HP Photosmart C5180 - Ink System Failure

[nav11]

I have a 13 month old HP Photosmart C5180 which is now displaying the following error message, "Ink System has failed. Unable to print.." Error: Oxc18a0506. 

The help message suggests "turn power off then on again".  This does not clear the fault.  I've followed a number of other threads with similar sounding issues and have attempted all of the suggested solutions including resets, print head cleaning, removing each print cartridge and cleaning them, removing and replacing the power lead whilst holding the OK and  Help buttons.  None of these have cleared the problem.  Before I embark on what many others have described as less than useful and expensive, HP help line I wondered if anyone else has had, and solved, this error.

[LimonP]

If you have found the solution to this problem please post it. I am having the same problem.

[LimonP · Accepted solution]

I hope this helps anyone out there:

Master Reset:

• Unplug the printer, then pressing the help and ok buttons simultaneously plug it back in. This sorted it. 🙂

Have to say it looked like this whole process used up shed loads of ink, so by the time I had finished I needed to replace 3 cartridges!

[Valleyboy]

Just wanted to say thanks for the solution you posted. After days of trying various increasingly desperate strategies I was on the point of giving up and then found your post. The reset seemed to take ages - much as if it were a system inspection on a passenger jet - but was worth waiting for. Thanks again.

[mfiantaca]

Thank you for posting this. It worked for me too!

[Digitap]

I have a C5180 that was my grandma's.  It has bit the dust despite being hardly ever used.  The original ink cartridges expired, and the yellow one was the first to go.  For a few prints until we could get her new ink, we bypassed the warnings and it still printed just fine.  We replaced the yellow, but then would get the warnings of the other cartridges being expired.  She then stopped using the printer for a long time.  When she needed to use it again, it was exibiting weird behavior, so we bought a full set of cartridges, however, after replacing them, the printer now just continually resets itself.  If you let it do this for 2-3 days (yes, literal days of it just going through a seeming warm up routine, it gets to a certain point, then it turns itself off and back on) it may come to a stop and stay on.  From there the errors are varying in nature, from requesting the printer be power cycled, to the ink system failure, to all sorts of other error codes.  Basically the thing is now trash, which is a shame for such a capable machine that was barely ever used.  When it gets to a point where it stays on, you can do a scan, but as soon as it tries to print, whether through a print job, copy, etc, then it starts reseting or giving error codes.

[barbod_barbod]

i have your answer.you should open plate vertex formater and EVOLVE cariage cable and power on.when lcd show error masage , waite little.and then powre off.and connect cariage cable and then power on.you should several tims press ok.you sure it will be ok.

[leahbounds]

Thank you!!

[sweetlogo]

Dude, this totally works! And I didn't have to waste any ink. Thanks! S.

[kellybaron]

Thank You!!!!!  I have been struggling with this problem for over 8 months and didn't want to pay the money to contact HP by phone and the technical on-line support was never available!  (go figure!)  I All of the problems I was having was after I installed new ink cartridges!  Didn't make sense.  But I didn't even wait more than 3 minutes after resetting (using your unplug, pressing the help and ok button at the same time while plugging back in method) and now I'm back in business!  Your AWESOME!  I did have a improper shutdown message come up on the printer LCD, but I ignored it until it finished and then was able to use the printer again.  Sure beats spending tons of money for something that was sooooo simple to fix!  Thanks again!