Comments on: All Dried Up! Remedies to Make Ink Printer Cartridges Usable Again

By: H.S.Roger Angel

H.S.Roger Angel — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:11:55 +0000

Thank you for your help. Soaking up ink-cartridges in warm water a minute or two did it. Now it works fine.Thanks a lot. God bless you.

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:03:19 +0000

I might have printed 2 color pages with my latest $20.00 Kodak color cartridge and I’m getting “Your Color Ink is Low” messages. That’s $10.00 per page! And these cartridges have that stupid chip that keeps me from refilling it myself. I didn’t think “drying out” was an issue till I googled here.

If I print < 2 pages a month would it be worthwhile to store the cartridges in a sandwich baggie, with water (or alcohol?) and plug 'em in when I need 'em?

By: Norma

Norma — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 12:43:17 +0000

My online cartridge supplier asks me to open the two new color printers I purchased from them and test them. (This was after I emailed a complaint that the two black cartridges that came in the same order triggered an error message when I tried to print…”cartridge faulty or incompatible.” I’m requesting they replace all four cartridges with good ones. Before they’ll do that, he asks me to test the remaining two new cartridges. My question is this: if I open and test the two new cartridges, and if they work okay, then how do store them without their drying up? Will testing and re-storing them shorten the number of printed pages I will get once I need to use them?

By: James

James — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 14:07:53 +0000

This worked perfectly. Now my printer is back to normal after no use for 2 years! Thanks.

By: Teresa

Teresa — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 20:11:49 +0000

I cannot find/there is no expiration date on my Kodak cartridges or the boxes they came in. I also tried soaking with no luck.
@ Sherrie: I would NEVER throw away printers and cartridges bought within even the last year. Return them to the store for exchange, repair or refund! What, are you in the 1% ?!?!?! (I kid…)

By: Sherrie

Sherrie — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 19:21:48 +0000

I believe the best solution to the ink problem is to buy another brand of Printer! I have bought 2 Kodak printers ( within the last 6 months)and both have failed to accept another cartridge after the original has run out. I threw the 1st one away. The second goes to the garbage tomorrow.

I would like to print not spend days and weeks trying to trouble shoot the damn cartridges. By the way I have 6 new cartridges that are going to the garbage also, none of them work either!!!!!

By: Margaret

Margaret — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 20:25:21 +0000

OMG IT WORKED!!!! I had a black cartridge that I got notice on was empty, but I left it in for while and it worked fine…so I left it in longer……I had enough in to last me 3-4 weeks the way I print, after printer told me to change…..I had a bunch of “empty” cartridges hanging around, so I put one in, but it was dried—-I soaked for 1-2 mins as you said it it works fine…..THANKS

By: B. P. Denardo

B. P. Denardo — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 16:17:11 +0000

Using a toothpick, put a drop or two of rubbing alcohol into the nozzel of the cartridge…presto, ink flows again!

By: Jenny

Jenny — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 22:08:23 +0000

Thanks for the tip. I hadn’t used my printer in awhile, and the ink was all dried up. I put the bottom in warm water for just a minute, and now it prints like new again.

By: Ben B

Ben B — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 10:57:28 +0000

Just tried the placing dried-up cartidges in a little warm water trick and it worked brilliantly. Thanks!