Almost new Epson 3880 recovered from years of storage

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1

We obtained a barely used Epson 3880. The unit sat in air-conditioned storage, unused for at least a couple years in the dry Arizona climate . Test pages and head cleanings show that a number of lines not printing and clearly clogged or dried up. (Test print in blue, cleaning print in light grey).

I have done research on maintenance for the 3880 but I cannot find anything about a unit that has sat in storage for so long without any preventative measures. Looking for advice on how to proceed, or if its worth it. Ink cartridges are originals from purchase, dated 06.2012.

Should I get a cleaning kit such as: SKU# ACC-LF-CLEAN or SKU# PZFK-3880-700 or something else.

Do I need a new set of ink? (how could I tell).

Do I need to consider a replacement of the full damper / ink assembly unit? How would I know I need one?

Thank you in advance for any guidance.

2

Step 1. Soak the print head from below with piezoflush and clean the flush/cap station as described here: Print Head Cleaning Tips and Preventative Maintenance

Step 2. Flush with PiezoFlush SKU# PZFK-3880-700. This will clear your dampers and other parts of the printer that are dried out.

Step 3. You do need new ink regardless if its our ink or epson cartridges. The ink that’s in the cartridges that you have now is expired and settled at this point.

Step 4. If you have persistent issues, that means you have dampers that have dried out and possible cracked or that have permanent clogs (swelled pigment) in their filters. An ink supply unit (the whole thing between where the ink cartridges go and the print head including the dampers) can be purchased at compassmicro.com for this printer. Most likely your printer will recover entirely and step 4 is not needed.

best,
Walker

3

Thank you for your quick response. I will order the flush kit now. Wait to see if that fixes it before getting the supply unit.

Do you have any suggestions on your ink cartridges for replacements? I saw a few different SKU’s but I have not researched it much. (I would prefer to buy from the people who helped, I have no allegiance to Epson name brand ink.)

4

All our 3800 cartridges are the same type they just live in different kits. You can by them separate from ink or you can buy the with ink (bottles). They are refillable cartridges: different ink types sold separately.

Here’s a rundown of our ink: http://shop.inkjetmall.com/About/About-ConeColor-PRO-Inks/

best,
Walker