These articles are provided for general informational purposes only and are NOT intended to provide professional or technical advice of any kind. Your use of any content on or off this site is at your own risk. Please read the disclaimer and safety warnings below.
1.
Inkjet Printer Type and Reliability 2.
Cleaning Epson Color Print Head 3.
Epson Error Light Problems 4.
Canon Bubblejet Problems 5.
Inkjet Printer Colors 6.
Inkjet Primaries 7.
Inkjet Printer Ink 8.
Your Inkjet Printer: A Brief Tour 9.
Non-Use and Refill of BJC-620 Ink Cartridges 10.
History of Inkjet Cartridges 11.
A Primer on Printing 12.
Inkjet Printer Operations 13.
Inkjet Types (At Least From Xerox Perspective) 14.
Responses of Resistance Heater Elements Inkjet Printers 15.
Intermittent Light from Canon BJ 330 16.
Epson Stylus Color 800 Operates But Doesn't Print 17.
Epson Stylus 800 Print Quality 18.
Dead Canon, Compaq, HP, and Similar Power Supplies 19.
HP Inkjet Printer Buyer's Guide 20.
Epson Inkjet Printer Buyer's Guide 21.
Your Inkjet Cartridge: A Brief Tour 22.
A Brief History of the Inkjet Printer 23.
pcl3: ghostscript device driver for printers 24.
Printer Ghostscript 25.
GS-PCL3 26.
HP Printer Cartridge News 27.
HP Printer Cartridge News Con't 28.
HP Printer Cartridge News Con't 29.
Epson Printer Cartridge News 30.
Epson Printer Cartridge News Con't 31.
Canon Printer Cartridge News 32.
Canon Printer Cartridge News Con't 33.
Canon Printer Cartridge News Con't 34.
Canon Printer Cartridge News Con't 35.
Lexmark Printer Cartridge News 36.
Inkjet Printer Cartridge News 37.
Inkjet Media for Large-Format Digital Printing 38.
RemoteScan Software 39.
ColorVision and Pantone Ship ColorPlus 40.
Xerox Color Laser 41.
Compact Photo Printers CP-220 and CP-330 42.
Lexmark C510 43.
EPSON Stylus Photo R200 44.
EPSON Stylus Photo RX600 45.
Canon Launches Industry-First 13 x 19 Inch Inkjet Printer 46.
HP Photo Printing Systems 47.
Lexmark's Award-winning Color Laser Product Line 48.
HP Color Laser Printers 49.
Pantone Launches ColorVantage System for Inkjet Printers 50.
EPSON Stylus Photo R800 Printer 51.
Epson Unveils the Essential Printers 52.
Epson Stylus Pro 4000 53.
CANON U.S.A. Enhances imageCLASS Product Line 54.
Epson's Most Affordable DuraBrite: EPSON Stylus C64 55.
EPSON Stylus CX6400 56.
EPSON Stylus CX5400 57.
Canon DebutsTop-Tier Photo Printers - Six-Color Printing 58.
Lexmark Introduces PrinTrio™ Photo Personal Photo... 59.
EPSON Stylus C84 Ink Jet Printer 60.
HP Unveils Strategy to Deliver Rewarding Experiences... 61.
Minolta Magicolor 7300 EN High-quality, Laser Printer 62.
Lexmark - Industry’s First Sub-$100 Photo Printer.. 63.
CANON U.S.A. Enhances imageCLASS Product Line 64.
Lexmark Printer Toner Cartridge Injunction 65.
Commercial Printing Processes 66.
Macintosh LPR Printing 67.
Printer Troubleshooting Guide
Disclaimer and Safety Warnings
Some of the procedures described in this document require access to dangerous voltages, hazardous laser radiation, moving mechanical parts, and other potential risks to personal safety and damage to equipment and property. The authors and contributors to this document will not be held responsible for any direct or collateral damage which might result from following the suggestions or recommendations contained herein including but not limited to: shock, burns, electrocution, vaporization, meltdowns, torn flesh, destruction of the equipment, and local or planetary wide power disruptions or implosions.
Safety
While printers are not generally considered dangerous pieces of equipment (compared to TV, monitors, and microwave ovens, at least), some types - laser printers in particular - present a variety of hazards that should not be underestimated. In addition, photocopiers - particularly larger high speed machines - need to be treated with great respect while servicing.
There are minimal dangers in servicing most printers. However, there may be exposed line voltage near the line cord and long hair or neck-ties may be sucked in along with paper! Laser printers have their lasers but these are generally located such that accidental exposure to the beam is minimized. The toner in copiers, plain paper faxes, and laser printers may be harmful if inhaled and is a potential fire/explosion risk if carelessly vacuumed. Each of these possible safety issues is discussed below with additional specific information in the chapters for the equipment to which it applies. All in all, working on printers is relatively low risk.
The first set of items applies to all line operated printers:
- The input power is 110 VAC (or 220 to 240 VAC depending on where you live). If it is necessary to work inside with the power on, identify the location of any exposed terminals and cover them with plastic electrical tape or block accidental access in some other way. This is much more dangerous than the high voltage present in laser printers and photocopiers (see below).
- Some equipment of this type uses switchmode power supplies. Their internal voltages may exceed 300 VDC, include large capacitors, and the entire front-end is likely line-connected. Aside from staying away, if power problems are suspected, one must take extreme care in troubleshooting these types of power supplies both for personal safety and because it is extremely easy to destroy them (and possibly the powered equipment) due to a misplaced probe. If there is NO large power transformer near the power input but one or more smaller transformers (possibly with HV warning labels) amid-ships on the power board, you probably have a switcher!
- Moving parts can grab dangling neckties (yes, I know, you haven't worn one of these in 17 years!) and jewelry - remove any you may be wearing.
- There will be all sorts of sharp sheet metal and other parts to gouge flesh. Avoid sudden uncontrolled movement.
- Dot matrix and thermal print heads may be HOT - stay clear.
- The inks, while probably not toxic, are certainly indelible, so don't wear anything you care much about!
The following apply to laser printers and photocopiers:
- In addition to the AC line input, the fuser lamp is usually powered from the line. Thus, dangerous voltage may appear (come and go as the fuser cycles) at contacts deep inside the machine - possibly hidden from view but not touch. The main motor drive may also use line voltage.
- The main drive motors and gear trains in this equipment are quite powerful, especially in large photocopiers. There is no telling what can get sucked in due to carelessness.
- The fuser is very HOT (heat-wise) and can cause a nasty burn. It remains hot for a long time after power is removed.
- There are several high voltages used to charge the various corona wires. For most modern equipment, the maximum current available from these is extremely small (less than 1 mA) so actual danger is minimal. However, some older copiers may have more dangerous high voltage power supplies. Don't assume all are the same! Interlocks are *supposed* to prevent operation except when printing but they can be defeated.
- Powdered toner is not something you want to inhale (in addition to getting all over EVERYTHING). Also see the additional toner warnings at the start of the chapters on laser printers and photocopiers.
- The photosensitive coating on the imaging drum may also be toxic if it should flake off or become powdered. Avoid direct contact.
And finally, for laser printers and laser photocopiers:
- The laser in all but very old (or high performance phototypesetters and other specialized imaging systems which this document does not address) are IR - invisible. So, you cannot detect it by eye - an IR tester circuit, IR detector card, some camcorders, or other means will be needed to determine if the laser is actually working. The beam will also be well collimated and thus especially hazardous to vision since it will be focused to a fine point on the retina.
Fortunately, under normal conditions, the laser beam will not be turned on unless all interlocks are closed and a page is actually being printed and/or will be in constant motion as a result of the scanning mirror (which reduces the risk considerably). (It is virtually impossible to get to the laser beam before the scanning mirror without total disassembly.) However, certain failure modes could result in a stationary beam which ignores the interlocks so take care whenever working on a laser printer with the covers removed.
- If your printer does use another type of laser (like helium-neon), there may also be a high voltage power supply for that which can really bite.
Printer and Photocopier Troubleshooting and Repair Collection
Version 2.48
Copyright © 1996-2001
Samuel M. Goldwasser
--- All Rights Reserved ---
For corrections/comments/suggestions, please contact me via the Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ Email Links Page.
Reproduction of this document in whole or in part is permitted if both of the following conditions are satisfied:
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Sight Quest 
Friendly & Knowledgible Staff
