HP Officejet 3830 Series showing a question mark on front screen of printer

[Andreas09]

On my HP Officejet 3830 printer the front screen has the question mark lit instead of home page icon. When I got to action a simple print from Word the page prints with nothing on the paper. Ink levels are good and I have tried switching printer on and off to reboot but the printer still comes back on with the question mark lit. No paper jams exist.

Any help to solve this very frustrating issue as to why the question mark is lit would be of great help.

Thank you

[asmita6658 · Accepted solution]

@Andreas09

Greetings!
 
Welcome to the HP Support Community. This is a great place to get support, find answers and tips to your technical queries. I have reviewed your post and I understand, the printer is not printing and the question mark icon is lit on the printer's control panel.

Appreciate you trying the steps. Don't worry, I'm here to help! To better assist you - 

1) Were there any hardware or software changes made? 
2) Are you experiencing the same issue while making a copy as well? 
3) Do you get any error or warning when you tap on the question mark icon? 

While you respond to that, let's try these steps -

1) Take out the cartridges. 
2) Unplug the power cord from the printer & wall. 
3) Wait for 30 seconds.  
4) Plug the power cord back into the printer and wall, ensure the printer is plugged into the wall & not to a surge protector. 
5) Insert the cartridges back into the printer.

Also, try updating the printer's firmware. Refer to this document for steps.

Hope this helps!

Let me know how that goes.

To thank us for our efforts to help you, click here to access your public post and Select - "Accept as solution" and click on the  "Thumbs up". 

Have a great day ahead 🙂

[Andreas09]

Amita thank you so much.

I followed steps 1-5 and this seeemd to do the trick. Please note the printer is still on the question mark however it now prints and scans.

Success!

Thanks again.

[asmita6658]

@Andreas09

That's great!

Happy to hear that. If you need further assistance feel free to reach out to us. 

Have a good day!

[JessikaV]

Hi, 

Clean the ink cartridges

Use the printer control panel to clean the ink cartridges, and then evaluate the results.

NOTE: To avoid issues that require cleaning, always turn the printer off with the Power button.

1. Load plain paper into the input tray.
2. On the printer control panel, swipe the display to the left, and then touch Setup.
3. Touch Tools, and then touch Clean Cartridges.
4. The printer performs the automated cleaning process and then prints a Print Quality Diagnostic page.
   • If the print quality is acceptable, you can stop troubleshooting.
   • If the print quality is unacceptable, touch OK for a Second-level Cleaning when prompted to continue the next level of cleaning.

     NOTE: If the ink cartridge nozzles are badly clogged, it might require another cleaning cycle. If so, wait 30 minutes before you perform both levels of cleaning again.

      Try to print. If the print quality is unacceptable, continue to the next step.

Manually clean the area around the ink nozzles

Do not perform these steps unless the test page or printout specifically shows smeared text or track marks. Clean the area around the ink nozzles if you see track marks or smears on the printouts.

1. Gather the following materials:
   • Dry foam-rubber swabs, lint-free cloth, or any soft material that does not come apart or leave fibers (coffee filters work well)
   • Distilled, filtered, or bottled water (tap water might contain contaminants that can damage the ink cartridges)

     CAUTION: Do not use platen cleaners or alcohol to clean the ink cartridge contacts. These can damage the ink cartridge or the printer.

2. Turn on the printer.
3. Open the exterior door, and then grasp the handle and lower the ink cartridge access door to open it.
   The carriage moves to the center of the printer.
   
4. Wait until the carriage is idle and silent before you continue.
5. Lightly press down on one of the ink cartridges to release it, and then pull the ink cartridge toward you out of its slot.
   

   CAUTION: Do not remove both ink cartridges at the same time. Remove and clean each ink cartridge one at a time. Do not leave an ink cartridge outside the printer for more than 30 minutes.

6. Hold the ink cartridge by its sides.
   
7. Inspect the ink cartridge contacts for ink and debris buildup.

   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.

   
8. Lightly moisten a foam-rubber swab or lint-free cloth with distilled water, and then squeeze any excess water from it.
9. lean the face and edges around the ink nozzle with the swab.

   CAUTION: Do not clean the ink nozzle plate.

   
   1. Nozzle plate - Do not clean
   2. Area surrounding ink nozzle - Do clean
   3. Ink cartridge contacts - Do not clean
      
      
10. Either let the ink cartridge sit for 10 minutes to allow the cleaned area to dry, or use a new swab to dry it.
11. Slide each ink cartridge at a slight upward angle into the empty slot, and then gently push up on each ink cartridge until it locks into place.
    
12. Repeat these steps to clean around the nozzles on the other ink cartridge.
13. Close the ink cartridge access door.
14. Reconnect the power cord, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the print quality is unacceptable, continue to the next step.