Refilling empty printer cartridges with ink kit

Has anyone used these and do they work? I have "heard" that printers do not actually measure the ink inside, but guestimate how many pages you have printed, in order to decide if it is low or not. This would make refilling them useless since no matter how full, the printer would still think it is empty. Is this the case? The printer in question is a Canon MP280. So who has refilled theirs? (any brand)

a reply to: iTruthSeeker

I found a company on Amazon that carries ink cartridges much, MUCH cheaper than the name brand refills. The ones for my printer usually cost about $50. The refills from this company?.....$10. And they work great. Usually, the cheap ones don't work worth a damn. The printer won't recognize them and just keeps saying "refill ink cartridges", but I've had absolutely no trouble with these since I've been buying them.
Just look for "Office World" on Amazon.

Offic World at Amazon

I buy bottles of ink and refill my own using a syringe. I got a cheap hp printer...Eventually the contacts wear out and you have to buck up for another cartridge....which I buy refurbished...

Ive saved muuucho dinero

Buying new cartridges?...thats highway robbery..

When the companies say that you'll get X pages the general thought is that its about 5% paper coverage maximum.

If you're doing basic B&W printing then get an old school HP 4000/2100 etc as they're compared to today built like a brick you know what and don't have all the crap that a lot of things have today, to refill its not hard..just drill a hole pour in the toner and then slap a bit of tape over the hole and job done.

originally posted by: iTruthSeeker
Has anyone used these and do they work? I have "heard" that printers do not actually measure the ink inside, but guestimate how many pages you have printed, in order to decide if it is low or not. This would make refilling them useless since no matter how full, the printer would still think it is empty. Is this the case? The printer in question is a Canon MP280. So who has refilled theirs? (any brand)

I used to do this for my Lexmark and HP. Re filling in itself will not work, you also need to purchase a "gadget" to re-set the cartridge chip

I personally had no problems and print quality was as good as OEM

Thanks for the replies. I might just try both, getting a cheaper set of cartridges just in case, plus a refill kit.

a reply to: Maxatoria

I've bought a new Samsung laser printer for $35 to avoid paying 3 times that cost for a toner refill. I now have 2 - one for wireless ($35 also) in case the first printer conks out.
They're sooo cheap!!

Sadly my colour ink jet printer/copier/fax just sits with its dried up ink 😕
One day when I'm richer, I'll refill the 4 colours.

a reply to: snowspirit

ive got a few printers. kind of do the same as you

you can get a new printer and 2 cartridges for the same price as 2 cartridges. might as well get the while deal

I refill my Canon ip4500 ink carts.

There's a tool to reset the chip on these carts after you refill to make them seem "new" again to the printer.

If you don't reset the chip, then you have to press and hold a button on the printer each time to override the out-of-ink print halt state.

I use that tool to reset the ink carts.

I use the needle puncture method through the side with the sponge, to keep the ink compartment factory sealed.

It needs to be vacuum sealed to work well. So, I don't break the seal to fill the cart from the top. But, some people do.

I don't know how that works out for them.

Remember to refill with ink before the sponge goes completely dry, otherwise it's a pain to get the ink to flow properly.

It's not a perfect system. You have to take care to use the same ink.

I mixed inks once, using what I had, and then my "red" colors all came out kinda "brown."

So, don't use ink from different manufacturers, find one that works and stick with that ink brand.

If you mix inks, you'll never be able to get the colors to come out right for those carts again.

You'll have to buy genuine new ink carts.

It's cheap and economical to do, but tricky to keep your colors consistent if you can't find the right ink to refill.

a reply to: iTruthSeeker

I don't know about the sensors, as far as that goes, but I do know a little about the ink. We tried that, ONCE. Only once, and never, ever, again. The results were terrible. The stuff leaked, the ink that stayed in didn't work like what came in the cartridges in the first place, and we had to toss them and buy new ones. So, waste of money, as far as we were concerned! I haven't bothered since. The new cartridges aren't cheap, I know, but they at least work. Have used a lot of Canon printers over the years, too, though an HP now.

Edited to add - I know, with ours, when the thing says the ink is low, it really IS low, every single time. As in, try and print, and the ink isn't there. So, not just a "by pages printed" guesstimate, at least for the ones we have used.