It would be useful to know the EXACT process, step by step, that you follow that results in the printer changing to the incorrect K type and back again, because try as I may from Windows and OS X, I can't make it happen. The only way I can make it change is to actively choose a setting that initiates the change.
As for stickiness - this is OS related. If you set a "sticky" from an application, it's not a global sticky. The Windows method has been described above for making a global sticky change. I'm not sure about the OS X method.
In this particular case, the constant failing of the network indicates some other problem which may be the root cause of all the issues and should be remedied first, otherwise you'll likely just be chasing your tail.