DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

My trusty Canon Pixma ip4900 (I think that is the correct model) died almost 3 years ago after about 5 years and a lot of use. I replaced it with a new Canon G3200 multi-function wireless Mega Tank printer that has built in ink reservoirs that you refill from ink bottles. Earlier this week I got a printer error message that the ink absorber was almost full and the printer needed to be serviced by an authorized Canon service center. I called Canon and they said it was not serviceable and when the ink absorber was full the printer would quit working. Apparently the ink absorber is where the ink goes during a printer head cleaning cycle. This is my 3rd or 4th Canon printer, and it has been a great printer. The ink bottles hold about 10 times as much as a regular ink cartridge but cost about the same. With all of the printing we do, including a lot for my teaching position at a local university, I was spending around $300 per year on ink for the old printer. I now spend less than $50/year, so the printer paid for itself quickly. A bottle of black ink (~$15) is supposed to do about 6,000 pages of text. Well, Canon was having a sale and gave me an extra 10% off on a new printer, so I bought the same printer for $162, about half of what I paid for it previously. It arrived yesterday (free shipping), but I'm going to keep using the current one until it stops. We print a LOT and I can't have any downtime due to my teaching. I also use the built-in scanner a lot. It has a copier function that is very handy; put a document on the glass platen, press one button, and you have a copy.

Has anyone else had the same issue?

BTW, I put this in the non-photography section, as it's not a photo printer, only 3 colors+black.

Hamltnblue Loc: Springfield PA

do a google of your problem. You will find solutions.

alx Loc: NJ

You can try searching "Canon G Series Printer Ink Absorber Almost Full Error Message" in Bing or Google and come up with a host of info.

If you feel comfortable with attempting a repair yourself, go for it. Just expect it to be MESSY.

TreborLow

Don't know if available for Canon, but I have an ancient Epson R2400 with an external, after market, bottle for waste ink. No problem with absorber pads. After several years, I did get an error message which stopped the printer since it 'thinks' there are working pads inside. Then I found an inexpensive source to reset that counter. Working like new now. Yes, my inks are expensive, but I only print my own images for my use (another printer for documents), so I expect my Epson to be working for quite a while. I might go for an after market bulk ink supply, but then I would have to use after market ink....
Good luck,
Bob

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

I figured that based on the high usage rate, the print head would be next, so I just bought the new printer. Also, I have other things to spend my time on (like post processing).

alx Loc: NJ

Can't say I blame you. But worth a look if curiosity gets the better of you.

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

I figured that I might be able to fix it (I'm an aerospace engineer and a licensed aircraft mechanic and pretty handy), but since they caution to keep the printer lever when moving it, I wanted to avoid the mess and took the easy way out.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Even if it was a "photo" printer it should be in this forum because it's a printer....

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

Maybe I'll keep the old printer around after it quits for spare parts in the off-chance that I decide to dig into it.

A new 2 TB SSD arrived from Amazon a few minutes ago, so that is something else to do. I currently have a 6 TB regular hard drive with 2.6 TB used, so I have some reorganizing and temporary off-loading of files before I clone the drive onto the SSD. It shouldn't be too difficult, as 1.4 TB is photos that are also on Dropbox and I'll put a lot of them just on the 6 TB drive as a secondary drive while keeping the file structure on the SSD with the files backed up on Dropbox (which allows me to download them to the SSD or another drive at will).

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

"Earlier this week I got a printer error message that the ink absorber was almost full and the printer needed to be serviced by an authorized Canon service center." DJphoto, the authorized service center is your kitchen table.

Yes, I lost my old faithful Epson to the filled waste bucket. I later read what the end of life error meant. It cost you nothing to pull out your small screwdriver set and pull the sponge out rinse, squeeze dry and reassemble. You own it so go for DIY self-repair... oops, wear gloves when dealing with the ink... or have colorful fingers.