DTG printers are engineered to print frequently and consistently. White ink contains titanium dioxide (TIO2), a heavy pigment that settles inside ink lines when the printer sits idle. If the machine is unused for extended periods, settled white ink hardens and clogs the print heads — which are among the most expensive components to replace.

CMYK inks are far less prone to settling and are generally not a concern during short idle periods. White ink is the critical one.

• Infrequent or irregular use — white ink (TIO2) settles and hardens in the lines
• Dirty or dried capping station — fails to properly seal the print head overnight
• Crusted wiper blade — cannot effectively clean the head before each pass
• Lint accumulation — especially from dark garments where the head must sit very close to the fabric surface
• Improper ink levels — in open ink systems, bottles that are too high cause gravity siphoning; bottles too low cause ink starvation

Run 2 to 3 head cleaning cycles immediately after powering on. This gets all inks moving through the system — especially white ink — and clears any partial blockages that formed overnight.

White ink uses titanium dioxide (TIO2) as its pigment — a compound significantly heavier than CMYK pigments. It sinks to the bottom of ink lines and bottles overnight, sometimes forming small chunks.

Correct method: Gently rotate and rock the white ink bottles in a slow, circular motion both in the morning before printing and again at the end of the day. Newer ink formulations have improved TIO2 suspension (“soft settling”), which remixes more easily when agitated.

Use a foam-tipped swab — not a cotton Q-tip, which leaves fibres behind — dampened with one of these cleaning fluids:

• Formula 409
• Window cleaner
• Isopropyl alcohol
• Plain distilled water

Gently wipe the inside of the capping station tray and the foam pad on top. Then apply 2–3 drops of cleaning fluid to the foam to keep it moist overnight.

A nozzle check is a test print that maps which nozzles are actively firing. Run one regularly as part of your daily routine.

Warning signs to watch for:

• Jagged or wavy lines in the test pattern
• An entire color channel missing from the output
• Weak or faded prints despite all nozzles appearing to fire

Common causes of nozzle failure: extended printer inactivity, a dirty or dried capping station, or a crusted wiper blade. Address these immediately before they worsen.

Yes — shutting down the printer at the end of each day preserves print head life. However, if your printer supports a scheduled wake-up and auto-cleaning function, set it to run 1–2 automatic head cleaning cycles overnight.

This keeps ink flowing during off hours, uses very little ink, and significantly reduces the risk of white ink settling into blockages overnight. Running two automated cycles per night is better than one.

The encoder strip is a thin transparent plastic strip that runs across the back of the printer interior. It has tiny printed marks that the print head reads to determine its exact position — this is how the printer knows its home location and where to place each ink drop.

When ink or lint coats these marks, the print head misreads its position, resulting in:

• Images printed in the wrong location on the garment
• Ghost or duplicate images appearing that are not part of your design
• Severe banding or misregistration

Open ink systems allow a larger ink reservoir to feed the printer, extending capacity and making refills easier. However, the height of the ink bottles relative to the print head is critical:

• Too high: gravity siphons ink uncontrolled into the head
• Too low: the printer suffers ink starvation, causing missing nozzle output

Monitor ink levels daily and never leave bottles empty or completely full.

Do not simply leave the printer idle with ink in the lines. Instead:

• Best option: Flush all inks and replace with cleaning cartridges or cleaning fluid, then continue running the printer periodically to keep it cycling
• For white ink specifically: Replace with distilled water or cleaning fluid to prevent settling — flush back out and replace with white ink when resuming production
• Use the downtime productively: Print sample shirts for display or marketing. DTG on dark shirts specifically — this keeps the printer active while building your sample library

DTG printers are highly sensitive to their surroundings. Follow these environmental requirements: