DIY Refillable Canon Ink Cartridges: Sponge Mod for PG-245 CL-246 PG-243 CL-244 XL

DIY Refillable Canon Ink Cartridges: Sponge Mod for PG-245 CL-246 PG-243 CL-244 XL

Today, I will be discussing and demonstrating how to make a refillable sponge cartridge printer. Specifically, I’ll focus on models PG-245, CL-246, PG-243, and CL-244 XL. I’ll address how to do the 260 and 261 models in a separate piece. They’re a little bit taller, but the process is more or less the same. If you have those models, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure it out using the information I’ll provide below.

When I first addressed this subject, it was geared toward a traditional school audience. I was asked to make it because parents of the students were having to print out their children’s work packets, which can be a lot if you’re printing things out every day. Ideally, I can help with the expenses that come with it by showing how to make a DIY refillable sponge cartridge.

What do the Model Numbers Mean?

I won’t be able to fit all of the information into one piece, so, as I did with the related videos on my YouTube channel, I’ll have to split it up into different parts. We’ll first look at the 243 and 244 cartridge models. These are typically the starter cartridges you’ll find when buying a new printer. They also tend to be expensive (around $30 or $40).

They’re almost the same as ink cartridge model numbers 245 and 246. The 245 XL and 246 XL models are similar but can hold more ink due to their larger sponges. This means that if you get a printer that says it uses an ink cartridge with model number 244, you know that you can also use a cartridge with model number 245 or 245 XL.

Since the only difference between them is how much ink they can hold, here’s a table showing the exact amounts:

If you want to know more about this, you can go to this page on my website (BCHTechnologies.com). You can also find information on where to buy printers that use these cartridges on my website.

Lesson 1: Printing

If you look at your Canon printer’s ink cartridge, you’ll notice tiny holes at the bottom called nozzles. On the side, you’ll see an electric ribbon that brings power to the ink cartridge and connects it to the printer. The power supplied by this electric ribbon heats the ink cartridge near the openings. This creates a bubble in the ink and, when it bursts, causes a droplet of ink to fall out.

On top of the nozzles is a collection box, which must be filled with ink for successful printing. If you use all of the ink in the cartridge and refill it, it’s likely that the collection box will still be empty. To fix the issue, you’ll need some type of suction underneath to prime it.

Lesson 2: Sponge and Overfilling

Above the collection box is a sponge, which determines how much ink can be put into the cartridge. Many people picture a loose pool of ink inside their cartridge so they can just fill the entire cartridge with ink. In fact, the ink is held up by a wet sponge that, when overfilled, won’t be able to prevent the ink from spilling out of the cartridge.

Today I’ll be showing you how to replace the standard sponge that comes with it with the largest alternative possible. We’ll also be able to fill the new sponge with a bit more ink than Canon would before priming the cartridge. You don’t have to prime it every time, but it’s a good idea to prime it if this is your first time emptying this cartridge.

Lesson 3: Ink Level

Inside the cartridge is a chip that tracks how many pages you’ve printed. The printer doesn’t have a way to measure the ink levels, so it uses this data to calculate how much is left. This can be a problem because there’s no way to reset the number after refilling the cartridge.

Instead, you have the option to turn the ink monitor off. This function will only be available, though, after you’ve printed the maximum number of pages, so you’ll need to keep printing until your printer eventually says it reached the maximum. Then all you need to do is press the stop button to turn the monitor off.

DIY Instructions:

If I don’t have the cartridge I want or need more, I usually go to eBay and find an empty or “virgin” cartridge for sale. A virgin cartridge is simply one that has never been refilled before. Today I’m using the CBC 245.

Step One: Opening

Get a sharp, steady knife. At the top of the cartridge, you’ll see an edge with a small triangular bit pointing downward. To open the cartridge, we need to cut along the seam from the corner. Make sure you have enough room to move your hand pretty freely, as we’ll be using a lot of up and down motion.

Once you see it pop open, pry it carefully. On the inside, you can see that Canon makes its covers thick, so you only have room to use a thin sponge. That’s the difference between standard and XL models. The XL lids are much thinner and come with a bigger sponge.

Underneath the sponge, you’ll see a small square filter. This is the opening through which the ink flows to get to the collection box. You mustn’t puncture that filter, or the cartridge will get clogged easily.

Step Two: Modifying

Now, get out your modification kit (which you can purchase here). The mod kit has a glass case, and you can see that the sponge inside is already filled. Tear off the label, and we’re ready to go. The hole underneath the label is to refill the sponge, so it must be facing upward when you slide the kit into the cartridge. It isn’t made to fit all the way in, so there will be a gap.

Colored Ink Cartridges

The process for a color ink cartridge is a bit different. Use the same method to open the cartridge as for the other one. You’ll see that the cover for these is thick as well, unless you have the XL version.

You’ll see that the inside is separated into three different compartments, so that the colors don’t mix. Because of this, our color ink mod kit is slightly different (other than having different ink). This mod kit is split into three smaller kits, each the size of an XL cartridge. Make sure you put the colors in their proper places, because your printer won’t know the difference, so your pictures will be the wrong color.

Just as with the other ones, peel off the label and slide them into their respective places. They won’t fit all the way in either, but neither does the manufacturer cover anyway. For the magenta, you have to look at where the filter in the cartridge is and where the opening on the bottom of the kit is because they have to line up. None of these changes are permanent, so if one of the cartridges goes bad, you can order another one and simply replace it.

Step Three: Priming

Once the cartridges have been properly placed, it’s time to prime. This process is easier than you might think. All you need to do is take a paper towel and cover the nozzles. Then, using the hose extension on your home vacuum, suction the nozzles with brief taps until you get the right amount of ink out.

Another thing you can do is go to BCHTechnologies.com and order a priming clip. Make sure your cartridge’s model number matches the listing. You’ll get one black clip and two pads. One pad is shorter than the other. The longer one is for priming the black ink cartridge, and the shorter one is for priming the colored ink cartridge.

All you have to do is push the cartridge in and use a syringe to suck the ink until it starts coming out. If it doesn't, that may be because the cartridge has been left unused for too long. If that’s the case, you put a little hot water in a bowl (around boiling temperature) and set the cartridge nozzle-side-down in the water for five to ten minutes.

Putting the Cartridges Back in the Printer

Now that we’ve filled them, the ink levels are back at 100%. However, the printer will still be reading it very low, depending on how many pages you’ve printed. To fix this, hook the printer to your computer using a USB cable. A wireless connection may not work for this.

Find your printer under devices, go to preferences>maintenance>nozzle check, and click “print check pattern.” There’s nothing you can do to turn off the check, so you have to keep printing until it thinks the ink levels are at 0%. The check pattern process will also tell you which, if any, of the cartridges need to be primed.

But disabling the ink monitor also means that the printer can no longer display an accurate reading of how much ink is in the cartridge and when you’ll need to refill it again. That means you’ll have to monitor the ink yourself. To do this, we’re going to take a whole reem of paper and divide it into roughly half. That’s about how much an XL cartridge can print without needing to be refilled.

Once you print through half a ream, you will need to take the cartridges out and refill all the ink. Like before, the printer will still say the ink level is low until you run it to 0%, even if you refill it.

This will cause the hazard light and the black ink to flash yellow. If you go to your computer, you’ll see that it gives you an error code 1688 “The following ink has run out: Black <Black>.” That means it’s time to turn off the ink monitor for the black cartridge. Looking at the ink monitor, you’ll see a red X above the black.

Without closing that window, go to the printer tab on your computer, listed under “devices”. Now you’ll need to go to your physical printer and look at what model you have. Press and hold the printer’s stop button, and keep holding it down until you hear a click.

You’ll see the printer returning to work, and from then on, the light above the black ink will blink. It does that to indicate the ink monitor has been turned off. Now, if you go back to your computer, you’ll see confirmation that the ink monitor has been turned off because there will be no X or exclamation mark over it.

Now that the black ink monitor has been turned off, you’re still going to keep printing until the color ink monitor can be turned off as well. Next time you take the cartridges out to refill or replace them with new ones, the monitors will be reactivated, and you’ll have to repeat this process.

For now, I’m going to refill the cartridge at about the halfway mark because that way, the nozzles are already primed, and I won’t have to redo it every time I refill the ink sponges. There is a bit of a difference between a pigment cartridge and a dye cartridge, but there is a very safe way to convert one to the other and vice versa.

I’m going to use dye ink for this. You can start by going to BCHTechnologies.com. Go to the ink for printer tab and “refill ink for Canon,” then click on dye ink. You can pick from almost any ink on that page, and it should work fine.

I will use one of the squeeze bottles first and carefully put just a couple of drops of the ink into it. Only add a few drops at a time, and make sure you pay attention to see if it gets absorbed immediately.

If it stops soaking in right away, that probably means that you’re getting close to full. Since the ink wasn’t entirely depleted and the collection box wasn’t empty when I decided to refill it, I probably won’t need to prime it this time.

I hope you found this blog helpful! For more helpful tips, tricks, and DIY printer advice, follow me on YouTube at Kevin at BCH. Happy printing! For a video walkthrough of this post, click here: DIY Refillable Canon Ink Cartridges: Sponge Mod for PG-245 CL-246 PG-243 CL-244 XL