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.
   

How to Refill the Brother TN-350 toner cartridge?

When printouts manifest dusting and poor quality prints, the toner supply of the TN-350's toner chamber is most likely nearing exhaustion while residual toner particles are literally ‘dead’ and no longer capable of accepting even the maximum electrical charge. In that case, it is now time to reload fresh toner powder into the toner chamber with the use of Brother TN-350 toner refill kit.

Here's how the Brother TN-350 toner cartridge is replenished of its toner supply:

Getting Started
First and foremost, ascertain that your empty TN-350 toner cartridge is still in good working condition, as conducting refills on a defective cartridge defeats the purpose of reloading it. Select a work area with sufficient space that is thoroughly lighted and free from sudden wind movement as well. Likewise perform the refill on a sturdy workbench and provide a trashcan beside it.

Opening the Toner Chamber
Now put the empty TN-350 toner cartridge on the workbench and uncover the duct tape seal of the fill plug. Pry open the fill plug with the use of a small flathead screwdriver and possibly with a needle-nosed pliers. Most new generation toner cartridges (except Canon and HP) are designed with fill holes to thus streamline the refill process.

Cleaning the Toner Chamber
Dump toner residues from the toner hopper. The fill hole should be positioned over the trashcan for easy disposal of waste toner. After that, clean the insides of the toner chamber properly and apply suction with the use of a toner vacuum as much as possible.

Unlike other OEM toner cartridges, a toner waste chamber does not form part of the design of Brother toner cartridges. Instead of collecting waste toner on a separate compartment, used toner is repelled from the drum and transferred back to the toner chamber by the developer roller in the process of printing to blend unused toner with waste toner. This set up can cause backgrounding in printouts when residual toner particles could no longer hold even the maximum charge. That is the reason why the toner chamber should be cleared of residual toner prior to replenishment.

Transferring Fresh Toner from Bottle to Toner Chamber
Pull out the bottle of replacement toner from the kit (Follow this link to preview the contents of a toner refill kit) and shake it a little to loosen toner particles. Now Open the seal and screw on the funnel cap. Directly aim the toner bottle over the fill hole and let toner flow freely. Remember not to squeeze the toner bottle as slight pressure can easily send toner dust airborne. When all of the supplied toner powder already fills the chamber; replace the fill plug and use lint free cloth to clear the outer surface of toner residues.


Resetting the Cartridge
Remove 3 screws holding the end cap as illustrated below to reset the cartridge and get rid of the "Low Toner" message.




Once discarded, adjust the reset gear flag to its starting position. Reinstall the gear cover plate and the 3 screws. Now hold the cartridge and shake it gently to distribute toner to the magnetic roller (developer). The refill process is now complete.


The refill process using Brother toner refill kits is really simple and easy to accomplish at that. All it takes is common sense and patience to restore the cartridge back to working mode.

How to Handle Toner Spills and Stains?

Have you been refilling toner cartridges lately? Learn about unanticipated - sometimes unavoidable, scenarios that might come about in the course of toner replenishment and the suitable measures that should be taken in response.

Toner goes airborne. Toner is made of fine powder which could easily get airborne from a little wind movement. Thus in the course of refill, toner refill kit users must turn off fans in the room or shut ventilation ducts to prevent the spread of toner. In case such a mess happens, users must leave the room to allow toner to settle down before retrieving the dust and cleaning the room.

Toner spills on fabric. At times, toner can attach to clothing to therefore leave marks and blemishes on the fabric. Given the said situation, users should take in mind to NEVER rub toner particles sticking to the fabric as this will only produce permanent stains on the material. When toner gets into your clothing, the following removal steps are recommended.

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1. Blow off toner particles on the fabric or simply use a specialized vacuum cleaner intended for this purpose. Do not use a regular vacuum cleaner since toner powder is static-charged and could produce fire.
2. Put ink remover over the toner residue and let it rest for a few seconds or until toner lightens.
3. Scrub the toner with a brush or an abrasive sponge.
4. In light or gentle mode, machine-wash the fabric. Remember to separate the fabric from any other garment while washing to prevent staining other clothing as well, just in case toner residues have not been completely removed.

Toner spills over furniture. Simply wipe off the spill with a damp cloth on affected area. This should clean the affected surfaces furniture.

Toner spills on hands and powder getting into the eyes. Toner sticking to one's hands and eyes can be very unsettling. But then there’s no need to worry. Just wash your hands and clean the affected eye over cold, tap water until such time that toner is removed. Do remember though, never to use warm water as heat will melt the toner and will cause permanent stains.

There is practically no reason to fret when a toner spill occurs because the residue can be removed easily whether on fabric, furniture, and some body parts.

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Refilling an Empty Toner Cartridge - Why waste and residual toner should not be recycled?

When conducting toner cartridge refills, it is standard procedure to empty the toner hopper of residual toner powder prior to replenishment. So why is it necessary to rid the hopper of toner residues before instituting refills?

Residual toner from the old toner supply cannot be recycled for the very reason that it may have been contaminated with paper fibers and dust particles. Only fresh toner powder can sustain required charge levels and likewise fuse properly with transparencies to produce quality printouts. Residual toner will likely contaminate the new supply and affect the drum unit's cleaning mechanism. Consequently, this can cause backgrounding, produce blemishes over printouts and also result to toner scatters over paper as contaminated toner will not charge properly.

Emptying residual toner would be much easier for toner cartridges outfitted with fill holes and plugs such as Brother toner cartridges. Below are some useful tips relevant to the removal of excess toner from the toner hopper and on pertinent toner cartridge parts.

1. When handling a Brother toner cartridge, place it over a workbench and rip off the duct tape placed over the white hopper plug. Pry the plug loose using a flat head screwdriver.
2. Once the toner chamber is open, turn the cartridge side down over a trashcan and empty it of loose toner residue.
3. To clean the cartridge inside, use a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) vacuum cleaner to catch toner dust particles or a toner vacuum.Said device can effectively remove at least 99.7% of airborne particles up to 0.3 micrometers in size.
4. Refrain from using a conventional vacuum cleaner as toner particles are electrically charged; where transport even through the hoses could deliver static discharge, ignite dust in the bag, create a small explosion damaging the vacuum cleaner and finally distribute toner dust airborne.
5. When finally conducting the refill always place the funnel cap over the rim of the replacement toner bottle to avoid toner spills. Let toner flow freely, do not try to squeeze the plastic bottle tightly as slight pressure could send the toner powder airborne.

The clean-up of empty toner cartridges prior to refills should be a ritual that toner refill kit users should observe in order to get the best quality results in printer printouts.