Semi-long term printer storage - Epson 7800

[clayh]

Anybody here have any experience with storing an Epson wide format (7800 in my case) printer for about 3 months? I am in the middle of a relocation and have to put all my stuff in temporary storage for the summer.

 I sent an email to Epson product support, and they sent back this reply:

Thank you for contacting Epson regarding your Epson Stylus Pro 7800. It is my pleasure to respond to your inquiry. You can drain the inks if you want to but if you cover the printer when you leave you may only need to do a few cleaning cycles when you get back.

Sounds pretty low-key, with maybe a little touch of wishful thinking . I wonder if I should spend the money to get one of the flushing cartridge sets and flush the whole printer prior to turning it off for storage. The last thing I want is to have a gummed up print head when I switch it back on in September…

Any experience from anyone here???

[Farmer]

Best option:

Have the printer flushed by a service tech, leaving shipping fluid in the lines and the head.  Cover the printer and leave it in a temperature and humidity stable environment.

Other option:

We actually often leave printers in the office for 6-8 weeks at a time without printing, because we're using other machines or whatever reason.  A quick nozzle check and cleaning has been all that's ever needed to get them back.  However, we keep them very clean and don't let dust or fibres build up in the capping area and such.  If "into storage" means no temperature or humidity control, then it becomes more of an issue, particularly if the printer will experience either outside the recommended extremes (refer to the User Guide), because extreme cold or heat can (will) affect the ink.

With either option, make sure you run a nozzle check and ensure that there are no blockages - even do a light clean even if not required just to ensure the head is nice and clean.

[Wayne Fox]

I am in the middle of a relocation and have to put all my stuff in temporary storage for the summer.

I think the key here would be the definition of temporary storage.  If it is climate and dust controlled (inside, air conditioned),  you probably won't have much problems just shutting it down for the summer.  You'll probably have to run a cleaning cycle or two, but nothing more.

If on the other hand you are putting it in a storage facility that isn't protected well and climate controlled ... not a good idea.  Hope that's not what you are contemplating.

[neile]

Granted, it's not a 7800, but I shoved my ipf5100 into a storage facility for three months during our massive remodel. I didn't drain the inks, and while it was "climate controlled" that basically just meant they kept the space barely warm (I wore a jacket inside while visiting the unit). No real humidity control or anything.

The printer survived fine.

The scraps of paper in storage on the other hand? Man, the last box of Hahnemuhle FineArt Baryta I had curled all kinds of silly!

Neil

[clayh]

Thanks for the tips. It is going to be stored in a facility along with our furniture and other stuff. It is supposedly temperature and humidity controlled, but in my experience, that means that they will keep it at or slightly below 80-82 degrees or so. I may call my Epson Pro dealer here in Houston and find out if they can send a tech out or sell me some flushing cartridges. It has been a real workhorse printer so far, and I would like to get a few more years out of it.

[Wayne Fox]

Thanks for the tips. It is going to be stored in a facility along with our furniture and other stuff. It is supposedly temperature and humidity controlled, but in my experience, that means that they will keep it at or slightly below 80-82 degrees or so. I may call my Epson Pro dealer here in Houston and find out if they can send a tech out or sell me some flushing cartridges. It has been a real workhorse printer so far, and I would like to get a few more years out of it.

As long as it doesn't get really hot (some storage units get into the hundreds in the summer), I think you'll be fine.  80-82 shouldn't be a problem.  Wrap up in plastic to keep the dust down.  I left a 9600 sitting for 18 months, finally gave it to a friend.  He bought fresh inks, power cleaned it, did a couple more nozzle cleans and it's been running fine since.

Just leaving ink in the lines should be fine.  Obviously if it's pretty well used,  there is no guarantee the head won't develop an unrecoverable nozzle when trying to start it back up since the nozzles do wear over time... not much you can do about that.  I think the chances of that are pretty slim ... 3 months just isn't that long.

[louoates]

I've left my Epson 9800 unused for 2-4 months at a time in my home in AZ. Once in a while I had to do 1 or 2 cleaning cycles (not deep cleaning) and it worked fine. We keep the temperature no warmer than 85. The supplier where I bought the printer also does service work and he suggested that I release the ink levers (where the cartridges are) while I'm gone. Last year was the first year that I did that and had no trouble.

[petermarrek]

Sorry, this is about storing a Z3100. Moved it to a friends house 6 months ago, plugged into a ips and left for Mexico for the winter. Retrieved it yesterday and it works perfectly. Have done this for 3 winters and no problems other than dropping it a few times during transit. Amazing tough printer.