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- HP Community
- Printers
- Printer Ink Cartridges & Print Quality
- Ink Cartridge is no longer accepted in my printer

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10-20-2020 12:56 PM
Hi,
I am using an OfficeJet 3831 printer, which was purchased a while ago for printing work related documents. Everything was working fine until I ran out of black ink. I purchased an official HP product from Amazon. I installed the cartridge and was working well. After a week of using both the new black and old colour cartridges, up popped an error message stating that the colour cartridge is not intended for use in this printer.
Considering that this is a cartridge which I had used for close to a year, I was surprised to get this such a message. The cartridge still contains ink, so it's not a case that it has simply ran out. As it stands, I am having to use the printer in 'single cartridge mode', where I am only able to print in black ink.
Can anyone help with this issue?
Thanks
10-23-2020 01:04 PM
Hi @Serkan_A,
I'd like to help!
Reset the product
- With the printer turned on, disconnect the power cord from the rear of the printer.
- Unplug the power cord from the wall outlet.
- Wait at least 60 seconds.
- Plug the power cord back into the wall outlet.
- Reconnect the power cord to the printer.
- Turn the printer on. HP recommends plugging the printer directly into a wall outlet.
Clean the electrical contacts
Remove the cartridge indicated by the error message, clean the electrical contacts, and then reinsert the cartridge in its color-coded slot.
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Turn the printer on.
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Open the door to access the cartridges.
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Wait until the carriage stops moving before you continue.
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Remove the cartridge indicated in the error message from its slot, holding it by its side.
CAUTION:
Do not touch the copper-colored contacts or the ink nozzles. Touching these parts can result in clogs, ink failure, and bad electrical connections.
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Remove any protective tape that still might be on the contacts.
CAUTION:
Do not touch or try to remove the copper electrical strip.
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Lightly dampen a lint-free cloth with distilled water, and then clean only the copper-colored contacts on the cartridge.
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Lightly dampen a lint-free cloth with distilled water, and then clean the electrical contacts in the carriage, located inside the printer.
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Wait 10 minutes for the contacts to dry.
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Reinsert the cartridge.
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Insert the black cartridge into the right slot.
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Insert the tri-color cartridge into the left slot.
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Repeat these steps for the other cartridge, if necessary.
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Close the cartridge access door.
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If the error persists, repeat the previous steps to clean the cartridge and carriage contacts a second time.
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Check for the error message.
Hope this helps! Keep me posted.
And, Welcome to the HP Support Community.
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10-26-2020 03:26 AM
Hi,
Thanks for your suggestion.
I followed these steps several times, but was not able to resolve my issue.
At the moment, I'm considering scrapping the HP printer, as I can't afford to risk buying legitimate ink, which will at some point be rejected by the printer, before actually running out of ink.