Why does canon 860 pixma printer have 2 black ink tanks? only one seems to be used,

Hi,

Based on your explanation I will try to help.
Your ink tank had run out. You can refill it through the bottom of the tank or just simply replace your ink tank.

Hi,

The correct order of install a ink tank (From Left to Right):-

1. CLI-8 Black
2. PGI-5 Black (pigment)
3. CLI-8 Yellow
4. CLI-8 Magenta
5. CLI-8 Cyan

Else you can visit this link and type "correct order of ink tank" in enter your question space.

Good luck...don't forget to rate the solution.

There are two black inks in the printer so that when you are printing only black and white such as printing a fax or when you set print in B/W for printed matter, the printer will use the larger ink cartridge. When you are printing in the multicolor mode (most people don't know the difference) the printer will use the finer black ink in the smaller cartridge. This smaller cartridge is used for photo printing and multi-color page printing. You cannot mix the two blacks since the larger cartridge is a coarser ink.

https://support.bchtechnologies.com/hc/en-us/articles/200701259-How-to-reset-Ink-level-Canon-30-241-PIXMA-iP-MP-MX-MG-Series

http://reviews.cnet.com/multifunction-devices/pixma-mp830-office-all/4505-3181_7-31785803.html

Replacing the five ink tanks (cyan, yellow, magenta, black dye, and black pigment) is a simple task. The top of the printer flips up to reveal the ink tanks and the printheads, and by flipping a lever, you can pull out each tank individually. Being able to replace individual tanks is a boon, as you won't waste colors you use less frequently. Also, you won't need separate photo ink to print photos, which we appreciate. Canon ships the Pixma MP830 with full ink tanks. Replacement color and dye-based black ink tanks cost $14.25 apiece, while the pigment-based black ink tank costs $16.25. Canon estimates the cost per page for both black text and color text to be an inexpensive 2 cents.

The large cartridge is for text and black pictures and the small one is for toning colours so you need to replace it. I found an absolute bargain on e-bay (2 packs of complete cartridges for £12-$18) when a set of origionals are £24 each set.

you cant swap it for printing you have to refill the empty one

The PGI-220 is the larger ink tank and is filled with standard black ink. The PGI-221 black cartridge is the photo black. There is no way to force the printer to use the photo black cartridge (skinny one) to print documents. The photo black cartridge is only used if you print a photo. I own a Cartridge World ink refilling shop and I can't refill these cartridges yet. There is no way to reset the ink level chip without a resetter and any replacement chips you find on the internet are technically violating patent law.

One tank is reserved for colour printing and the other one is for grayscale printing ( Black and white). Watch out as when you run out of ink and you keep trying to print a document with empty tank cartridge it will cause your print head to go bad. The cost of a new canon print head is the same as the cost of a new printer. Canon over priced the print head.

Hello, I found this in a repair manual for the MP830. summery is to press and hold the stop/reset button for 5 or more seconds. I copied the info from the manual too. The remaining ink amount unknown. [1683] (Applicable ink tank icon) The remaining level of the following ink cannot be correctly detected. An ink tank which has once been empty is installed. Replace the applicable ink tank with a new one. Printing with a once-empty or refilled ink tank can damage the print head. If printing is continued without replacing the refilled ink tank, press the Stop/Reset button for 5 sec. or longer to record the use of a refilled ink tank. Note: After the above operation, the function to detect the remaining ink amount is disabled.