Cleaning and unclogging print heads, DesignJet 110plus nr

epnh · ‎11-28-2023

I have a 15-year-old HP DesignJet 110plus plotter that hasn't been used for a couple of years. Today I fired it up and it sort of works but I can't get decent print quality. The black in particular is badly clogged, followed closely by the yellow and the magenta... only the cyan seems to work as it should.

I have exercised Google all day trying to find the best way to clean and de-clog these. A few websites described a process using lint-free cloths or a coffee filter, and distilled water (not tap water). I did all of that and also went through a few cycles of soft, medium, and hard cleaning. The print quality is better but still unacceptable.

Any ideas gratefully accepted.

Eric in NH

Repairatrooper · ‎11-29-2023

I have found that if you use fairly warm water and leave the heads for 15-30 minutes your success rate will be much higher.

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epnh · ‎11-29-2023

Thanks, Repairatrooper. Yeah, I tried that, did no good. If anything it made the problem worse.

It's a real bummer because this plotter has been a real workhorse up to now, but HP has apparently abandoned it altogether and print heads are now made of unobtanium.

Repairatrooper · ‎11-30-2023

There are dealers online that show stock, at least in Canada. This printhead was used in a few product lines including the Business Inkjet 1000 series. Agreed that this was a good printer, technology changes and no product lasts forever. In some cases it is impossible to make an old product secure to today's security standards and once a product is at end of life support will decrease.

If you find the information provided useful or solves your problems, help other users find the solution easier by marking my post as an accepted solution. Clicking "yes" on "was this reply helpful" also increases the chances that this solution will help others.
I am a volunteer, offering my knowledge to support fellow users, I do not work for HP nor speak for HP.

epnh · ‎11-30-2023

>> There are dealers online that show stock, at least in Canada.

Can you point me to a few? I haven't had any luck. There are some that have one or two of the printheads in stock, mostly the cyan one which is the only one I have that works reasonably well, but none that have the black or the yellow which are the ones I really need.

I have seen a few black ones on ebay but I don't fully trust things I get from ebay especially when they are asking north of US$160 for ONE print head, and they refuse to accept returns.

Thanks...

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