
You should see the gunk build up flow out. Place your finger over the tap to create back pressure to allow you to squirt the water into all crevices of the printer head.


Leave for 2 hours while agitating the unit occasionally. Mix a 50/50 solution of warm water and Windex and place in a shallow container, enough to cover the base of the printer head and ink ports. You can move it slightly to a different spot every hour or so. If the printer head is badly clogged let it soak for 3 to 4 hours or overnight.Move the print head to several different spots (about a minute each spot) and shake gently. Set the printer head into the container on top of the towels.Slowly pour the water or mixture over the paper towels so that you have approximately 1/2 inch of liquid in the bottom of the pan.

Heat the mixture in the microwave for about a minute or so - it should NOT be boiling. You can also use a 50/50 mixture of ammonia and distilled water (about a pint will do).

Normally you can clear up minor clogs and streaking by running the cleaning cycle found in your printer's software utility. An inkjet nozzle has a diameter of about 45 microns which is about 1/2 the width of a human hair. If the printer head nozzles are blocked or dried out you will need to dissolve the dried ink. It is important to print a few pages in both black and color at least once per week in order to keep the ink flowing and prevent clogging. Canon printers have a removable printer head that holds the ink cartridges.
