This is partially a crosspost from the
‘Another Epson 7900 question‘ discussion. I thought the subject deserved its own thread.
I've been intrigued / confused by the 'wiper blade' replacement recommendation. The 'Wiper Cleaner Assy' is the black plastic user-serviceable device that holds the rubber wiper. It is recommended to change it regularly. It's cheap but I'm not sure why it cannot just be cleaned instead if it’s still in good mechanical shape.
Then there is that hard sponge like material, which is a little more difficult to access, and is hidden behind a little piece of sheet metal, on which the rubber wiper blade wipes itself off. That sponge (or cleaning pad) quickly gets nasty and seems inadequate. It seems the idea was that the rubber wiper blade would remove gunk from the printhead and transfers it to the cleaning pad. But the gunk accumulates on the pad and I suspect the gunks goes from pad to printhead instead. So would keeping that pad clean be essential to operating those printers? Is this design / problem new to the x900 series? Or is it okay for the cleaning pad to be really dirty?
For instance, this
Inkjetmall video: How to Professionally Clean Epson 7890, 9890, 7900 & 9900 printers doesn't mention cleaning the cleaning pad.
Eric talked about it on page 2 of the Epson megathread, but I think at the end of the day most people only remembered the advice to change the rubber wiper regularly, not the sponge, at least that’s all I remembered.
Unfortunately, I don’t think the pad alone is available as a service part, only the whole Ink System Unit (which holds the capping assembly, of which the sponge is a part) is available for order, correct?
The pad is probably worth just a few cents and is easy to replace. I’ve flipped mine 180 degrees to expose a fresh section of the pad to the wiper blade.
The pad is very oily. I’m not sure if it comes like that out of factory or if it’s a byproduct of the ink gunk (but I think I remember that a brand new rubber wiper blade comes with an oily film on it from the factory, but it could be my mind playing tricks.)
Anyways, I was curious if you guys had any more insight into this sponge thingy.
If you want to remove the pad to clean it or flip it over, it’s easy: just push slightly on the two tabs on the sheet metal. Then lift the sheet metal. The sponge is now visible and can be removed. Take careful note of the pad and sheet metal orientation and exact location when you remove it, it will make reassembly easier.
I've attached pictures of the black plastic piece holding the sheet metal removed from the printer, DON'T remove it! Just the sheet metal bit, the plastic bit stays in.