Posted by Don Gemmecke on January 13, 2011 at 9:03 AM
Approximately 18 mo ago, when I believed the local market was ready for larger prints and after doing a lot of research regarding "the right" printer, I bought an HP B9180. I ran several prints, matted and framed them and put them out there for sale. They're still out there. Smaller prints of the same subjects have sold well so it would appear that the market isn't objecting to the quality of my work, just the size. The instructions in the box state that, unless I want to replace the printer heads AND print set, I am not to turn the printer off. Ever. Which I haven't. The printer, however, continues to do its self test several times a day and continues to use up ink. I've replaced the entire ink set once and it looks like I'll have to do it again soon. Soooo, my question is two fold: what do I need to do to turn the printer off for an extended period of time without damaging the printheads and/or inkset. And 2) how do I get into the innards to clean up the used ink (wherever it is going) so that I don't have miscellaneous ink splotches on my prints when I do use the printer. I've heard of others cleaning an absorbent pad in the machine but can't locate one in the B9180 and haven't been able to find any web instructions to do it. Anyone have any suggestions or can point me to a website with the info?
Posted by Mark Caton on January 13, 2011 at 12:38 PM
Don,
A few points about this printer -
1. yes you are supposed to keep it on.
2. an update firmware release (2007), reduced the cleaning cycle to once per day, and much a shorter cycle. So you need to download this update from HP, read the instructions thru more than once, and apply. As I recall for instance, you should only apply this firmware update via the usb connection.
3. Lots of cleaning may well indicate that your "NEDD" needs cleaning manually. This is a silver plate towards the right handside of the innards of the printer, just to the left of where the heads are parked. There are instructions on cleaning the NEDD again on the HP site. Alternatively do an internet search for the term. Chances are that actually the NEDD is covered in ink, and therefore not silver! It gets dirty through overspray. The printer tries to clean the heads with ink, but if the NEDD is dirty, the process goes on far longer than it should. Once the NEDD is clean, and the firmware updated, this should shorten the cycle and reduce your ink usage.
4. The sponges are just below where the heads normally park. To get to them, you need to open the lid, and then press and hold the OK button, and the heads will move to the left. This will also give you more room to clean the NEDD.
5. All this and more is discussed on the Yahoo groups forum, which is full of such advice - you can search through old discussions on these subjects - hp9100Series@yahoogroups.com.
Good Luck - it is a high maintenance printer, but produces excellent results when it works!
Posted by Don Gemmecke on January 14, 2011 at 9:08 AM
Thanks, Mark. Good advice and I'll look it up next time I get close to a high speed connection (my neighborhood is still on 33k dial-up). Geez, what ever happened to the old adage, Keep It Simple Stupid!?
Don, I bought the B9180 several years ago, and I'm sorry I did. After about 2 years, that NEDD got dirty, and the printer went through way too many cleaning cycles and used up ink at an incredible rate. I turned it off after I absolutely could NOT get it to print without getting smears all over the paper. That was when I started searching the web to find info and found the same info that Mark references above. I have another printer, so I have just left the thing turned off until I get around to completely cleaning it. I can see puddles of ink in the bottom of it. When I was researching this, I saw a post from somebody who said they had a B9180 in their office, and someone in the office saw dark liquid on the desk, and it turned out the printed had filled the whole bottom inside of the printer with ink (from cleaning) until it ran out onto the desk. I believe it after looking down into my printer, which I didn't actually use very much.
I have heard that if you keep the NEDD clean, it really helps to keep the printer from overdoing the cleaning cycles...... Good luck!
(Didn't you and I discuss this once before?.....)
Posted by Don Gemmecke on January 16, 2011 at 9:45 AM
Thanks, Genny. Will check for puddles. And, yes, we may have discussed it shortly after I bought the printer but, my random access memory being what it is, I don't recall the details. No harm is re-asking in the hopes someone has turned up a miracle cure. Thanks again
Discussion
4 repliesA few points about this printer -
1. yes you are supposed to keep it on.
2. an update firmware release (2007), reduced the cleaning cycle to once per day, and much a shorter cycle. So you need to download this update from HP, read the instructions thru more than once, and apply. As I recall for instance, you should only apply this firmware update via the usb connection.
3. Lots of cleaning may well indicate that your "NEDD" needs cleaning manually. This is a silver plate towards the right handside of the innards of the printer, just to the left of where the heads are parked. There are instructions on cleaning the NEDD again on the HP site. Alternatively do an internet search for the term. Chances are that actually the NEDD is covered in ink, and therefore not silver! It gets dirty through overspray. The printer tries to clean the heads with ink, but if the NEDD is dirty, the process goes on far longer than it should. Once the NEDD is clean, and the firmware updated, this should shorten the cycle and reduce your ink usage.
4. The sponges are just below where the heads normally park. To get to them, you need to open the lid, and then press and hold the OK button, and the heads will move to the left. This will also give you more room to clean the NEDD.
5. All this and more is discussed on the Yahoo groups forum, which is full of such advice - you can search through old discussions on these subjects - hp9100Series@yahoogroups.com.
Good Luck - it is a high maintenance printer, but produces excellent results when it works!
I have heard that if you keep the NEDD clean, it really helps to keep the printer from overdoing the cleaning cycles...... Good luck!
(Didn't you and I discuss this once before?.....)