Problem Epson 4900 (clogging of course)

[Dahlmann]

Sins after I start this thread I haven't had any cloggs.
the difference is much higher humidity because of rainy whether,I dont now how much impact the weather have!? (60% humidity)

And i always turn the printer off after i have used it.

Today i tried to print the file i got from Wayne before nozzle check and no clog show up after.

So i give it 1 more week and see how its goes before I contact Epson.


cheers

[Wayne Fox]

Sins after I start this thread I haven't had any cloggs.
the difference is much higher humidity because of rainy whether,I dont now how much impact the weather have!? (60% humidity)

And i always turn the printer off after i have used it.

there are two major factors that can exacerbate clogs on any printers.  One is the cleanliness of the work space.  Things like dust, pet hair/dander can really clog up a printer quick.  The other is humidity.  Keeping all of these printers at 45% humidity or better will reduce clogs.

All of these printers clog, HP's and Canon's effectively manage these by using spare nozzles but eventually the head will be die. If you place a Canon right next to an Epson (I had this setup for several years) the actual costs experienced will be very similar as far as ink/maintenance tanks vs. head replacement.

The reason I mention this isn't a response to the now overly mentioned and unhelpful response about why do people stick with Epson, but to make sure all of you Canon and HP users  realize that this practice is helpful for all these printers. (I've owned 3 Canons but now use Epsons so I have a lot of experience with both).

 Don't kid yourself, if you are using ANY brand of these printers, you are getting clogs all the time. For canon/HP printers, one day your head will die, but keeping the area clean and humidity up can extend the life of the head dramatically.

[chez]

 Don't kid yourself, if you are using ANY brand of these printers, you are getting clogs all the time. For canon/HP printers, one day your head will die, but keeping the area clean and humidity up can extend the life of the head dramatically.

Wayne, yes the HP heads clog...but they have a much more elegant solution recognizing these clogs and using other nozzles in the head. Once all nozzles are clogged in a given head, which is a very rare experience, all you have to do is replace the head with a new one for a whopping $70. Now compare that to the cost in both wasted ink and wasted time managing a Epson printer. If an Espon head needs replacement, how much does that cost you in both down time awaiting for a service tech and actual $$$$ for this service.

I just want people to realize the HP printers are a pretty good solution for sporadic printing needs as they don't require any babysitting and clogs are extremely rare.

[Wayne Fox]

I just want people to realize the HP printers are a pretty good solution for sporadic printing needs as they don't require any babysitting and clogs are extremely rare.

I see your position, but i've been hanging out at LuLa for quite some time, and this has been brought up, lets see, about 1 million times on this forum (yes I exaggerate) Kind of like beating a dead horse.  Some of us have experience with all of these printers (I've owned CAnons and Epsons, and HP has brought out their printer for me to try out on several occasions). Personally I still prefer Epsons.

What you call elegant, I call necessary (I don't mean that in a negative way, but it had to be engineered that way or they would have no printers).   I personally believe the Epson design is best and results in the best output for what I do.  The newest Canons come really close and yes I think I would be happy with one of those, but Canon burned me with a piece of junk 5000 (blacks were horrible) and the fix they offered was buy a new 5100 shortly after,  so I guess I hold a grudge. And while the HP output was fine (well the 3100 was pretty weak with reds), to me there were obvious quality differences for the kind of stuff I do.

[inHaliburton]

The simplicity of the 3880 and the somewhat lower-tech print heads may be the reason why the printer is such a solid workhorse.  I regularly print on 17x30 inch paper cut from rolls and have no issues at all.  

The trade-off for not having roll paper capability might be the way the 3880 handles sheet paper, which is much better than many wide format roll-capable printers.  Quite frankly, I'm happy to deal mostly with nice, flat, sheet paper.  But then, I'm not a high volume commercial printer.

Sal

Thanks for that, Sal. You make a of sense.

[JRSmit]

Wayne, yes the HP heads clog...but they have a much more elegant solution recognizing these clogs and using other nozzles in the head. Once all nozzles are clogged in a given head, which is a very rare experience, all you have to do is replace the head with a new one for a whopping $70. Now compare that to the cost in both wasted ink and wasted time managing a Epson printer. If an Espon head needs replacement, how much does that cost you in both down time awaiting for a service tech and actual $$$$ for this service.

I just want people to realize the HP printers are a pretty good solution for sporadic printing needs as they don't require any babysitting and clogs are extremely rare.

I had a hp 9180 and now have a epson 4900 both in same room conditions and do not print every day. Simlly put the epson is much more reliable in faultless printing. Clogging while printing, color stability, replacing printheads as user may sound fine but in fact it is costly and time consuming.