Printheads can't be cleaned (Deskjet F4480)

[annie00732]

I have a Deskjet F4480 printer that has been sitting for a bit.  I installed in on my Mac running 10.7 (Lion).  Tried to print a test page and it failed to print anything on the page.  I tried to clean the printheads using the HP software but it failed and instructed me to contact HP support.  The printer is out of warranty so I can't easily contact them.

Any advice on how to get the printer working again?  Ink supply is fine, but I can also replace the cartridges if necessary.

Thanks,

Annie

[Shirlzz1 · Accepted solution]

Sorry to hear that you are having that problem. Here is a link to a document that walks you through how to manually clean the cartridges and  more importantly, the contacts inside the machine. Which might help since the printhead cannot be taken out.  It also tells one what cleaning supplies to use on the printer. Here is that link  http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00864517

[annie00732]

Thank you for the article and information.  I am happy that I now know how to clean and care for the ink cartridges and contacts.  After cleaning for a while, I ended up finally replacing the cartridges on the printer and now it works great! 

[Shirlzz1]

That is good to hear. I am glad to help out any way that I can.