How To Refill Your Ink Cartridge

Forget about emptying your wallets every time you see the blinking light. Quit worrying and start doing it yourself! It's an easy process that won't take you more than five minutes.

The following is included in a typical ink refill kit: ink bottles, syringes and detailed instructions. Some kits include an air balance clip for balancing the air inside the cartridge to ensure proper ink flow. Some kits also include hand-drill tool to make a hole in the top of your empty cartridge.

Refilling Process

1. To start the refilling process, fill the syringe with one of the ink colors over the sink or several sheets of scrap paper to prevent any mess. Different printers hold different amounts of ink. In most Epson printers, the black cartridge holds approximately 17 ml and the color cartridges hold approximately 8 ml. See the instructions with your refill kit to see how much ink your cartridges can hold.

2. Before inserting the needle, make a small hole in the top of the cartridge (one for each color chamber). The hole is at the top of the cartridge near the label. Simply push the needle through the hole and press to the bottom of the cartridge towards the outlet hole. It's important to fill the cartridge slowly so as to avoid the ink from foaming and introducing air in the chamber.

3. You do not need to seal the refill holes since there are already breather holes on the top of the cartridge.

4. Any unused ink can be put back in the bottle. You should clean the syringe with water and dry it properly to do the same process for the other cartridges or for future use. You can also label each syringe for the different colors so that each syringe is only used with one color.

5. Once you place the cartridge back in the printer, run the cleaning cycle 1 to 3 times. If there are any gaps in the printing, run the cleaning cycle again.

Don't Forget

There are a few things to remember when refilling your cartridge. It should be refilled before the cartridge is completely empty to avoid the chamber from drying out and clogging. Also, it is a good idea to let the printer cartridge sit for a few hours (or overnight) so that the pressure in the cartridge will stabilize.

Some printers, like newer Epson models, have a green chip on their ink cartridges which is visible by looking at your cartridge. They are often referred to as "Intellidge" cartridges. The chip keeps track of how often the cartridge is used and lets the computer know when the cartridge may be low or empty. As long as you reset the chip, refilling the cartridge with ink from a refill kit will not be a problem. A resetting tool can be used to reset the memory on the chip. This allows the printer to recognize the cartridge as being full which makes printing with a refilled cartridge possible.

Refilling your own ink cartridge is easy, good for the environment, and very good for your pocket.

Marisa Pellegrino

About The Author

A recent grad from Concordia University's English Department, Marisa uses her computer technology skills along side her writing skills to be the webmaster for www.printpot.com. Sharing her interest and expertise about ink jet refill kits has helped convince many of the advantages of refilling rather than discarding empty cartridges. Marissa can be reached at info@printpot.com.

---

Choosing The Right Bar Code Reader

The importance of a bar code reader in this day and age cannot be denied. A lot of practical and pragmatic applications for a bar code reader... Read More

What Tablet PCs Can Do for You

Tablet PCs are great. If you are a mobile person, and you have never considered getting a tablet PC in the past, now is as good a... Read More

How to Check Your IP

So you need to check your IP address, for whatever reason. Maybe you're playing an online game with a friend, or you need to access your PC... Read More

Printers

Do you feel overwhelmed when buying a computer or a new printer?You are not alone. With so many products to choose from I know exactly how you... Read More

Review of Popular Wireless Headphones

Just about everyone would I agree, I think, that wires on headphones are just about the most annoying wires associated with any electronic device. When you listen... Read More

Ergonomic Products 101

Human beings are scaling new heights day by day. Markets are becoming more and more complex and competitive. Companies launch new products, market them, but even then... Read More

A Look Inside The Elusive Inkjet Industry

The Inkjet printer industry is booming. Office supply companies report they make more money on ink sales alone than on printer sales overall. Due to increasing ink... Read More

What You Should Know Before You Buy Computer Equipment

You will have many factors to consider when deciding on which computer equipment to buy. The bewildering amount of choices can seem overwhelming. This guide will help... Read More

Used Laptop Computer: Your Quick Purchase Inspection Guide ? Part 1

Used laptop computers are everywhere these days. How can you sift through the mass of available used laptop computers to narrow your search down to the right... Read More

Where does technology come from?

Ever wonder where all the cool gadgets come from? Ever wonder who gets to try this stuff out first? Usually the war machine scientists get it first,... Read More

The Importance Of Current Sense Resistor In Switch Mode Power Supply

Current sense resistor is usually located in the switch mode power supply section. Newer version of monitor-the b+ (boost) circuit also have this current sense resistor. If... Read More

Do You Feel Used by Computers?

Do You Feel Used by Computers?A look at second-user computer equipment.Let's dispense with the myths first. I'm NOT talking about the sort of second-hand computers you get... Read More

Is A Laser Printer Right For Me?

The average home computer user definitely does not need a laser printer. Sure laser printer prices have fallen considerably in the last couple of years. But have... Read More

How To Choose The Best Student Laptop?

How To Choose the Best Student Laptop?Merchants are singing those three magic words again, 'Back to School' and the fallout is everywhere!Just as you're getting your deep... Read More

How to Shop for Inkjet Printer Cartridges

Keeping Shipping Costs DownWhen shopping for inkjet printer cartridges online keep in mind that postage can add significantly to the cost of a single inkjet cartridge. In... Read More

Discover Everything About Wholesale Bar Code Reader And Software!

It is a given fact that buying wholesale would make us save more money than buying individual items at retail. Purchasing in bulk means more profit for... Read More

Wireless Networking, Part 1: Capabilities and Hardware

Wireless Networking, Part 1: Capabilities and HardwareThese days it isn't uncommon for a home to have multiple personal computers, and as such, it just makes sense for... Read More

RAID Disk Recovery

RAID is short for Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks, a category of disk drives that employ two or more drives in combination for fault tolerance... Read More

Expansion Cards Part 1: (of a 3 part series)

PCIThe expansion slots available on motherboards allow for a variety of upgrades in a computer system, but matching the appropriate card to an available slot needs to... Read More

Setting up a Tape Backup Strategy for your Business

So you know a little bit about tape backup, but you're wondering how to set up a tape backup strategy for your business. Well, let's take a... Read More

Printer Cartridges - Step Back in History

You are working and trying to print out important documents when you discover that you are out of ink. This would have been a big drawback in... Read More

The Printer Cartridge Game

Think you got a great deal on a printer? Like the rest of us, you probably paid $50 to $75 for a decent Epson or Lexmark printer.... Read More

Flash Memory Part 2: MMC and SD

MMC and SDFlash memory is available in so many formats that it can be difficult to know what will work with any particular device. Devices such as... Read More

A Guide to Refurbished Laptops

Computing freedom, independence, and mobility don't have to come with a hefty price tag.Manufacturers refurbish laptop computers that have been returned. The laptop might have a scratched... Read More

At War With The Internet

When it comes to sales of technology products over the Internet, there are now two factors that potential buyers must consider as possibly 'too good to be... Read More

What Is A Crystal? And How To Test It

Crystal are use to keep the frequency of the clock from drifting. If the signal from this clock stops, or is weak, or the pulses begin to... Read More