HP Deskjet 710C issues

[pussyinboots]

Hi there

I have a trusty HP Deskjet 710C that has run faithfull for around 6 years... I know it's old but it has worked beautifully all that time.

So, last week I noticed a puddle of black ink next to it and started to wonder about it's self clean process. On inspection I found that the right hand side of the inside is FULL of black gunk and it's now starting to pour out of any hole it can find.

I am assuming that this is something to do with how it cleans the heads and that wherever is squirts that little bit of ink is now full.

I tried to take the side panel off to see if I could clean it out but only got as far as undoing one screw.. I didn't want to force anything as we don't have another printer here at the moment.

B/c I couldn't get the cover off I put a gloved hand inside to see if I could gauge just how much gunk there is in there.. and yes, there is a lot, some of which I accidentally shifted further into the workings.

Since then it is printing a little too far to one side and the paper mechanism fails sometimes. I sat and watched how it worked and I see that a little ramp should raise when the paper feed runs to allow the rollers to run against the paper. This doesn't always raise up now.. although as I have continued to use it through the day i think it is improving. I am wondering if it's just a bit gunked up.

So here are my questions...

How do I get the right hand side cover off so that I can clean out all this gunk?

How do I re-set the alignment so that it prints in the correct part of the paper? I looked in the "toolbox" and it talked about the paper being in the right place or software conflicts, neither of which are applicable here as the paper is fine and the software hasn't changed....

Apart from these issues the printer still prints fine and I am reluctant to ask my boss to replace it when there is nothing really wrong with this one.

Thanks heaps

PiB

 

[CorruptedLogic]

So it's been a while since I stripped one of these bad boys but if memory serves, you'll find some plastic clips which need "persuading" with a flat screw driver on the underside of the printer (you may have to remove the paper tray first..don't remember 100%) Don't worry too much if you hear a nasty snapping noise..I used to have a 650 on which i broke all the cips over time and it still worked just fine ). One thing to be careful of is to not just flip the printer upside down.

If you do, you'll probably find that all that yummy, gunky inky goodness will ooze all over the rest of the inside of the printer and you'll have a wonderful mess to clean up.

I'd highly recommend getting someone to hold the printer up at an angle so that you can attack it from underneath. You might also want to check out

http://partsurfer.hp.com

. You can seacrh for 710C and it will give you an exploded diagram of the printer which should give you a better understanding of how it's put together.

Once you have the covers off, you'll need to remove the nasty black ink well(TIP: BEFORE you start, remove the ink cartridges, then pull the power while the head is in the middle of the carriage..this will stop the head locking into place above where the ink well is and allow easier access). I think you'll need to unscrew the carriage bar and maybe a couple of other things before you can get the ink well out (again, it's been a while so that might not be 100% accurate!).
Just be sure you pay attention to where all the screws go and the postioning of the carriage bar (other wise the head will scrape and make a fantastic noise when you re-assemble.).

The best way I found to clean out the ink well once it is out was to scoop the goop with a cotton bud or something (sounds like you already figured out to wear gloves!) and then clean the remnants out with either alcohol or anti static foam cleanser.

While you're in there digging around, pop off the clear plastic strip from behind the head assembly (the one with all the little black lines on it) and clean it off.

The strip is how the print head figures out where it is on the page and they are notorious for getting gunked up over time. Pay attention to the orientation of the strip too (not sure about the 710, but i've seen printers where the strip has to be on with a particular side facing front or it doesn't work at all).

When you re-install the strip, make sure it passes through the back of the print head on it's journey to the other side of the mechanism (there is an optical sensor in there that reads those little black lines). If you're feeling super confident, remove the print head assembly and give it a clean and oil (you probably don't need to this, unless there is a ton of gunk on the bearings!)

Once you re-assemble, run the cleaning and alignment utilities in the driver software, sit back and bask in the glory of fixing your own printer )

Good luck!!

CCNA, CCDP, Net+, A+
Work Smarter, Not Harder....

 

[wahnula]

Now that is a comprehensive answer. If you are handy (I know I am) that sounds like an excellent plan. If I may offer another opinion...

You might do more damage to the machine by fooling with it and trying to reach inside to clean it up. I reached a point in my handyman career where I finally started fixing more stuff than I broke trying to fix it. There is a steep learning curve in the fiddlin' business.

Obviously the ink did not harm the electronics, otherwise death would have been instantaneous. The sensitive stuff is not on the floor of the printer. I just had a HP Photosmart (c. 2001) dump its ink. I cleaned up the outside, the surrounding area, and set the printer on a towel, then changed the cartridge. Never missed a beat.

I figure the ink is sitting harmlessly on the bottom and it will eventually evaporate.

In my 'Toolbox' (right-click printer Properties>General>Printing Preferences>Services>Open the HP Toolbox>Calibrate the Device) there is a device and cartridge calibration.

Best of luck whichever path you choose!

Tony

 

[pussyinboots]

Hiya

Thanks heaps for your advice... feeling that maybe it's not so simple a job as I thought... will have a look at the site with the diagram to see if I can get the cover off and take it from there.. may be able to clear some of it without actually taking it apart more than I have to..

Thanks for the tip about the clear strip too... that's probably what the problem is...

Any ideas about the paper feed?? After watching it for a while longer it seems that it works after the print head has docked or done it's little thing... if it just tries to carry on printing it doesn't work but if it resets itself it works....

Thanks again

PiB

 

[CorruptedLogic]

Wahnula, i totally agree about the steep learning curve and the fact that it's sometimes better to leave well alone, but, eventually, that build up of gunk will start to leave awesome snail trails along every piece of paper that passes through the printer (there are some small pieces of hard rubber on top of the ink well which "wipe" the bottom of the head during the docking / cleaning process. These get gunked up and big globs of chunky ink wind up clinging to the bottom of the carriage mechanism which then draw spyrograph style on your prints).

Pussyinboots, Can you give me a little more info on the paper problem? does the printer have issues actually pulling the paper into the print path? If so, it could be that you need to re-furbish / replace your feed rollers (it IS 6 years old right?).

CCNA, CCDP, Net+, A+
Work Smarter, Not Harder....

 

[CorruptedLogic]

Oh, and by the way, you can also buy a new printer for less than $100 which will far out perform the 710
Just a thought!

CCNA, CCDP, Net+, A+
Work Smarter, Not Harder....

 

[wahnula]

Oh, and by the way, you can also buy a new printer for less than $100 which will far out perform the 710

Hear hear!!!

I am amazed at the print speed of my new HP Pro-K550...I can print a color Excel proposal in seven seconds from click to tray. Took almost a minute on the Photosmart (secretary is using it now). It really impresses clients too.

Of all the gadgets, gizmos, hardware, monitors etc. I have bought this year this machine makes me smile every time I've used it and is definitely my proudest purchase.

There is a time to let go...figure what your time is worth and unless you have a bucket of consumables already purchased I say pitch it.

Tony

 

[SkipCox]

In the mid '90's we used a crapload of hp500 and 600 series printers...put 'em through very heavy usage too. The kind of use most of us wouldn't toss at a decent laser printer.

Build up of ink leaks and paper dust brought most of them to a standstill. The ink buildup from cleaning cartridges or attempting to refill a cartridge did get pretty bad.

You folks are gonna hate me for this but, I figured that

1. The printer is toast and I have nothing to lose
2. These things are likely glued together or at least, only one person on the face of the earth can disassemble one.
3. I do have a water hose
4. Add some California sunshine for two days or so and the built up ink problem is gone...like a home bbq burger, you'll want to turn it several times while it dries out.

My biggest long term problem was the guide bar for the ink cartridge(s). No lubricant worked. Finally just kept wiping the gunk build up off with coffee filters.

Skip

http://skipcox.net

 

[pussyinboots]

ha ha ha ha.. I like this forum!!

Ok.. well firstly, thanks heaps for the hint about the clear strip.. I didn't take it out or anything just reached in and wiped and now it know's where it is again... that problem is sorted!!! Yaay!!!

I know the gunk is going to be a problem at some stage.. when I get a free moment (ha ha ha) I will have a go at getting that cover off...

As for the paper feed... it was fine until I moved some of that gunk.. no problem at all.

It seems there is a little ramp that lifts the paper up to the rollers so that it can pick up the top sheet. Sometimes that ramp doesn't lift. It seems to go in cycles. It'll print the first page fine.. then it doesn't lift for the next one or two attempts (with me pressing the paper feed button between attempts) then the print head docks properly and it works again on the next go. I assume that's what the head is doing... it makes a different noise.

Sometimes now it makes a horrible juddering noise when it's feeding the paper through.

I do remember, when I was trying to work out how to open it i took the back off (the cover you take off to clear paper jams) and rolled the rollers a little by hand... would this have damaged anything?

I know I could bin it and replace it for a very small price, but to be honest I'm a big believer in better the devil you know.. particularly with electrical eqt.... I know my boss will buy the cheapest he can find and it will be useless... this is what has happened with the fax machine and I hate it with a passion... really, I do!! If satan gave birth to electrical equipment then this would be it... it is the anti-fax!!!

If I can fix this little problem then I am sure there is years of life left in this printer.. so long as I can de-gunk it.

Sadly, UK weather is not reliable enough to be sure that the whole thing hasn't rotted before it dries out!!

Thanks for the advice and the friendly atmosphere... it's so nice not to get flamed on forums for asking dumb qestions...

PiB

 

[wahnula]

now it makes a horrible juddering noise

Show me any old printer that doesn't 'judder' (Great word!)...and I doubt you did any harm by touching the rollers. I have used everything from WD-40 to hand soap to coat the rail and quiet my oldies down.

The beauty of today's printers is they follow a different business model than in the past...they offer the printer dirt-cheap and make their $$$ in consumables. I would venture to guess that any $100 HP printer today would out-perform that model and probably cost less to operate. I have found the CHEAPEST printers have the highest total cost per page. Again I point to the K550 as the best of both worlds: inexpensive to own and low per page cost.

All you need to do is show El Cheapo Bosso the TCO of a new vs. old printer. Look for the cost per page specs.

Tony

 

[pussyinboots]

Thanks..

Just came back to add that the paper feed issue seems to have resolved itself.... my stuff has a habit of fixing itself you know.. my car does it all the time ha ha ha...

So apart from the fact that it is still full of gunk it's back as my trusty and faithful printer... maybe the paper feed issue was connected to it not knowing where it was.. who knows.. and now who cares?

Thanks for the guidance guys

PiB

 

[wahnula]

pussyinboots...glad you posted back. My Photosmart with all the gunk in it started printing with 'stripes' in the text, it has been decommissioned (trashed). I do like the hose idea, if I did not have even older HP printers and consumables stacked up and ready to use I would have tried that. The new cartridges from the Photosmart went home with me, as I have the exact model at home (what a benevolent coincidence).

As for your car, yes you are right it will also fix itself. Eventually that bothersome 'oil' light will burn out.

Tony