Black Smoke & Sparks Inside Printer

[Bod3tnn]

Hello,

I am working on a HP Deskjet 3636 that is out of warranty. It was my intent to use this as a home printer and enroll in the InstantInk Program or buy some cartridges for light home use. According to the previous owner  it stopped working after trying to replace the ink cartridges and they  abandoned it so it has been on in over a year or so. I am not sure what network it was previously connected to and presently it is not connected to a network. Presently when I plug in the printer the "On" button blinks white to register the power source and shortly after all lights start blinking on the display. In addition when looking on the screen all symbols appear and an uppercase "E" appears on the display screen. I have been trying to reset it but it remains unresponsive and simply flashes all the lights. I've tried both a soft reset but turning it off and letting the power cycle out after unplugging and I've also tried various key combos to factory reset to no avail.

Most alarmingly when leaving it plugged in for longer than 4 minutes I began to smell smoke occasionally. On about the 6th time of turning it on  I peeked inside the printer when the smoke smell came again and saw by the empty cartridge holders black smoke was coming from the back of the machine, and about 10 secs later I saw sparks beginning to flare. I unplugged it quickly and closed everything up and thankfully it did not spark a fire. It was initially my intent to disassemble with a Torx and check for any wiring or screws loose but with the fire and sparks it seems more electrical than mechanical.

Any suggestions? I would think even an older printer model shouldn't catch fire just because it is missing ink. Is this a known issue with this model or something to do with replacing some sort of temperature regulator? I would hope this isn't an anti-tampering mechanism 🤣.

Thanks!

[Dragon-Fur · Accepted solution]

@Bod3tnn 

Printer is dead.

Sad.

This model was not an expensive printer - not even when new.

The point is not to make you feel bad ---

Printers of this type are not meant to be worked on "in the field" (home / office).

It was probably dead from sitting for a year - printers, even when stored properly, don't always come back from sitting around for any extended time.  Once unboxed and set up the first time, inkjet printers are meant to be used regularly to keep the ink system from failing.

No matter.

Smoke and sparks are a warning - plug it in again and it may short out your electrical outlet(s), start a real fire, or maybe just sit there if the internals have burned out...

Opinion

My suggestion is to trash the unit safely.

Remove any ink cartridges - these can be recycled at most office supply stores.

For example, if the unit is hard-corded, cut the cord on it so no one is tempted to plug it in ever again.  If the unit is not hard corded, tape the hole with a warning and trash the power cord / unit separately.  If possible, have the printer recycled so it doesn't end up in the landfill in your community or overseas somewhere in a pile of e-junk.

If you really, really need the printer, contact a licensed printer technician who might be willing to share the service manual.  These are sometimes available on the web - source on the 'net could be anything; service manuals are supposed to be available only to licensed techs.  In other words, just be careful about downloading stuff.

Thank you for participating in the HP Community Forum.

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[Bod3tnn]

Thank you!

I got it open and found the smaller blown board by the ink carriage. Since it’s a pretty cheap model hunting a replacement part is probably more trouble than it’s worth/may not exist, even though everything else looks in decent shape.

I’ll see what sells for parts and if not junk it.

Thanks again!

Be Well!

Bod3tnn

[Riddle_Decipher]

@Bod3tnn I understand your concern and I will bring your issue to the attention of an appropriate team within HP.

Although, I'll need some private information from you in order to create a case for you.

Please look for a private message requesting additional information. 

Keep in mind not to publicly post personal information (serial numbers, case details, etc...).

If you are unfamiliar with how the Community's private message capability works, you can learn about that here.

Thank you for visiting the HP Support Community.