Is it true that refilling ink cartridges will damage a printer?

Question

I fear using my printer now since i heard that using refilled cartridge can cause damage to printer . Does it mean my printer will be junk soon as well as my ink refill? Tnx.

Answer 1

Some say, "Yes, it could ruin your printer."

Others say, "No, it won't."

Some say, "Yes, it ruined MY printer."

Others say, "No, mine is working fine."

I say:

Consider how much it would cost to replace your printer. How much is your printer worth? How much does a new cartridge cost? How much would you save by refilling your cartridge yourself?

If your printer broke, would the savings have been worth it?

But do be careful...

Epson printers use dye-based ink. Newer HP printers use "pigment" based ink. Older printers use water-based ink. Some inks are more viscous (thicker) than other.

There is a reason for the differences as some thicker inks will not work as well in some printheads.

So...would your savings be worth the risk?

hmm....

Answer 2

Not necessarily, but it's possible. It depends on many variables. As the technology improves, many manufacturers are putting in safeguards to prevent you from refilling the cartridges. HP's newers printers, for example, log information in the system about how much ink you have left in the cartridge. When it gets down to a critical level, the printer will no longer allow you to print. This is to protect the (non-replaceable) printheads. It also keeps you from being able to refill the tanks, because when the refill companies refill the cartridges/ink tanks, they are only putting ink in it. They have no way to reset the computer chip on the cartridge that is logging how many times the nozzles have been fired. (This is what gives you the estimated ink level - the nozzle firing count from that chip). The cartridge will still read as empty when you put it back in the printer, and the printer (those newer models) will not print.
Although refilling the cartridge will damage the printheads, that is probably not a major concern with cartridges that have them built in, since you are replacing the printhead any time you buy a new cartridge. The printheads are designed to work with the ink the manufacturer puts in the cartridge, not a 3rd party or generic ink. If the manufacturer sells their own ink for refill, that should be fine. If your printer has built-in printheads, though, you shouldn't take the risk of refills. Costs of sending the printer for repair to have the printheads replaced will be out of your own pocket, and the cost of that is often more than the cost of buying a new printer.

You should also consider what you use the printer for. If it's for home use, i.e. printing receipes and emails from friends, quality is not a big concern. If you use the printer for anything where you need good quality, i.e. resumes, business letters, photos etc, stick with the originals. No matter what claims the refill companies make, the quality will never be as good as buying the real thing. Refills usually run out faster than originals, as well.

Answer 3

It used to be that you would buy a printer which only required ink tanks and the print heads were either permanently in the printer or were also a replaceable module and then you could get ink cheap. One problem was that if you stored the ink or ink tanks for a long time (a year?), a deterioration, possibly a mold, would develop in the ink and plug up your print head. If the print head was a replaceable module, it was quite expensive. So that great idea went South\|/. Now it appears that the best idea is to buy a printer that use cartridges that have the built in print heads. You can do what you want with the cartridge, (refill it yourself or by a refiller or whatever with whatever ink you wish and if it doesn't work, oh well, you just go and buy another cartridge and try something else next time. If the cartridge is from an outside company, you may run the risk of damaging your printer's interfacing electronic if there is something wrong or inferior with the cartridge electronics.

I just bought 4 (1 complete set) of chip monitored ink tanks for almost half the cost of the printer. I would gladly just dump this printer (use its other features only) and replace it with a NON PICKY cartridge printer.

Answer 4

Most of the time the worst thing that will happen when you refill a cartridge is the quality will suck, or at the very worst it will ruin the cartridge (not the printer)

Relax and use you printer. If you don't the cartridge is going to dry up. If you are getting refills, make sure they are from a reputable place and they provide you with instructions on how to clean your printer, as well as how to install and reset ink levels if necessary.

Just relax, it is okay. Many people use refill, there are businesses based upon refilling. If they ruined printers, they would no longer exist.

Answer 5

People have expressed a legitimate concern as to whether the use of compatible cartridges in their printer will void their printer's warranty. The answer is NO!

What follows is a partial quote from the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Improvement Act, which protects your rights and your warranty.

MAGNUSON-MOSS WARRANTY IMPROVEMENT ACT
United States Code Annotated
Title 15 Commerce and Trade
Chapter 50 Consumer Product Warranties
15 Section 2032

... (c) No warrantor of a consumer product may condition his written or implied warranty of such product on the consumer's using, in connection with such product, any article or service (other than article or service provided without charge under the terms of the warranty) which is identified by brand, trade or corporate name; except that the prohibition of this subsection be waived by the commission if:

1) The warrantor satisfies the Commission that the warranted product will function properly only if the article or service so identified is used in connection with the warranted product, and

2) the Commission finds that such a waiver is in the public interest.

More simply put, this means that your printer warranty cannot be voided just because you choose to use compatible products unless the manufacturer can prove that the compatible product caused direct damage to your printer. In cases such as this, the manufacturer may choose not to repair your printer but your warranty would remain in effect for all other warranty issues.

Answer 6

No it wont. the company tells that it does as their business is coming down due to the refilling. My Printer is 5 years old and I have refilled the cartridge more than 4 times. No damage has ever hapenned. Don't worry

Answer 7

Simple answer - sometimes. Easy answer, don't refill them - get remanufactured cartridges from www.worldclassink.com or some other online ink vendor. They professionally refill inkjet cartridges, and companies that do it all the time generally don't use crappy cheap ink, which most refill kits do.

I've refilled ink cartridges before, and only once did it cause a problem. When a cartridge is run dry, it can get damaged. Such was the case with mine. I refilled it, but when it primed the cart. it broke something, because the inkjet head had "fused" from overheating leaving the ink nowhere to go.


Hope that helps.

Jason

http://www.onestoptechnologyshop.com
[e-mail]

15 years in computer service and sales.

Answer 8

At times refilled ink cartridges may work, but mostly not. Most printers will not recognize refilled ink cartridges. Once the ink is exhausted, the chip expires With most printers you are required to have ink in both the black and color ink cartridges in order to print in black as they work in conjunction with each other. So you will need to have the both color and black ink cartridges with ink EDIT: Refilling will not void the printer warranty

Answer 9

Refilling will plug up your printer's internal printhead. It depends on the inks used. If you have an internal printhead, it's a chance you take, and if you have cartridges with the heads on them like HP products. You will only plug up the cartridges. You can refill these all you want, you will just throw it out anyway if it plugs up.
After market inks cost less for a reason, they don't have the quality, accuracy of color, or additives that keeps your printheads from plugging up.
That's why they even suggest using their paper and ink catridges to get quality pictures and prints. That is if you want quality picutes and keep your printhead clean. This could get costly.
If you have an internal printhead like a Canon. You can still mix it up to save money, I use refills for regular text and docutments, then I use the manufacture's to print photos and if there's any build up on the print head it will keep it clean.

Answer 10

Bah! The printer manufacturers would like you to believe just that! That is how they make their big $... I have always bought refills for mine (for more than 4 years) and they work great...and save me about 30 to 35 dollars a cartridge! Check this place out!