Understanding the HP 2600 "Cartridge Out Override" Function

Like most laser printers, the cartridges of the HP 2600cn laser printer is outfitted with a microchip that communicates the toner supply status of the consumable. In turn, the printer is able to prompt the user whenever the cartridge is low on toner; to consequently desist printing once toner supply is depleted. But in most cases, at least 20% of toner supply still lingers inside the cartridge's toner hopper when printing altogether stopped. This gives users the wrong impression! What if this were a scheme intended by OEMs to fast track the repurchase of a new cartridge? In this case, users are advised to pull out the cartridge from the printer and shake it vigorously so that clumped toner inside the chamber cavities is released and a few more pages can be squeezed out from the cartridge.

Well, we can always point an accusing finger to printer manufacturers. But the truth is that this could just be a sensor error wherein the ‘toner out’ prompt is routinely issued by the unit. Sensors are sensitive electronic devices directed towards a cartridge window that monitors toner supply. And once toner can no longer be detected, the "'toner out' prompt is thereafter displayed.

This troubleshooting technique is however not necessary with the HP 2600 laser printer. The printer is equipped with a ‘cartridge out override function’ that can be accessed through the control panel. Therefore when the ‘order supplies’ message is prompted, pressing the ‘cartridge out override’ button will deactivate the message and consequently, printing will commence. The ‘order supplies’ prompt informs the user that toner supply is running low and the succeeding pages could likely result in questionable prints as pointed out by the printer's service manual. This benefits the user as extra caution can now be observed in the printout of ensuing documents. The moment any print defect manifests, printing is immediately discontinued to thus avoid wasting paper in the process. To commence with print jobs, the user either replaces the cartridge orrefills its toner chamber with fresh toner supply.using a compatible toner refill kit.

If the HP Q6000A OEM toner cartridge is cost restrictive at $75, the user can choose do-it-yourself refill consumables to save on printing costs. The HP 2600 toner refill kit is sold online for only $30 and delivers print quality and yield of 2,500 pages at 5% coverage; similar to what the OEM toner can deliver.

HP 2600 Toner Cartridges - How a defective developer roller can affect the integrity of printouts?

Light prints and/or banding in printouts can only develop from defective OEM toner cartridges. Said print irregularity is even more profound with the toner cartridges of the HP 2600 laser printer. As the print cycle slowly reaches the end of its term and toner supply is close to exhaustion, the developer roller likely wears out which makes the component less effective in the even distribution of toner powder on the surface of the OPC drum.

All toner cartridges similar in design to the Q6000A, Q60001A, Q60002A and Q60003A cartridges (loads the HP 1600, 2600, 2600N and 2605 printer series) are outfitted with developer rollers. Said component is manufactured with precise tolerances because any minor deformity (like a curved roller) affects toner distribution and consequently print quality of output.

The developer roller is coated with a special surface finish intended to withstand abrasive surface friction, as it moves in sync with the OPC Drum in the course of supplying toner. Remember that this action is not limited to 3 or 4 times, but is repeated several thousand times in the process of printing. Surface tolerance between the developer roller and OPC Drum must be maintained at all times to produce acceptable print quality.

The developer roller is a critical component since worn out surfaces cannot be detected upon troubleshooting and only manifest over printouts. Therefore, most cartridge remanufacturers put premium on the replacement of developer rollers, just to ascertain that print defects will not transpire after the cartridge is refilled with toner. Remember that a substantial amount of toner will not be able to reactivate a defective toner cartridge.

HP 2600 toner cartridges are not designed for the conduct of toner refills. Therefore, once the developer roller wears out, the cartridge has to be replaced with a brand new unit. However, if print quality is still acceptable at the time the unit runs out of toner supply, then this only indicates that the developer roller is still in fine form and the user can administer refills on the cartridge.

The print capacity of the Q6000A cartridge for instance is pegged at 2,500 pages at 5% coverage and conducting 3 refills on the unit increases its capacity to 10,000 pages. Conducting refills on a cartridge with a still functional developer roller is the most sensible option as an OEM replacement costs $75 while a compatible toner refill kit is sold online for only $30. Moreover, users gets the same print quality and yield expected from an OEM toner.

HP 2600n - Know the Laser Printer’s Energy Operating Costs

The HP 2600n LaserJet desktop printer is probably one of the most energy efficient laser printers now in use with households and offices. While most desktop printers consume over 700 watts of energy when in full printing mode, the HP 2600n operates only at a rate of 190 watts whether producing monochrome or color prints. Moreover, the printer unit consumes only 16 watts of energy in standby mode and zero energy is utilized during sleep mode. However, the computation of actual energy consumption for the HP 2600 remains as a puzzle to geeks since energy expended is reckoned based on how the laser printer is used during a pre-set time period. Laser printer operation fluctuates from high-peak periods to periods of inactivity, which is punctuated only by the daily printing load.

The laser printer is not like the metal halide flood lamps used in sports arenas since power consumption is constant for the entire duration of the game. Say each lamp is rated at 340 watts and that around 1000 lamps are utilized to light up the arena, the lamps will consume as much as 340 kilowatts per hour and within an 8-hour period the average consumption is 2,720 kilowatts of energy. And if the venue is New York City, the cost to light up the sports arena would likely be around $400. Now let us assume that the HP 2600 laser printer will be in constant operation during an 8-hour work period so that the average consumption will be 1.52 kilowatt or roughly $0.23 for the entire day of printing, around $6.84 for the entire month and $80 at years end. Certainly the cost will be lower since the laser printer encounters brief periods of inactivity as the unit switches automatically to standby mode and eventually to sleep mode following the run of print jobs.

When it comes to energy consumption, the HP 2600n is a power miser, and the design of the replacement Q6000A black toner cartridge is also patterned after the printer’s energy saving specifications. Color printing is really expensive. The monochrome replacement cartridge for the HP 2600n is retailed at $70 and pricing is similar for the 3 other color cartridges. The monochrome cartridge comes with a yield rating of 2,500 pages at 5% page coverage while the remaining cartridges are rated at 2,000 pages.

However consumers can reduce color-printing expenditure by refilling empty toner cartridges with compatible toner. Compatible toner for the Q6000A comes packaged with the HP 2600 toner refill kit. The third party consumable is sold online for only $23 but then again, the cartridges refilled with its supply toner can deliver OEM quality prints and yield.

How to refill HP 2600 color cartridges?

The color cartridges of the HP Laserjet 2600 series of laser printers are refilled through the melt and pour method just like most OEM toner cartridges. But what’s unique about HP cartridges is that it does not come with a fill hole/fill plug component that allows the easy transfer of fresh toner powder into the toner supply chamber. Moreover, a waste chamber – where used toner is collected, forms part of its design; to thus add a step or two into the refill process.

Well, that shouldn’t discourage you from reloading an empty HP cartridge. Just prepare the necessary materials and tools; follow instructions to the tee and you can never go wrong!

Materials and Tools:

• Empty HP Q6000A, Q6001A, Q6002A or Q6003A
• HP 2600 Toner Refill Kit 4 Pack (Includes 4 color bottles of fresh toner powder, 4 funnel caps, 4 pairs of latex gloves, toner wipes and instructional manual)

• Replacement / Reset Chip (Should be supplied with the kit)
• Refill Tool
• Electrical Tape
• X-Acto knife
• Toner Vacuum (optional)
• Trash Bin

Procedure:

Cleaning the Waste Chamber

1. Pull out the refill tool and plug into an outlet. Allow it to heat up for 1 to 3 minutes.
2. Once heated up, gently push the refill tool’s tip over a specific section of the cartridge (see manual) to create an opening for the waste chamber. Be sure to remove the circular plastic piece carved out by the tool if it should fall into the bin.
3. Turn the cartridge upside down over a trash can to empty toner residues filling the waste bin. Apply suction using a toner vacuum (optional).
   
4. Seal the hole with electrical tape thereafter.

Cleaning the Toner Supply Chamber

1. Melt a second hole on another section of the cartridge (see manual) using the refill tool to create an opening for the toner supply chamber.
2. Perform the same set of cleaning instructions intended for the waste chamber but do not seal the fill hole just yet.

Replenishing Toner Supply

1. Pull out from the kit the bottle of replacement toner that corresponds to the color cartridge being refilled.
2. Shake the bottle gently to loosen toner powder
3. Attach the funnel cap to the mouth of the bottle and position the cap’s end into the fill hole.
4. Carefully pour toner from the bottle to the fill hole to replenish the cartridge’s toner supply.
5. Seal the hole with an electrical tape thereafter. Do not attempt to cover the hole with a fill plug as the plug will block a rotating blade from the inside of the cartridge.

Replacing the Reset Chip

The cartridge’s reset chip needs to be replaced to reset the print counter and get rid of the low toner message. Being a lockout chip, the printer will keep reading the refilled cartridge as empty and you won’t be able to proceed with print jobs.

1. Locate the reset chip. This is found on the rear of the supply chamber.
2. Carefully cut the plastic tabs holding the chip with the use of an X-Acto knife.
3. Insert the knife blade beneath the chip’s base and slide it upward away from its housing.
4. Pull out the replacement chip from the kit and insert it into the housing with the (gold plated) contact side of the chip facing out.
5. Gently shake the cartridge from side to side to distribute the toner evenly and load the cartridge back into the printer to conduct test prints.
   

HP Toner Cartridges: Difficult to Remanufacture but Easy to Refill

HP toner cartridges can be thought of as remanufacturing – averse. Now what makes me say this stems from the intricate design of its cartridge units! For one, the absence of a fill hole in its design prevents the conduct of convenient toner refills – unlike Brother and Samsung toner cartridges. On the other hand, a waste chamber is incorporated into the HP cartridge unit. While hard to tinker given its small size, the waste chamber is tightly glued with other cartridge parts such as the drum, blades and wipers. This way, the user needs to break apart the cartridge to remanufacture it. Moreover, the waste chamber requires cleaning prior to toner supply replenishment which adds a step or two into the refill process.

Difficult to Remanufacture
Given the design of HP cartridges such as the Q6000A, Q6001A, Q6002A and Q6003A of the HP Laserjet 2600 series; remanufacturing it can be quite of a challenge as remanufacturers need to handle pertinent parts carefully when cleaning or replacing the OPC drum and blade, as well as in its reassembly to the waste chamber in order to prevent print quality defects and waste toner overflow. Good thing an entire replacement waste chamber set is now available. But then again, the remanufacture of HP cartridges is best left in the hands of cartridge remanufacturers.

Easy to Refill
Performing cartridge refills however is something any regular laser printer user can undertake to save on laser printing costs. The color cartridges of the HP 2600 laser printer can easily be loaded with fresh toner supply by melting holes on pertinent cartridge sections to expose the toner supply chamber and waste chamber and after conducting a few maintenance procedures. The user only needs to secure an HP 2600 toner refill kit, a refill tool and electrical tape to perform do-it-yourself refills.

The refill process includes the (1) clean up of the waste and toner supply chambers (2) refill of the supply chamber and (3) Replacement of Reset Chip. All these will be explained in detail in a succeeding post.