Fixing Canon's 'Ink Absorber Full' Error

This alarming-sounding error is a maintenance counter, not a leak or malfunction — PIXMA printers track absorbed waste ink internally and lock printing once the counter hits its limit.

Symptoms to look for

• Printer displays a waste ink absorber full or 5B00/1700 error
• Printing is completely blocked
• Error appears after years of regular use

What causes it

The counter simply reached its factory-set threshold; it doesn't necessarily mean the physical pad is saturated, especially on lightly-used printers.

How to fix it

1. Power off the printer completely.
2. Enter service mode (varies slightly by model) to access the maintenance counter.
3. Reset the waste ink counter using Canon's official service tool or a technician's reset procedure.
4. Power cycle the printer and print a test page.
5. If the error returns quickly, the absorber pad itself may need physical replacement.