Refilling ink cartridges: Has anyone used Costco for refilling ink cartridges for HP/Epson printers? I've been leery using anything but HP and Epson inks.

Ronald J Loc: Minneapolis MN.

Has anyone used Costco for refilling ink cartridges for HP/Epson printers? I've been leery using anything but HP and Epson inks.

DebAnn Loc: Toronto

Yes, I'm not comfortable with the idea of refilling ink cartridges. It could mess up your printer.

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

I used Costco for ink refills for an older HP with no major issues. Once they forgot to replace the chip on a cartridge so I had to return to have that done. Costco does a good job of professionally refilling many models of cartridges. They have a machine for this. Now I have a much higher quality Canon printer and most of the colors for it are not supplied by Costco, or it is either generic brand or real Canon $$$ ink!

Your issue or question might be, is your printer still under warranty. If so you might not want to chance it. Some of the newer Epson printers have large tanks and don't need to be refilled often. If using a high-end professional Canon or Epson large format 13 to 17 or more inches wide model I would stick to factory inks.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

I've used Costco refills for both HP and Canon printers (but not the Pro-100). They work quite well. I have had a few that failed to work, and they reimbursed me the cost when I presented my receipt. Sometimes they would check them first, but usually it was "no questions asked." I've done this for years.

hpucker99 Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

Ronald J wrote:

Has anyone used Costco for refilling ink cartridges for HP/Epson printers? I've been leery using anything but HP and Epson inks.

I use Costco for refilling the cartridges for my Epson printers. Haven't had any problems with them. Costco reships the cartridge, so Epson will recognize the cartridge. I have found that printers can be finicky when putting cartridges in. I had a Brother and an older Epson printer that wouldn't recognize a cartridge from their own manufacturer.

WayneT Loc: Paris, TN

Another option is to refill your own. This company has some very good reviews. If you use a lot of ink this would be the best way to go.

http://www.precisioncolors.com/index.html

Orca Loc: Little Egg Harbor, NJ USA

I have used Costco for about four years with no problems. They don't do all Epson Printer cartridges though. I also buy Epson only when on sale.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

WayneT wrote:

Another option is to refill your own. This company has some very good reviews. If you use a lot of ink this would be the best way to go.

http://www.precisioncolors.com/index.html

This may depend on your skill. I tried refilling my own once, and it was a waste of money and time.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

I do a lot of IT work. The only printer with which we had an issue was one the operator decided to purchase refilled cartridges. It would have been easier to replace the machine than pay to have it cleaned and back to working. As with any opinion YMMV, but I'd stay away from any refilled cartridges.
--Bob

Ronald J wrote:

Has anyone used Costco for refilling ink cartridges for HP/Epson printers? I've been leery using anything but HP and Epson inks.

OnDSnap Loc: NE New Jersey

Ronald J wrote:

Has anyone used Costco for refilling ink cartridges for HP/Epson printers? I've been leery using anything but HP and Epson inks.

http://shop.inkjetmall.com/About/Videos/

JBH

I read recently that HP is setting up to rake its customers again, with their already rediculous ink prices, in newer printers they are using or are about to start coding them to reject/shut down if they are loaded with a non HP encoded cartridge.

WayneT Loc: Paris, TN

JBH wrote:

I read recently that HP is setting up to rake its customers again, with their already rediculous ink prices, in newer printers they are using or are about to start coding them to reject/shut down if they are loaded with a non HP encoded cartridge.

They do this all the time and the refill companies always find a way around it. It's been going on for years.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

JBH wrote:

I read recently that HP is setting up to rake its customers again, with their already rediculous ink prices, in newer printers they are using or are about to start coding them to reject/shut down if they are loaded with a non HP encoded cartridge.

I'm no HP fan, but I think they've backed away from that idea. Do some research, we should be fair to the company. In general HP products are good quality, some decisions are dubious but they do learn eventually.

Madman Loc: Gulf Coast, Florida USA

I have not used the service that you are considering.

Instead, I purchased a set of re-fillable cartridges, four ounce bottles of ink and syringes so that I can handle the job very economically myself. The job takes about fifteen minutes - maybe twenty with clean up.

I bought the materials from cobraink.com several years ago for about seventy five dollars, I still have a few years supply. Problems -none.

The only problem for some is that they only provide for Epson printers.

ramblinmen Loc: Manassas, VA

Costco can't or won't refill light cyan or light magenta cartridges and I have received a few that needed the chips reset a second time before they will work (old epson photo printer). If you attempt to refill yourself just know that you will also need to get the unit that resets the cartridge chip. BTW, Epson printers always know you are using refilled cartridges and message you that doing so will/may void the printer warranty should they creat an issue. You can get past that message and use your refills. I find that the heads on a refill dry out and I need to clean the heads more often for the ink to flow but $7.95/ refill vs $19.00 for new is a no brainer.