How to Refill Epson Stylus Photo 820 Ink Cartridges

By Nathaniel Miller

Overview

The Epson Stylus Photo 820 is a photo printer designed to serve the masses. If you are a professional photographer, you may be looking for a bit more from your prints than this printer can offer, however if you are a photography enthusiast or part-time contract photographer, the Epson Stylus 820 could work just fine. The Epson Stylus 820 is reliable and the most maintenance you will ever have to do on it is change the ink cartridges. Depending on the amount of printing that you typically do, ink could be a hefty investment. However, there is an inexpensive alternative to buying new cartridges each time you run out. Buying ink in bulk and refilling used ink cartridges can save you a considerable amount of money without sacrificing print quality.

Epson Stylus 820 photo printers can print high quality color or black and white prints.

Step 1

Remove the ink cartridge from the printer by opening the access door and allowing the cartridge cradle to come to rest in the access area. Open the cartridge cover and push firmly down on the top of the print cartridge to disengage the cradle. Lift straight up to remove the cartridge. Examine the ink jets on the bottom of the cartridge to see if they are clogged.
Step 2

Pour a bit of alchol on the cotton swabs and then gently rub the ink jets to remove any dried ink that may be clogging them. Turn the ink cartridge over and use the drill and drill bit supplied in the refill kit to make a small hole in the top of the cartridge next to the sticker. This is your reservoir access hole and will be where you refill the cartridge.

Step 3

Fill the syringe with the recommended amount and type of ink (determined by the chart provided with the refill kit) and insert the needle fully into the refill hole. Depress the plunger slowly to release ink into the reservoir. When no more ink will fit into the reservoir, pull the needle out and rinse the syringe with water. Allow the syringe to air dry overnight and the ink cartridge to sit for several hours to allow the ink to fully saturate the reservoir fibers.
Step 4

Insert the ink cartridge back into the cartridge cradle in the printer, close the cartridge cover, and shut the access panel. Allow the printer to equilibrate and recognize the new ink cartridge and then run "Clean and Align" under the print properties toolbar before printing anything.

Skill: Easy
Ingredients:
Ink refill kit
Cotton swabs
Alcohol
Tip: Refill the ink cartridges in your Epson Stylus 820 printer when they are still 25% full for the best print quality, as this keeps dried ink from clogging the ink jets.
Warning:
Do not force the ink into the reservoir too quickly as this could cause frothing and introduce air into the reservoir chamber.

More Essortment Articles