PIXMA G6050 colors washed out

[jbulle]

We have a canon pixma g6050. 3 years old. Sporadic use. 

I have done everything : cleaning, deep cleaning, ink flush, … nothing works. Colors are washed out. And to discard any Color profile issue I made a trial printing from the scanner : same result. 

print (sofa is grey) 

 original 

 

any idea? I am tired. For information I tried on my mac with latest macos (Tahoe) I tried from my iPhone. Printer is connected via WiFi. Tried already reinstalling the printer no change. 

[DerrickL]

What does a nozzle check look like?

[jbulle]

This is the output 

 

[DerrickL]

Based on your nozzle check pattern, your black grid  is printing normally, but all three colors (Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow) are completely missing  The pale color blocks visible on your page are actually just the background placeholder labels printed on the template, not real ink 

Because the entire color print head has stopped firing, the issue is caused by one of three things: air locks in the ink tubes, a severely dried print head, or ink valves being closed.

I know you have tried some of these fixes already. but hopefully a second round may break loose the ink. 

1. Check for Air in the Ink Lines (Most Likely)

Lift the scanner bed of your MegaTank printer and look at the clear, flexible ink tubes leading to the color print head.

• The Problem: If you see large pockets of air or sections where the tubes are completely clear (empty of cyan, magenta, or yellow), ink cannot reach the nozzles.

• The Solution: Perform an Ink Flush through the printer menu.

  1. Press the Setup (Gear) button.

  2. Navigate to Maintenance and press OK.

  3. Select Ink Flush, choose Color, and confirm.

  ⚠️ Note: This forces ink through the lines to clear air pockets. It uses a significant amount of ink and fills the waste ink absorber, so only run it once.

2. Verify the Ink Valves and Joint Buttons

If you recently moved the printer or refilled the ink, a physical mechanism might be blocking the flow.

• Lift the scanning unit to access the print head carriage.

• Ensure the ink valve lever (usually on the side, used when shipping) is completely open in the printing position.

• Press down firmly on the two blue joint buttons on top of the print head carriage to make sure they are clicked flush and locked into place.

3. Clear Stubborn Print Head Clogs

If the tubes are full of ink but nothing prints, dried ink is capping the nozzles.

• Run 1 or 2 standard Cleaning cycles followed by a Deep Cleaning cycle via the printer's Maintenance menu.

• If software cleaning fails, you may need to physically remove the color print head and sit the bottom nozzles on a lint-free cloth soaked in warm distilled water or isopropyl alcohol for a few minutes to dissolve the blockage.

---

If you look inside the printer, are the clear ink tubes full of color, or do they look empty and filled with air bubbles? Knowing this will help rule out a hardware failure versus a simple ink flow issue.

[jbulle]

I already did all of this i’ll try ink flush again 

 

[jbulle · Accepted solution]

Ok so after doing all the things I mentioned and an ink flush this is the result which I consider as solved. 

canon if you read this : never put such a product on the market. This is completely giving the finger to the customers … 

 

[DerrickL]

Is the top one you printed after another ink flush? 

I am not an advocate of super tank printers, not Canon's not Epson's not anyone's. You save money on ink if you can get enough prints to cover the difference in cost of the printer. However you have a whole printer full of potential other issues with the ink not flowing, printer heads clogging etc, it is the one of the top three problems if not the top issue posted here on this community forum. There is a reason why the five, six or more color  pro photo printers use ink cartridges one for each color that mount in the carriage with two print heads, no pump or tubes to contend with.