Epson ink cartridge longevity - newbie to print question

[Alan Smallbone]

Hi all,

I am recent owner of a Epson 4880, love it, great printer. I  have heard people talking that the inks only last for 2 years from date of manufacture for unused carts, and 6 months from start of using a cart. Perhaps a stupid question, but what happens to the ink? Do the colors fade in cartridge, or does it clog more, or.....?

Alan

[Alan Goldhammer]

They are just being conservative in their dating.  I have a 3880 and some cartridges don't run out until 8-9 months if I'm not doing much printing.  I cannot tell any difference in the prints.

[Alan Smallbone]

Thanks Alan, that was what I was assuming but figured it would not hurt to ask.

Alan

[John Nollendorfs]

Actually, the problem is the settling of pigments. It's hard to judge if you print infrequently, but if you print the same image over time, you will notice a shift in colors. If you don't print often, its a good idea to take the carts out every month or so and give them a good shake.

John Nollendorfs

[Alan Smallbone]

Thanks John I will do that.

Alan

[Schewe]

If you don't print often, its a good idea to take the carts out every month or so and give them a good shake.

Actually, you shouldn't "shake" the ink carts...a gentle rocking motion back and forth is better. You don't want to over agitate or else you run the risk of bubbles getting into the line.

[John Nollendorfs]

Actually, carts on the larger printers have bladders, which should be free of air, so a more vigorous shake should not encourage air bubbles, but it is possible that your cart can inadvertently get some air in it. I would still advocate a more vigorous shake to help distribute the pigment particles, but let the carts sit a few hours before printing. Also, it should be noted, that with age and settling, the pigments can coalesce into clumps (shaking can't do much for this) which could lead to damper clogging or head problems. Just so you are aware.

[DeanChriss]

I talked with a someone at Epson service who has worked there for over 20 years about the ink life issue regarding an Epson 7900. The inks say they are good for 2 years if they remain sealed, and 6 months after installation. He said I shouldn't worry about it, and that he has never seen a problem that could be blamed on outdated ink, even when the inks are years past their expiration dates. That's not to say the colors might not shift slightly, but he seemed to think the shift would be "insignificant". Even so, I do give the inks some agitation about once every 6 months.

Different colors take very different lengths of time to consume, with orange always lasting the longest in my case. I don't really know how long on average it takes me to use a "set" of inks, but I know I had an orange cartridge installed for over 1.5 years (over 3X the length Epson recommends) and I've never been able to see any color shift. I do perhaps 50% black and white printing, and any color shift there shows up like a sore thumb. IMO this just isn't worth worrying about, but some agitation of the ink once in a while is probably good insurance.

(added) Note also that in the cartridges that contain the ink in a bladder, the bladder flexes slightly each time the printer is powered off and on, with pressurization and depressurization. It's nothing like physically shaking the cartridges, but it's not completely stagnant either.

[Farmer]

Even with larger carts with bladders, a gentle rocking is preferred over a vigorous shaking.