Epson 4880 expected lifespan

[blipp]

Hello all,

I'm new to using and maintaining Epson printers so please forgive me if I overlook anything obvious. 

I work at a small art school and recently inherited the responsibility of maintaining their print lab consisting of 10 Epson 4880s purchased 6 or 7 years ago (no one seems to remember for certain).  I'm very good at learning new processes and techniques and I have really enjoyed getting the opportunity to really dive into digital printing. 

One thing I've been having a lot of difficulty finding advice on is the expected lifespan for these 4880s and if I should propose upgrading to the new 4900s in the near future.  As of now 9 of the printers work pretty consistently while 1 is clearly on its last legs.  All of them are also well outside of any extended warranty.  These printers are used directly by students so they probably have a lot more jams, clogs, and cleanings than your average Epson.  I went around and collected the cm of printed paper and ml of ink used from each printer to get an idea of which ones are used the most. 

Printer 1- 238,763cm 9,698ml (loaded with matte ink only)
Printer 2- 318,440cm 11,795ml (loaded with matte ink only)
Printer 3- 307,302cm 11,758ml (loaded with matte ink only)
Printer 4- 273,854cm 10,061ml (loaded with matte ink only)
Printer 5- 272,258cm 10,601ml (loaded with matte ink only)
Printer 6- 173,695cm 9,237ml (loaded with glossy ink only)
Printer 7- 417,593cm 21,426ml (loaded with glossy ink only)
Printer 8- 321,385cm 18,791ml (this is the dying printer, loaded with glossy ink only)
Printer 9- 295,297cm 18,098ml (loaded with glossy ink only)
Printer 10- 193,997cm 10,185ml (loaded with glossy ink only)

In all of my research I haven't been able to find anything to give me an idea of if these printers would be nearing their end of life and should be replaced.  I also don't know if some of the ink consumption seems high (ex: printer 9 uses more than double the ink of printer 1) or well within an expected level. 

Can anyone help me decipher these numbers?  I'd like to fill my proposal for new printers with as much empirical data as I can.

Thank you so much and please let me know if there's anything I'm overlooking or should be considering!

[Farmer]

There are two general figures given which, honestly, are not that useful.  The first is 5 years and the second is 20,000 B0 prints.

What I would suggest is a little different.  Take the total print length figures and divide them by 30m each.  For example, Printer 1 is 238,763cm whic is 2,387.63m which when divided by 30m is 79.6 - let's call it 80.  Most rolls of media are about 30m long.  So, over 6 or 7 years (let's call it 5 to be sure) it's used 16 rolls per year or about 1.33 per month.  That's not a lot.

Take Printer 7, the longest at 417,593cm or 4,175.93m or 139.2 rolls.  Over 5 years that's about 28 a year or 2.3 per month.  Still not a lot.

In what way is Printer 8 dying?  It might be economical to repair it, particularly considering the large fleet of the same model.

At some point, they will start to fail but I don't think it's going to be too soon or as a result of high usage.  At some point, certain components will just become worn and it you'll then have to get quotes to repair to determine the economic sense of that versus replacement.

Ink usage will depend entirely on what they're used to print - text and graphics a lot less than full bleed images - despite the same length of media being used.

This is just part of the view you'll need to take and things you'll need to consider - I'm by no means trying to talk you out of new printers.  6-7 years is getting on and things will happen at some point and then you need to decide if you want to run two types of printer at once or just change the whole fleet.

Hope this helps.

[Neilj]

For what it's worth, I had a 4000 that ran over 800,000mm paper before it died.  The death was caused by a tiny contact that was simply uneconomical to repair.  These machines run and run, but when something eventually goes wrong it's often more cost effective to move on.

Neil

[blipp]

In what way is Printer 8 dying?  It might be economical to repair it, particularly considering the large fleet of the same model.

It will completely screw up a every 3rd or 4th print with all of the wrong colors and no amount of cleanings, alignments, or anything I've done to it has made it work reliably for more than a few prints at a time.  I expect the print head is bad and that we'll be replacing this printer regardless of what we decide to do with the rest at the moment.  It really sounds like (from my research) overall the 4880s are more reliable and durable than the 4900s.  I think I'll plan on holding onto them for a bit longer.  I don't relish the idea of replacing a lab of pretty consistent workhorses with 10 new machines that require a lot more care to keep them running.

Another question:  Is there any indication or a website that keeps track of when to expect a refresh of the 4900 model to a 49XX?  I see they were released in 2010 and would also hate to furnish the lab with them just to have whatever new model released the next month.  Thanks again!

[Ken Doo]

If it gives you any idea, I have an old 4800 that simply refuses to die.      And the 4880 may be better yet.  I think you're better off simply maintaining the printers the best you can, keep them clean inside and out, maintain humidity, replace easy and inexpensive parts as needed, etc.  Otherwise, I'd simply run them into the ground and replace them at that time.  Printer 8 may be ready for replacing, as it sounds like it is getting to be more of a pita than worthwhile to repair.

ken

[Jim Kasson]

Another reason not to run out and buy 4900s unless you really need to. The 4900 is much more prone to clogs than the 4880. If the printer is used daily, it's not a problem, but if the printer isn't used often it can be. I imagine that there are breaks in your school's schedule during which no one is printing.

Jim

[Scott Martin]

Thank you so much and please let me know if there's anything I'm overlooking or should be considering!

These printer like to be used. Underusage and periods of inactivity are one of the greatest contributors to failure. Make sure those printers are left on all the time and used when the school is potentially on break. Printing and throwing away an 11x14 or two a week during times that would otherwise be inactivity saves more money than it wastes.

[Farmer]

The ones that's failing, is probably a pump cap assembly and wiper blade issue and possibly a head.  The nature of the fault described suggests it's not cleaning properly so you may be able to avoid changing the head, but a tech will need to inspect to know for sure.

Overall, in my experience, I don't think the 4900 is any less reliable than the 4800 or 4880 despite a few complaints on the web.  It needs to be taken into account that more people are on the web and that the 4900 is a current product - that will always draw larger levels of commentary than from older products. 

Regarding possible updates/changes/etc - only the manufacturers know - none of them discuss unreleased or unannounced products.

[BrianWJH]

I think I'll plan on holding onto them for a bit longer.

Periodic maintenance in your environment will help to reduce problems, increase lifespan and reduce running costs.

Below are links to videos for daily, weekly and monthly maintenance and although these videos are targeted to direct to garment users most of the maintenance procedures would be relevant to your operating environment, just adjust accordingly.

The 4880's in the videos are modified by Neoflex so don't look exactly the same in the media feed area.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVhNA4an6sw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFDHuKiWLfA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y75bHse95JQ

Brian.

[Farmer]

DTG inks a very different to the normal inks being run through the machines.  The maintenance suggested is simply not required at all for normal use.