Edible Ink: Can it Clog? What can I do to minimize the risk of clogging? How do I know if it clogs? What can I do if it clogs?

Question

1. ALL EDIBLE INK PRINTERS / CARTRIDGES HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO CLOG:
   
   Some will clog more than others.  Inkedibles inks have been developed and tested to have the absolute lowest possible risk of clogging, but ANY EDIBLE INK CARTRIDGE can clog, and the reason for this is as follows:
   
   Printheads can clog due to non-use of a printer - leaving a printer idle, especially when you have edible cartridges installed, can cause the water from the ink droplets which accumulate at the heads to evaporate, leaving behind crystalline (sugar) deposits which can clog the print heads. 
    
2. THERE ARE THINGS YOU CAN DO TO MINIMIZE THE RISK OF CLOGGING:
   
   Ensure that you print at least 1-2 pages with your printer per week, and if you are going to leave the printer out of use for a while, to ensure that you at least power cycle it every other day (turning it off and then on gets the ink flowing), or leave food grade Inkedibles cleaning cartridges installed while the printer is out of use
    
3. HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE A CLOG?
   
   If you do get a clog in your printer's printheads, it will show up when you print as colors could come out dull, or you will notice lines on the page or missing colors
    
4. WHAT CAN YOU DO IF YOU HAVE A CLOG?
   
   Run a print head cleaning cycle (through your printer's menu), and print a nozzle test to see if its cleared. And if that does not clear the clog, then you need more deep cleaning.  If deep cleaning does not work, then install Inkedibles cleaning cartridges and print a few pages with these installed, AND run a print head cleaning cycle or deep cleaning cycle with these Inkedibles cleaning cartridges installed. For severe clogs you can remove the printhead unit (only possible with CANON printers, see attached for what it looks like), and run water (room temperature or cold) over/through the printheads (which are on the bottom) and over the ports (which are the circular portions that interact with the cartridges). Be careful NOT to run water over the electronics on the side of the printhead unit.
   
   The ultimate solution to unclogging a printhead is to use an Inkedibles Flush System with Flush Solution (see this article for more info

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