Refilling ink cartridges.

[Marinski]

Just got a new printer. The Epson RX580. It has 6 individual ink cartridges and it costs like $75 to buy a new set. I was just wondering who reuses their cartridges and fills them up with new ink. Where do you get your ink from? I've seen refill kits. Do these kits work with all printers? I'd rather refill them myself and avoid coughing up 75 for new ones.

 

[corkyg]

Refilling is not a problem if you use good quality ink refill kits. Also, there are generic carts available from places like Office Depot, Staples, Office Max, etc. And, they are often discounted.

I personally just buy what I need - my time is more valuable than what I spend on ink.

 

[Marinski]

I would rather just avoid refilling it myself and buying the new cartridge but I've had this printer for a week and already used 25% of the black ink and haven't even printed very many documents. Its ridiculous, at this pace I'll be going through cartridges every month.

 

[grohl]

thats why printers are so cheap.

 

[Marinski]

Ya, it is made pretty cheap.

 

[fighterpilot]

I bought a Samsung ML-2010 black/white laser printer for $90. I use it for 90% of my printing. It is much cheaper since one toner cartridge lasts for 2000+ sheets of paper and prints a lot faster. Retail toner cartridge costs $80, but I have found cartridges as cheap as $60, and actually picked up another ML-2010 on sale for $60, so it's just as cheap as the toner (never understood that).

I use my inkjet only when I need color because the ink does only last about 200 pages or so before it has to be replaced. I also find ink refilling messy if you're not careful, even if you are, mistakes happen, and it isn't THAT much cheaper anyways.

My suggestion is to look for a cheap b/w laser.

You can get a Brother HL-2040 at CompUSA right now for $70 with $30 savings + $20 mail-in-rebate.

 

[SparkyJJO]

Epsons drink ink in my experience. Had this one that would use a whole cartridge after only a few dozen pages. The cartridges only cost $15, but they were tiny things and add it up.... yeah not good. Got rid of that and got an HP. Much better. Now I use a HP laser which has been great.

Generic ink cartridges usually work OK, for black. The color ones always seem to be off a bit so the pictures turn out slightly pinkish or something.

 

[Lemon law]

By in large---Canons using the BCI-3&6 cartridge line were the sweet spot---super easy to refill--or just use very cheap pre-filled generic cartridges---with the new Canon chips, life is not as nice---but its still he sweet spot compared to the competition.---you just have to learn to over-ride the chip.---see steves digicams for how.

 

[Lemon law]

By in large---Canons using the BCI-3&6 cartridge line were the sweet spot---super easy to refill--or just use very cheap pre-filled generic cartridges---with the new Canon chips, life is not as nice---but its still he sweet spot compared to the competition.---you just have to learn to over-ride the chip.---see steves digicams for how.

Sorry all for accidental double post

 

[Bill Kunert]

I've been refilling my HP cartridges for years. I only buy ink from MIS Supply ( www.inksupply.com ). They specialize in Epson supplies including resetters for the chips on Epson cartridges. Their ink is excellent and exactly matches oen ink, at least the HP ink does. I highly recommend them. By the way, you can't just refill Epson carts and stick them back in the machine. There is a chip on the cart that has to be reset.

 

[Marinski]

I have another printer. Its an old inkjet HP 720. I could use this for just doing black and whites but it is incredibly slow. The only advantage is the cartridges for it are only about 30 bucks and they last. My dad has a newer HP and that thing uses ink almost as fast as my epson. But his has only one cartridge and its only about $30-40. I guess for the price of a new set of ink cartridges i'd be better off just buying a new printer.

 

[Roguestar]

Quality printer ink is more expensive by weight than solid golid.

 

[Zepper]

My condolences on having bought an Epson clog-master printer...

Refilling Epson tanks is always iffy. The factory ink is so fast drying that you really can't leave the tanks out long (more than a few seconds) without risking the infamous Epson head-clog. You'll want to have at least two sets of factory tanks and rotate them. And you have to find refill ink that is reliable and matches Epson inks - most epson inks are pigmented while most others are dye based. Go to nifty-stuff.com for leads on ink.

You should try the self-proclaimed "official ink supplier to the stars at the AT forums": SwiftInk.com. Most find his clone tanks to work well and Aziz often has special sales for his buds here at the forums - check the top of the Hot Deals section. That's a whole lot easier than messing with refilling.

Or perhaps you could sell the Epson to some unsuspecting noob and get a printer that is a whole lot easier to live with from the Canon line.

.bh.

 

[LintMan]

I stick with OEM ink, personally, but I'm a Canon owner and the inks aren't quite so costly per volume, I don't think. But I also try to be pretty frugal about what I print out.

If you go the refill route, just be aware that you risk getting a permanent head clog. Some people refill for years with no problems, but I've heard a number of stories of people who had to replace their print head (or the printer itself) after refill ink clogged up their print head. Sticking with refill inks that you see other people have success with would be a good start.

I also second the recommendation to get a cheap laser if you're doing lots of B&W document printing. You'll get better text quality at a much cheaper price per page.

 

[corkyg]

Originally posted by: LintMan
If you go the refill route, just be aware that you risk getting a permanent head clog.

Not with H-P - the print head is in the cartridge - a new one with every cart. They can be refilled up to 3 times without visible degredation.

I use a laser for everyday printing - inkjet only when color is required.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: corkyg

Originally posted by: LintMan
If you go the refill route, just be aware that you risk getting a permanent head clog.

Not with H-P - the print head is in the cartridge - a new one with every cart. They can be refilled up to 3 times without visible degredation.

I use a laser for everyday printing - inkjet only when color is required.

exactly true!!

 

[Dave Richardson]

Cost of ownership.
not
Cost of purchase


Work out what you print (colour or b/w) and how many sheets per year.

Work out the consumables cost of those prints per year (Details on web somewhere but about 0.01 GBP per sheet laser, 0.10 per sheet quality colour inkjet, not sure about colour laser but you'd be amazed how cheap colour laser and their toners are getting)

Pretty much ignore the purchase price of the printer - a decent colour inkjet and a low end b/w laser are about the same.

Then use the right printer for the job. Save some money. Please. Please stop making those inkjet manufactures rich.

(And if you work in a corporate environment please stop wasting your organization's money because you think it is cheaper for everyone in your office to have a little cheap inkjet printer on everyone's desk than run a decent office laser.)

 

[imported_RedStar]

i just replace the printer ...and print as little as possible

lasts awhile

 

[Blain]

I always go to ebay to buy refills for my Epson R200.
I've bought 18 & 20ml refills there before. :thumbsup:

I wouldn't buy refills for an HP tri-color cartridge though... only single color Epsons.

 

[Marinski]

are the canons any better than Epson/HP on ink? About the head clog. Isn't there a solution you can use to fix that?