Can I get a warranty extension due to COVID? I was not able to access the printer for many months

[fredericch]

My warranty expired in May 2020. I was not able to access this printer to diagnose the problem until just now. It has been with my mother-in-law, and we were in quarantine from each other. It was impossible to diagnose the problem remotely. Now that I'm in physical possession of the printer, I believe that there is a printhead issue. The cartridges have ink, and only red and some slight yellow and blue are printing - no black at all, and only light streaks for yellow and blue.

Can I get an extnesion on the warranty in extremis and get this printer repaired under warranty? It has hardly been used, so there is something defective about it.

[fredericch]

this is the second level cleaning results

[Valsimot]

When the printer is not used a longer period the liquid ink inside the ink cartridge gets stuck because the printhead gets dried from not using the printer. Sometimes cleaning help sometimes not, depending oh how log the printer was unused.

Basically the ink is "trapped" in cartridges because dried ink in within the printhead and can't get out on a paper.

There is nothing wrong with your printer, replace both ink cartridges and your printer will print fine again.

[fredericch]

Thank you for your advice. Is there a way to untrap the cartridges, short of buying new cartridges? I have gone through the 3 step cleaning procedure numerous times, and it is not getting better. To buy new cartridges is a $40 investment for something that will probably happen again, given how little my mother-in-law prints things.

Can I shake the cartridges? Warm them? clean them manually? Other ideas?

[Valsimot · Accepted solution]

It all depends on how long the printer was unused. You can try to soak them in hot water ( bottom part of the cartridge) hoping that hot water will dissolve dried ink.

I am afraid that you will have to invest in new ink cartridges on the end, and it will probably happen again.

[fredericch]

I tried, with huge hesitation, soaking the cartridge bottoms in hot water - I used a large baking sheet, poured a thin layer of boiling water, then stood the cartridges in the water for 10 minutes. After carefully wiping, I reinstalled the cartridges, and they worked!

Of course, now I'm down to the last bit of ink, having cleaned the cartridges so many times, and having wiped away so much ink in the process of drying them from the soaking.

I would say that this solved the issue, and it doesn't seem that the mix of water and cartridges has damaged anything, surprisingly. 

Thank you for the advice, and now I will order the new cartridges with much more confidence.