getting " printer or ink system problem"

[rds35]

I took the ink cartriges out to store them in the fridge since we were going to be gone for several months. When I reinstalled them I got a " problem with printer or ink system " message.  I tried reboot ect. to no avail. Did I screw it up permanemtly?

[Bob_Headrick]

Did you remove the printhead as well as the cartridges?  If you did not remove the printhead (only the cartridges) then the printhead would have dried out, leaving clogged ink in the printhead and the plumbing between the ink cartridges and the printer.  If you did remove the printhead but did not store it in a sealed container with some added moisture as shown in the document here the same thing would happen.

Not that it helps you now, but I had an Officejet 8600 Plus that I bought used.  I tried it out, then put it in storage for a year, having shut down the printer properly from its power switch, then after it parked the cartridges I pulled the plug and moved the printer to a spare room.  I did not need the printer so it sat for nearly a year.  When I went to put the printer back in use I plugged it in and ran a test page and it came out fine, with no additional servicing (beyond the automatic servicing that happens at power on).  I was happily surprised, I expected to have to do some manual servicing.

[rds35]

I did not remove the print heads.

Sounds like there is no need to remove the cartridges to store it.  It my have damaged the machine. Do you think it is repairable or should I just bite the bullet and get a new one?

[Bob_Headrick]

The printhead is likely clogged, but it may be possible to recover it by soaking the printhead in hot water.   Follow the troubleshooting steps in solution seven and eight in the document here.  This is for a different printer and printhead model, but the same general principle applies.  Put enough water in the pot to cover the ink inlet ports in the printhead, maybe 2.5-3" total.  I would let the printhead soak for a half hour.  See below for information on removing the printhead.

Follow these steps to remove the cartridges and the printhead.

1. Load unused, plain white paper in the input tray.
2. Press the Power button to turn on the printer, if it is not already on.
3. Slip your fingers into the slot on the left side of the printer, and then pull forward to open the cartridge access door. The carriage moves to the left side of the printer. Wait until the carriage is idle and silent.
   Figure : Open the cartridge access door

   

Remove the print cartrdiges and set them aside for later.  After removing the print cartridges remove the printhead by lifting the printhead latch lever.

After soaking, cleaning and drying the printhead and installing it back in the printer try running up to three cleaning cycles from the front panel.   If there is any black or color printing on the test page let the printer sit for a bit, then try more cleaning cycles. See steps 8-13 here for information on cleaning the printhead from the front panel.