Epson ET-3850 how to refill the ink tanks
When the ink level is below the lower line on a tank. Fill the tank to the upper line.
Steps
Wear disposable gloves while refilling the ink tanks to avoid staining your hands. If ink spills, wipe it off immediately with a damp towel to avoid permanent stains.
Marked CAUTION by the manufacturer Source: Refilling Ink and Replacing the Maintenance Box: Refilling the Ink Tanks, p. 174
- Turn on the product and close the document cover if it is open.
- Lift up the scanner unit with both hands until it locks, then open the ink tank cover.
- Read the precautions on the screen and proceed to the next screen.
- Open the cap of the tank you are going to fill. Check that the tank color matches the ink color.
Do not shake or squeeze the bottle. Do not touch the top of the bottle after its cap is removed.
Marked CAUTION by the manufacturer Source: Refilling Ink and Replacing the Maintenance Box: Refilling the Ink Tanks, p. 176
If ink gets on your skin, wash it thoroughly with soap and water. If ink gets into your eyes, flush them immediately with water. If ink gets into your mouth, spit it out immediately. Seek medical advice if problems persist.
Marked WARNING by the manufacturer Source: Refilling Ink and Replacing the Maintenance Box: Refilling the Ink Tanks, p. 176
- Hold the ink bottle upright and slowly turn the bottle cap to remove it.
- Insert the bottle straight onto the filling port. The bottles are keyed for each color, so do not force them. Ink flows into the tank and stops automatically at the upper line.
- If ink does not flow from the bottle, lift and reinsert it. If the ink has reached the upper line, do not remove and reinsert the bottle.
- Remove the bottle when the tank is full, close the bottle cap securely and close the ink tank cap securely.
- Repeat for each tank you need to refill, then close the ink tank cover and close the scanner unit with both hands.
- Select Proceed on the information screen, select Proceed again and follow the on-screen instructions to reset the ink level for the colors you refilled.
Do not leave the ink bottle inserted, because the bottle may be damaged or ink may leak. The product can keep running with a tank below the upper line, but continued use below the lower line could damage it.
Source: Refilling Ink and Replacing the Maintenance Box: Refilling the Ink Tanks Source: Refilling Ink and Replacing the Maintenance Box: Refilling the Ink Tanks, pp. 173-179
Used for
Other ET-3850 procedures
- How to run a nozzle check from the control panelWhen printouts are light or banded, to see whether the print head nozzles are clogged before cleaning.
- How to clean the print head from the control panelWhen the nozzle check pattern has gaps. Cleaning uses ink, so clean only when print quality declines.
- How to run a Power Cleaning from the control panelWhen white or dark lines or missing nozzles remain after cleaning the print head several times.
- How to align the print head from the control panelWhen printouts are grainy or blurry, vertical lines are misaligned, or dark or light horizontal bands appear.
- How to clear a paper jamWhen the LCD screen reports paper jammed in the product.
- How to run a product checkTo find out whether the product itself is working when printing from a computer fails.
- How to restore control panel settings to their defaultsWhen a control panel, network, copy or scan setting causes a problem.
Sources
- User's Guide, ET-3850. Epson America, Inc. Document CPD-60203, revision CPD-60203R1, 283 pages, en-US. files.support.epson.com (PDF). Listed on the manufacturer's support page. Retrieved 13 November 2026.
Page numbers are the numbers printed in the manual. Where this page and the manual differ, follow the manual.