Tonight Status Monitor 3 informed me that parts inside my RX425 were
packing up - how long have I got until they go belly up?

It's not worth a service - the printer isn't worth that much.

Si.

"Devros" <simondevey@googlemail.com> wrote:
The message is telling you that the waste ink pads are almost full, these pads
collect ink that is used for cleaning the printhead.
If you don't want to have a full service you can just reset the waste ink
counter, this printer is supported by the the utility available from
http://www.ssclg.com/epsone.shtml
Once you have reset the counter you should be OK until the next time you get
the message but the second time you get the message the pads must be cleaned or
replaced to avoid ink spillage in the printer.
Download the utility and install it, open the utility and select your printer
from the list.
Exit the utility.
Right click on the icon in the task bar and select protection counter, reset
the counter.
If you have difficulty then uninstall the status monitor for your printer and
try again.
Tony

Tony wrote:
Cheers,

Can I remove and clean them myself...?

Simon.

"Devros" <simondevey@googlemail.com> wrote:
Very likely you can if you have some mechanical skills. I have never worked on
this printer so I don't know what is involved but usually the covers have to be
removed and some internal components also. The pads can be washed in lots of
cold running water, dried thouroughly and then replaced. The reset must of
course also be performed.
Try www.manuals4you.com they may have the service manual for this printer but I
have not checked.
Tony

Likely, this is referring to the "protection numbers" coming up on the
waste ink pads. Epson rates each printer for a certain number of
cleaning and purging cycles before the waste ink pad fills up. However,
especially with dye inks, much of the ink evaporates over time, so those
numbers are quite conservative.

On some Epson printers, the reset for this code is a matter of a front
panel button sequence press. On some, a free small third party program
can be used to reset these numbers, and with some, only Epson's own
propriety software will work.

Art

Devros wrote:

Tony wrote:
Completely died tonight - SSC wouldn't bring it back to life...

Si.