HP PSC 2355 all-in-one Carriage Jam - No paper jam found

[goodlady]

HP PSC 2355 all-in-one unresolved carriage jam, with no paper jam found.  I searched with flashlight through the back. Windows 7 64bit.  Printer just out of 3 years in storage. 

Twice I was able to bypass the problem and print a single page, but then the message returned: carriage jam.

Followed all steps suggested - no solution

Self Test Info: Device 35, 4

Vertical Cartridge to Cartridge Setting: 12

Horizontal Cartridge-to-Cartridge Setting: 0

Black Bidirectional Printing Alignment Setting: 9, 10, -9

Color Bidirectional Printing Alignment Setting: -2  -2, -15: 5, 6, -15

Thanks for any help you may offer.

[-JohnB-]

Hi there,

Double check the content in this article. If you have been through all these steps the product may need to be serviced. If not give the steps a shot and let us know if it helps.

Best of Luck!

[goodlady]

John:

Thanks for replying. I had already unsuccessfully followed all the suggestions in your link, so I guess I need to get it serviced.

Goodlady

[goodlady]

Could the problem be related to the fact the printer has been in storage for 3 years? 

[-JohnB-]

It is entirely possible. I don't know what conditions the printer was stored in but generally high temps, excessive humidity, and dust can cause any number of problems with electronics. Knowing that is has been stored for a very long time I would take a can of compressed air to the interior before going the servicing route. Your problem could be as simple as a dust bunny. Open the printer access panels and then remove the power from your unit. Inspect the path the carriage travels along - clean/clear any dirt. Check the encoder strip (clear plastic strip that runs horizontally in the printer). If it is dirty clean it GENTLY with a soft cloth. Be VERY careful when cleaning the encoder strip. It tells the printer where the carriage is. Without it the heads will bang into the sides of the printer violently. If it is all clean close your panels and plug back directly into a wall outlet. *Crossing my fingers for you*

Best of Luck!

[goodlady]

Thanks for continuing to try to help.
I cleaned the printer as directed by you and was able to print two pages of a single line of text. I next sent a half page of text and the carriage jam error returned. The ink cartridges are all the way to the right. 

Claire

[goodlady]

Hello John

Next I noticed slot of ink overflow all the way to the right and cleaned it up. Some was pretty sticky with some solid pieces. Probably from the long storage time when cartridges were left in. 
Voila! I printed 4 full pages before the carriage jam message returned. 

I continue to  open the door clear the jam and press OK.  Message returns. 

Do you have any more suggestions? Thanks so much!

[-JohnB-]

Gunky ink especially with hard chunks is bad news and as you might suspect it is likely part(if not the entirety) of the problem. We have arrived at a fork in the road. On the left you can continue to clean the printer however you will likely have multiple print failures between here and success. The next step down this road is removing the cartridges and cleaning them and the carriage (and anything in the carriage path tainted with ink) with slightly damp q-tips or something similar(this will get messy). It is likely with sticky ink mess that you will have to do this multiple times and you may find at a point that servicing or replacement is inevitable. To the right we have servicing or replacement. Costs more but if this is wearing on you(i know we have already been through a lot of cleaning) it is likely the better option. Especially if you have something critical to print. If you have the patience/time to see it through or don't mind the headache lets bust out those q-tips, open the door on the printer remove the cartridges and unplug it from the power. When I do this I tend to dip the q-tip in water then squeeze out the tip(we want damp not soaked). Make sure to clean all around the carriage, the carriage itself and inspect the path - grab a flashlight if you need to -  Take care to let things dry before applying power water can kill your electronics. Something is keeping us from moving properly if we can find it we should be good.

I sincerely wish you the best of luck especially if you choose to continue cleaning