Printer carriage stuck in docking station

[Ianb57]

I'm getting the error message "One or more cartridges appear to be damaged. Remove them and replace with new cartridges".

When I open the front panel, the print carriage reamins in the far right "docking station" position and does not move to the left to enable access to the printhead and cartridges.

There are no paper jams/debris stopping the carriage moving and I have tried the "hard reset" procedure (unplug/depress power button for 30 secs/plug direct into wall socket/power on) which does nothing.

Is there a way to get the carriage to move? I've tried a gentle pull on it, but it seems to be "locked" in the docking station. Can I partially dismantle the printer to gain access to the docking station? If so, is there a link to a video to take me through the necessary steps?

[Jay_G24]

Hi @Ianb57,

I'd like to help!

I understand you are facing a "cartridge error"  and "carriage jam" issue on the printer.

Follow the steps to resolve the issue-

Reset the printer

Reset the printer to recover from printer errors or failures.

1. If your printer has a rechargeable battery, remove it.

1. With the printer turned on, disconnect the power cord from the printer.

1. Unplug the power cord from the power source.
2. Wait 60 seconds.
3. Reconnect the power cord to a wall outlet and to the printer.
   NOTE: 
   HP recommends plugging the printer directly into a wall outlet.
4. Turn on the printer to complete the reset.

Clean the ink cartridge and carriage electrical contacts

Remove any debris or buildup from the contacts on the cartridges.

Remove any debris or buildup from the contacts on the cartridges.

1. Open the door or lid to the cartridge access area. Wait until the carriage stops moving before continuing.

2. Push in on the cartridge indicated in the error message to release it from the carriage.

   

3. Wipe the copper-colored contact on the cartridge with a lint-free cloth.

   

4. Slide the cartridge into its color-coded slot until it clicks into place.

5. Repeat these steps for any other cartridges indicated in the error message.

6. Close the door or lid to the cartridge access area.

Also, try the steps in the document - Carriage jam or E3 error

 If the issue persists, I'd suggest you Contact HP in your region regarding the service options for your printer

Hope this helps! Keep me posted. 

And, Welcome to the HP Support Community. 

Please click “Accept as Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.

Click the “Kudos, Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping

[Ianb57]

No Jay, it doesn't help.

In my original post I said that I had checked for paper jams and followed the reset procedure but the cartridge remains "stuck" in the far right "docking station" position. So, regurgitating the bog standard "switch it off and back on again" is pretty pointless. Is there a way of getting access to the docking station area? If so please advise or provide a link to an appropriate video clip showing how its done. It's clear from looking online that "Printer carriage stuck in docking station" isa fairly common problem and I would have thought there ought to be an easy to follow fix by now??

[Jay_G24]

Here is a video to clear carriage jam error-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaPBWdYCMiw

Hope this helps!

Keep me posted!

[Ianb57]

No use whatsoever.

At the start of each video section it says "open the cartridge access door and the carriage might move to the left".

The whole point of my enquiry is that the carriage DOESN'T move to the left. Your advice is totally fixated on the premise that the carriage moves, even though I've told you at least 3 times that it doesn't. I've done all the steps for clearing paper jams and to reset the printer and none of them made any difference. I've told you this twice but you just regurgitate the identical, useless, advice.

Is ther anyway of getting access to the print carriage docking station? If the answer is no, just tell me that the printer is kaput and I'll get a new one. Don't keep repeating irrelevant information.

In the meantime, I'll assume that the printer has pretty much had it and try to dismantle it myself to see if I can find the problem.

Rating on assistance so far - zero!

[Jay_G24]

You can move the carriage with hands and check if that helps.

If the issue persists, I'd suggest you Contact HP in your region regarding the service options for your printer

Hope this helps!