REPEAT-O-TYPE MANUFACTURING CORPORATION
REPEAT-O-TYPE MANUFACTURING CORPORATION
Troubleshooting Repeat-O-Type Products
This section contains very specific problems and solutions for users who run into difficulties with our products. We also maintain a Frequently Asked Questions page which deals with more general topics.
If you cannot resolve your problem with the information belew, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Refill Ink SystemsTM
- BC-01R (Canon BubbleJet 5/10/10e/200...)
- BCI21RBK / BCI21RC / BCI21RM / BCI21RY (Canon BJC-4000 series...)
- BJI201RBK / BJI201RC / BJI201RM / BJI201RY (Canon BJC-600 series...)
- DJRE500C / DJRE600C (Hewlett-Packard DeskJet series COLOR)
- DJREFHC / DJ600BK (Hewlett-Packard DeskJet series BLACK)
BC-01R (CANON BC-01/BC-02/BC-03 CARTRIDGES)
Q: I tried to refill the cartridge but the ink would not go into the fill hole and is dripping all over. It appears that the dispenser tip is too big to fit into the fill hole.
A: The reason is that you have failed to remove the plug from the fill hole. The drill tool provided is not designed to make a fill hole. Rather, it serves as a tool to remove the plug blocking the fill hole. Using the tool, twist into the plastic plug and pull straight out as if you were removing a cork from a bottle of wine. The diameter of the plug is about twice the diameter of the drill tool's bit. Using the tool to enlarge the hole in the plug is not sufficient. (Once the plug is removed you may throw it away, it is not necessary to replug the fill hole after filling because the ink is retained in a foam sponge.)
Q: The cartridge would only accept a small percentage of the ink in the refill bottle and then it started dripping out of the printhead.
A: The foam sponge in the cartridge was completely dried out so that it would not absorb the ink. Be patient put in a small amount of ink and let the cartridge stand for a while. The sponge will eventually rewet itself and then be able to absorb more ink.
Q: I'm getting horizontal lines through the text; it looks like it fades in and out across a line of text. What can I do?
A: Your printhead, which is part of the ink cartridge, probably has clogged orifices. Take it out of the printer and stand it on a stack of paper towels that has been saturated with a solution of 50% ammonia and 50% water for an hour or two. Wipe dry and then, while holding the cartridge over a sink or waste basket, blow air into the little vent/fill hole on the side of the cartridge opposite the printhead side. (This looks like a tiny round rubber plug with two little dimples in it.) This procedure should force ink through the clogged orifices. Now wipe off any ink residue and reinstall the cartridge in the printer.
BCI21RBK / BCI21RC / BCI21RM / BCI21RY (CANON BC-21 CARTRIDGES)
Q: My BC-21 cartridge still has ink in it, but one or more of the colors is not printing even after I add ink or replace the ink tank. What should I do?
A: Take the inserts (or ink tanks) out of the cartridge and put them aside. Put a folded paper towel in a dish or shallow container. Position the cartridge so that the printhead rests on the paper towel. Visually locate the screens at the bottom of the housing. Pour enough rubbing alcohol on the screens to cover them and also saturate the paper towel. Let stand for a half an hour. Rinse with water and pat dry. Return ink tanks to cartridge and reinstall cartridge in printer. Run several printer cleaning cycles.
BJI201RBK / BJI201RC / BJI201RM / BJI201RY (CANON BJI-201Bk/BJI-201C/BJI-201M/BJI-201Y CARTRIDGES)
Q: My Canon printer is displaying a yellow "error" light. It will not print or do any other function. I even tried shutting it off a turning it on again, yet the "error" light will not go out.
A: Shut the printer off and remove the power supply plug for a few minutes. This will reset your printer.
DJRE500C / DJRE600C (HP51625A/51649A CARTRIDGES)
Q: I refilled my cartridge following the instructions and now I am getting prints that are "off-color". Why?
A: Possible reasons:
- 1. The cartridge contains three ink chambers (cyan, magenta and yellow). The ink is stored in foam sponges. While filling, a small amount of ink may be expelled from the print orifices of the chamber being filled and migrate into the orifices of the other two colors. Printing out a page or two containing large amounts of all three colors should correct this problem.
- 2. The filling instructions state that you should insert the dispenser tip into the fill hole as far as it will go and at a downward angle. They also say to stop filling as soon as ink starts to back up out of the fill hole. If you did not follow these instructions, it is possible to overfill the chamber. When this happens ink can overflow from an air vent at the top of the chamber and migrate into the other two chambers by way of their air vents. Since these vents are hidden by the colored cap at the top of the cartridge it is important to avoid overfilling. Once this type of cross contamination occurs it is impossible to correct the problem.
Q: I just filled my cartridge yet one or more of the colors do not print. Why?
A: Possible reason: The cartridge was probably left empty for a period of time. Correction: Stand the cartridge on paper toweling saturated with tap water or "Windex with ammonia" for several hours. Wipe dry. Insert in printer and run cleaning cycle several times.
DJREFHC / DJ600BK (HP51626A/51629A/51633M CARTRIDGES)
Q: I refilled the cartridge following the instructions, but ink is dripping from the printhead and/or bubble generator air vent. Why?
A: Possible reasons:
- 1. Inflator bottle was not held squarely over air bladder inlet, so that bladders did not inflate.
- 2. Inflator bottle was not squeezed for a full five seconds, so that not enough ink was expelled from the printhead to recreate sufficient vacuum in the cartridge.
- 3. The cartridge was left empty so long that the printhead was clogged with dried ink. This prevented the bladder inflation process from expelling ink from the cartridge and a vacuum could not be accomplished. Once the seal was removed from the bubble generator ink started to drip from it.
Correction: If due to reason 1 or 2: Retape the bubble generator vent (Scotch tape will do). Hold the cartridge over a pile of scrap paper, or over a sink or waste basket. Using the inflator bottle, inflate the bladders for a full five seconds. Make sure that at least three or four drops of ink are expelled from the printhead. Remove tape from bubble generator and wipe printhead and bubble generator with wadded facial tissue or toilet paper to remove excess ink.
If due to reason 3: The printhead orifices must be cleared of dried ink before proceeding with the correction described above. Using a container such as a water glass, make a solution of 50% clear household ammonia and 50% water. It should be only about 1/2" deep. Stand the cartridge in this solution for several hours. Remove the cartridge from the solution. Rinse printhead area with plain tap water. Wipe dry and proceed with steps described above under reason 1 and 2.
Sometimes, a cartridge is so badly clogged, none of these steps will succeed in clearing it. Repeat-O-Type is usually successful in cleaning such cartridges using an ultrasonic bath. If you feel that you have a cartridge which requires this service, send it in to us along with a proof of purchase from our Refill Ink SystemTM, and we will be happy to try to salvage it for you. The UPC barcode from our box is sufficient proof of purchase. Our address is on the contacting us page.
Q: I filled the cartridge following the instructions but when I try to print with it all I get is occasional blobs of ink dripping onto the paper or no output at all. Why?
A: Possible reasons: Same as preceding question. Correction: Same as preceding question.
Q: My cartridge is printing, but the print is light or each printed line seems to have fine horizontal void lines. Why?
A: Possible reasons:
- 1. One or more of the print orifices are clogged with dried up ink.
- 2. One or more of the print orifices are not being activated due to poor electrical contact between the print cartridge and the printer.
- 3. The electrical circuitry within the print cartridge is damaged.
To determine which of the above reason is the cause start by cleaning the electrical contacts on both the printhead and the printer by gently rubbing them with a soft pencil eraser. Brush off the eraser debris from both surfaces with a soft brush or "canned air". Reinstall the cartridge and run another print test. If this does not solve the problem follow the procedure described in Hewlett-Packard's printer instructions to produce a test print which shows if the problem is electrical or ink related. The print will have the following information in the upper left hand corner:
- "IR" with no information after it
--indicates that the electrical circuits of the printhead are in perfect condition and that the printhead requires cleaning .- "IR" followed by one or more numbers.
--indicates which of the fifty orifices are electrically damaged. There is no way to repair the electrical circuitry of the print cartridge. Depending on how many orifices are not firing and how important print quality is to you will determine whether to continue using the cartridge.Correction: (first result) Clean the printhead. The first step is to run the printhead priming cycle on your printer several times. If this does not improve the print quality you should start by standing the printhead on a paper towel saturated with water or, better yet, saturated with "Windex with ammonia" for about one hour. Wipe the cartridge dry put in the printer and run another test print. If this does not clear the cartridge you should use the procedure described earlier.
Q: My DeskJet gets tiny blobs of semi-dry ink, which it feeds through on the leading edge of a new page, particularly when it hasn't been used for a day or so. These in turn can drop on to the page below and be fed back through printer - or make a mess on my fingers/other pages. I have tried replacing the ink cartridge, but that didn't help. What can I do?
A: Try this. Move the cartridge to the center of the carriage. This is accomplished on some models by pressing the keys for cartridge replacement; on other models, you may have to remove power while the cartridge is away from its home position. Look down to the base of the cartridge's home position; you will probably see an accumulation of ink on the rubber wiper device that is there to clean the printhead. Using a cotton swab or wadded tissue paper wet with water, wipe of the accumulation of dried ink. This should solve your problem.
Q: How can I make a particular inkjet fax machine accept a refilled 51626A cartridge? It keeps giving me an "Empty Cartridge" message.
A: Inkjet fax machines have a feature to prevent printing of faxes when the ink cartridge runs out of ink. The faxes are saved in memory, or simply refused. This prevents the possibility of receiving a fax that you cannot read because it was printed without ink.
The technology that senses that the cartridge is out of ink relies on the fact that thermal resistors in the printhead overheat when there is no ink to cool them. The same situtation can occur when one or more of the print orifices are clogged with dried up ink.
Try taking the cartridge out of the fax machine and setting it on a wet paper towel for an hour or two. If this does not clear the clog, prepare a solution of 50% ammonia and 50% water and set the cartridge in it to a depth of about 3/8" for several hours. Remove from the solution and wipe the bottom of cartridge dry. Place a piece of transparent tape over the bubble generator ("maze") at the bottom of the cartridge. Then while holding the cartridge over a sink or wastebasket, blow into the hole in the center of the green top. (An ear syringe may be helpful.) This procedure should force ink out of the printhead and clear the clogged print orifices in the process. Wipe the printhead dry. BE SURE TO REMOVE THE TRANSPARENT TAPE BEFORE REINSTALLING THE CARTRIDGE.
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