UFOSystem Frequently Asked Questions


	Q. Do I need to take out one of the UFO ink cartridge when I need to refill it? A: No. When refilling UFOSystem, it is NOT necessary to remove the cartridge from printer. This is a major advantage of using UFOSystem. This means that there is no messy refill replacement and cleaning procedure, simply add more inks to the cartridge when you run out of ink. Moreover, refilling without taking out the cartridge wont cause any air introduced to the print head and cause the clogged nozzles. Q. How often do I need to refill UFO cartridge? A: We suggest you check the ink level in each cartridge before printing. If ink is less than 30% full, you should add more inks to the cartridges immediately. The other safer way to supply UFO cartridge enough inks is to refill cartridges before you start the printing job. Q. What should I do if I need to bring my printer to different location? Does the ink leak out? A: You can pour the ink back to the ink bottles or use a scotch tape to cover the opening. Q. Mixing UFO refillable carts and OEM carts? A: NO. You can not. UFOSystem requires you install all UFO cartridges and chipsets. Q. How to reset ink level when the ink meter goes to zero? A: If you see BIG RED X mark in your printer software, following the steps at below to reset it to full: 1. Push the INK button several times to move cartridge housing to changing cartridge position. 2. Push the resetting switch for 3 to 5 seconds then let go. 3. Push the INK button again to move housing to printing position then you will see ink level back to FULL. 4. If ink level does not roll back, go to printer software and trigger "Head Cleaning", then ink level will be back to FULL. Q. How do I install 3800 UFOSystem? A: Never insert any refillable cartridges or OEM cartridges to the printer if it has no chip on it. This may damage your printer's chip reader. Whenever you power cycling your 3800 printer, please wait 20 seconds before powering it back on Please read the instructions carefully before installing refillable carts! 1: TEST YOUR PRINTER Before you install the 3800 refillable ink system, you should set up the Epson 3800 printer with Epson supplied inks and driver. Conduct a nozzle check to make sure that the printer is working properly. If the Nozzle pattern has any gaps whatsoever, run the clean cycle until it prints perfectly. DO NOT INSTALL THE INK SYSTEM IF YOUR PRINTER IS NOT FUNCTIONING PROPERLY! 2: PACKAGE CONTENTS Check to ensure you have all parts shown in the picture: A. 9x refillable cartridges and 2x control chips. B. 9x Ink bottles. C. 1x Switch key. 3: POWER OFF YOUR 3800 Turn off 3800 printer from the control panel– Gray Button. Unplug the power cord from the back of the printer. Open the INK COVER and remove all 9x original cartridges from 3800 printer. 4: INSTALL CHIPS By default, your 3800 refillable ink system comes with 2 control chips (could be any two color cartridges), you will need to remove 7 chips from the removed original cartridges and attach to refill cartridges. (* You will only need to use 7 chips from your OEM cartridges, we provides 2 chips to control the other 7 chips and waste ink maintenance chip.) Use a small flathead screwdriver or a thin knife blade to gently pry up the chip from original cartridge. Locate the right color of refill cartridge that matches the chip you just removed. Peel off the tape cover on the chip slot and attach the chip to the tape. Locate the 4th pin on the chip and tape it off. DO NOT ATTACH THE CHIP UPSIDE DOWN. Repeat and remove the rest of 6 chips from original cartridges and attach them to refill cartridges which have no chip yet. Remember to tape off the 4th pins on all chips. 5: MODIFY WASTE INK MAINTENANCE TANK Carefully remove the maintenance tank from 3800 printer in case it's getting full. Tape off the 4th pin on the maintenance tank chip. Put the maintenance tank back to the printer. 6: FILL INK TO THE CARTRIDGE Install all the refill cartridges and maintenance tank to the printer while it is still powered off. Unscrew the ink bottle cap, and use a thin knife blade to gently poke the thin protected film sealed on top of the bottle. Unscrew and remove the sealed cap on yellow cartridge. Grab the yellow ink bottle and cut the tip off. Fill ink to the yellow cartridge. (Each refill catridge can hold up to 150ml inks.) Put the sealed cap back. Using the small cap to close the bottle tightly, and store the ink bottle in a safe area or original shipping package. Repeat and fill all the rest 8 colors. 7: FINAL CHECKS & SWITCH KEY You are now in a position to perform the final checks before powering your printer on. Please check that all cartridge caps are securely tightened. Check all the cartridges are firmly seated in the cartridge housing. Once everything's been double checked, close the waste ink cover (Maintenance cart cover). Plug the main power cord back to the printer and then it power ON. Once you have powered your 3800 printer up, the printer will show the error message "INK COVER OPEN." This is overridden by installing the Switch Key, please see the following images and ensure that the solid flat side should be to the LEFT and the indented side to the RIGHT. Push the switch key into the available slot right beside MK cartridge as shown in the following picture and ensure that the bottom LUG rests at a slight angle on the silver edge casing of the printer. 8: TEST & PRINT Ensure the printer is powered on and have your graphics program (e.g. Adobe Photoshop) open and ready to use. The printer should come on and perform a clean cycle. When it stops, the green light should be on. If you see a red light at this point, it indicates that one of the chip has not been recognized or seated correctly. If this is the case, please push firmly on the cartridge that is not being recognized. If this does not solve the problem then remove the cartridge from the printer, then carefully check the chip that is not being recognized by wiping the contacts with a soft cloth and insert this refill cartridge back to the 3800 printer. Now open a testing picture and print it! ENJOY! Q. How do I refill 3800 UFO cartridge? A: When ink level is down to 5% to 10% in refill cartridge, you are suggested to fill more inks to it. Since both refill cartridge and Epson 3800's cartridges are pressurized ink cartridges that deliver ink more quickly to the 3800's print head and allow the 3800 to print faster, you need to release air pressure gradually by opening the air-releasing valve (the sealed cap). If released suddenly there will be a little upward flow of ink through the refilling hole. 1: UNSCREW & REMOVE THE SEALED CAP Turn off the printer. WAIT 3 to 5 MINUTES. Carefully unscrew the little sealed cap on top of the refill cartridge but dont release it yet for 1 minute. Carefully unscrew and take off the little sealed cap on top of the refill cartridge. If released too fast, ink will spurt out with the air. 2: FILL INK TO THE CARTRIDGE Grab the color ink bottle for the corresponding cartridge. You may need to poke the protected film and cut the tip off if you are using a brand new bottle. Proceed to fill the ink cartridge. (Each refill cartridge can hold up to 150ml inks.) Put the sealed cap back. Use the small cap to close the bottle tightly, and store the ink bottle in a safe area out of the reach of children and out of direct sunlight. 3: POWER ON THE 3800 Ready to print! Q. How do I reset 3800 UFO cartridge and waste ink maintenance tank? A: When any of the ink levels goes down to empty or waste ink tank reaches full, you will need to reset them by following steps below: 1) Keep printer power ON (The LCD panel should show maintenance tank full or cartridges empty). 2) Remove Switch Key from the printer. 3) Release all cartridges from 1 to 9 (left to right) so cartridge chips and chip sensors in the printer do not connect each other. 4) Open the maintenance tank door and pull out the waste ink maintenance tank. 5) Reinsert the waste tank and close the waste tank door. 6) Reinsert the switch key. 7) Wait until the printer monitor shows: Insert the Maintenance cartridge. 8) Remove the switch key and pull out the waste ink maintenance tank again. 9) Reinsert the waste tank and close the waste tank door. 10) Insert cartridges from 1 to 9 (left to right) 11) Insert the switch key back into the printer. Now all cartridges should show full and the waste ink tank should show empty. If this does not reset them and you get some error messages from the LCD panel, please power cycle your 3800 and this should take care of the resetting and clear the error messages. Note: Waste ink maintenance tank will only be reset when it gets full. Since you keep resetting and using the same maintenance tank, you need to modify this tank as shown following. Q. How do I reuse 3800 waste ink maintenance tank? A: Since you can reset Waste Ink Maintenance chip, you can convert it to a reuse waste in tank. Below are instructions on how to modify and reuse your waste tank or you can simply replace it when full (you need to buy this waste ink tank from Epson if you do not want to modify it). 1) Remove waste ink tank from 3800. 2) Use a small flathead screwdriver, pry top off the waste ink tank. 3) Remove top from the waste ink maintenance tank and throw away the old ink-soaked pads. 4) Fold several paper towels or some cotton balls to fit in the bottom of the tank filling the tank about 1/2 way (shown below). Then fold a paper towel on top of others. 5) Put plastic grid top back on the waste ink tank and insert the tank into the printer as normal. Note: You may pay closer attention to the level of waste ink in the maintenance tank so it doesn’t overflow and excess ink leaking. When you are prompted with the message “MAINTENANCE TANK FULL” from 3800's LCD menu, remove modified waste ink tank, dump and dispose waste ink properly then add new cutton balls or paper towels to it. You will need to reset maintenance tank chip afterward. (See "How do I reset 3800 UFO cartridge and waste ink maintenance tank?" )