??? for Icing Images Rep...amswered by Debbie/THANK YOU!!!!!

Awe.. thought I would be seeing the answer as well.

The Canon IP3600 is what I have used for years now. It is just a regular old printer that you can print anything you like out of. Some companies (like Decopac) have a special printer you have to buy to print out their special designs but icingImages (this is where I get my supplies) will sell you the ink and paper and you can print anything in the world you please (legalities aside).

KoryAK, any hints on keeping the printer "alive". Mine died-burnt the printer head. I would really like to get another one, but I want to know some tricks about keeping it running for years.
Thanks,
Linda

My first printer lasted about a year and then it died when it ate a frosting sheet. I now let my printer get completely ready for the sheet THEN load it and hit the button to restart. My current printer (18 months old) doesn't have any real problems, but there is a bunch of (what I'm assuming is discharged) ink that musses up the very top of the sheets and there's an area at the very bottom of each sheet where it feeds too slowly. I have a new printer sitting in my office that I will be setting up Monday. But hey, I use it allll the time and at $80 a pop it's nearly disposable

Hey Kory,

THe discharge....First just run regular paper through the printer, a few sheets should clean it, if not
just take out your printhead and wipe the bottom of it off. Also, if you can get a paper towel under the area that the printhead sits on and whip that off too.

Your printer is fine, just a little build up!

For those of you who want to know about regular maintenance, just use it. The more you use it the better and the happier it is. Ink brands do make a difference and some clog quicker then others, some burn out printheads quicker then others, so do your homework and be sure to get references or talk to the company you are buying from prior to purchasing.

Thanks so much Debbie. Any tips for the slow feed? It basically makes a 1/4" line in the printing near the bottom.

Is the line left to right or up and down the page?

left to right and near the bottom of the page

What settings are you printing at?
Can you email me a picture so I can see what you are talking about? debbie@icingimages.com

Hi Kory, (or Debbie, or anybody who wants to chime in) I recently discovered this site and forum and hope to be able to interact with others who print on icing sheets. I sell the printed sheets only (don't make the cake). I have the same printer and I love how beautifully it prints but I have printhead problems a LOT. I have actually bought 4 printers in the past year (just to get the new printhead since the cost of a printhead is practically the same as a whole new printer). The first time I thought I damaged the printhead by not printing frequently enough. Then I got busier and printed more but still got it clogged up and couldn't fix with cleaning solution and a power flush thing that squirts warm water through the nozzels. Then I decided to try a steamer but apparently used it too much and burned that one out. I print 3-4 times a week, anywhere from 2 to 8 sheets a time. So how often should I clean the print head and which method do you use? Sorry this post is so long! I am just so frustrated.

Hi
I completely understand your frustration. I will try and help you as much as I can. The amount of printing you are doing should not cause you to run through 4 printheads. That is totally crazy. There are things that can cause you to think the printhead is bad when it is not. You mentioned you changed 4 printheads, but how old is the actual printer? What printer model is it and whose ink are you using? Lets start there and see if we can make your life a hole lot happier!

Hi Debbie, All of the priners are one year or less. The first printer is a canon stand alone. I was purchasing ink and sheets from a company named PhotoFrost. I also purchased their "power flush" which is a hose that attaches to your faucet and the other end fits over the nozzel and you squirt the water. According to them this cleans and also if the water is coming out the other size or isn't in a "fan" type spray it means there's a clog. I tried flushing the print head and the cleaner and still on one color nozzel there wasn't a spray of water coming out from that nozzel. So when I saw a print head was like $90.00 I just purchased an ip3600 canon for $80.00. Vowed to print more often and I did (several times per week), but again, a color wouldn't print. I would do nozzel check and sure enough no color. Then I would do the deep cleaning and finally the flushing and that worked a few times but then wouldn't. Third time, when a color wasn't printing I tried the steam method and after that I checked with the flush hose and it seemed like it was working great until I put it in the printer and - nothing. Apparently I burned it. I found Icing Images recently and ordered the sheets but still had ink so I haven't tried that. The ink I have is from Amazon (Icing4cake-I think) which was half the price of PhotoFrost for a set as well as cheaper shipping and seemed to print beautifully-- and it never occurred to me that the ink might be the problem. Any advise would be so appreciated. My husband says we need a graveyard for all the printers!

Is the edible ink available for all printer types or just certain ones? Thanks!