[contink]

Well I never thought of eBay when I chucked that last Epson R300 that was 14 months old and demanding that doing to it, well you live and learn.

 

Ouch... There's a lot to be said for hanging on to old printers... Take the Canon iP4200 for example. Those printers are now gold dust on ebay because they are one of the few printers that can be used with the current chip resetter tech being employed to defeat the Canon cartridge chips.

 

... and guess who has about 4 in his house right now ...

 

 

 

Anyway, back to the Epsons, pretty much ANY epson inkjet can be converted to use an external waste ink tank. I've never raised it before because the options were limited to rigid containers which need to be located at specific heights, were difficult to secure, etc...

 

Oh and the newer Epson printers now have an internal waste ink tank rather than pads so the external tanks aren't the only option, and you could figure a way to empty the tank, reset and continue if external tanks are not ideal.