HP DesignJet 500 Squirts Ink Everywhere

BlueInkSquid · ‎04-25-2023

I’m working with an HP DesignJet 500. Last week the printer started dripping blue ink spots from the print head onto my prints. Thinking that the blue print head was the issue, I replaced it with a new one. I also replaced the blue ink cartridge for good measure.

Now the printer is claiming that the ink cartridge is perpetually empty. Any attempt to override this (such as by aligning the printheads) results in the printer literally hosing the paper with blue ink. One can watch it (and hear it) squirt all over the page, meanwhile the printer makes wild grunting noises (such as from a motor or pump). The printer never realizes that ink is actually being spilled, so of course it gives up and then tells me the cartridge is empty.

TLDR; my printer is squirting blue ink everywhere. Has anyone heard of this and know how to proceed?

Repairatrooper · ‎04-25-2023

Likely the seals are bad on the ink tubes and ink is just being ejected that way or the cyan ink tube has cracked. In most cases people will replace the ink tube assembly if that is the case.

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