20 Most Recent Brother MFC-5440CN All-In-One InkJet Printer Questions & Answers

The ink absorber box or flushing box will need to be replaced

Seal between tank and bowl dry rotted. Should be able to find a replacement at HD or Lowes. Problem is if it's super old the bolts holding the tank to the bowl are probably rusted solid. May have to drill them out. When that happens to me I get a new unit. Wax seals are more fun than rusted bolts any day and a decent commode only cost $140.

and even if you did get rid of error 51 that you have created, you will find that you still cant print in black, original problem is the print head is stuffed probally from dodgy non gen ink running threw it and the fix is to replace head. I don't know who is telling all you brother mfc owners to clean your print head but your paddling up the wrong creek, these heads are electronic deivices that dont take kindly to cleaning, they are not the same as other brands. Re error 51 goto different machine same engine post
http://www.fixya.com/support/t277162-brother_420

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Reset the printer electronics and try then. Might also want to reinstall the driver.

You'll need the new waste ink tank, part number LF7544001. They call it an Ink Absorber box. Add a small flat screwdriver, a rag, and a #2 Phillips, and I think you're set:
Raise the scanner until the support bar holds it.
You'll find two skinny covers set into the top cover of the printer section. Use the flat-blade screwdriver to pry loose the hooks that hold them and remove them.
You'll find that they cover the cables that connect the scanner to the main section. Unplug them and unscrew the ground wire that runs parallel to them. Carefully note the routing of the cables, so you can cram them back in and they won't make the covers bulge when you're done.
The scanner support bar is now free to unlatch at the bottom end. Now you can raise the scanner section until it's vertical and unhook it from its hinges. Set the entire scanner assembly aside.
The printer section's top cover is held by about 7 screws. All are identical, except for a single one that goes into steel instead of plastic. Keep track of where that one goes when you unscrew everything. Remove the top cover. I believe there's a hidden hook near the front-center, also.
You'll find the ink absorber box at the back. The ink tubes just pull off and push on. Be ready with a rag to catch any drips when switching.
Putting it back together is easier than taking it apart was, except getting those cables to fit nicely in their channels. The flat, white one is delicate. Insert it straight. Remember to mount the scanner and snap in the support bar before snapping on those skinny covers.
You may have to reset that counter again, but you have those instructions.

does start when you hit a button after it has shut down?

If so, change the time setting within menue. (see manual).

If not, it might be that you have a short cirucit on the main board due to a defective part (quite often on machines older than 2.5 years).

Do contact brother hotline of your country.

The OCR software comes with the printer on installation CD's .. otherwise goto HERE

Select all
Select WIndows Vista
Select English (or whatever language you want)
Click Search

Download and install the vista programs/drivers

Not certain on that model of Brother but on mine I was able to get it to print by changing the settings in "Print Setup" If you change these so that it can only print in black and whiye, it won't look for the colour cartridge, like mine didn't

No need for part necessarily
SkipperOz solution pasted below

MFC-5440CN saved from the tip!
"Unable to Clean" message - found TrickyDicky's sltn 4 for various printers.
Went into maint mode as per sltn 4 - verified error 46.
"The user can establish the internal Machine Error Code as follows: pull the mains cable out of the machine (power off), hold down the Menu/Set key, re-insert the mains cable into the machine (power on). The internal Machine Error Code will be displayed."

Keyed in 80 - stepped through the items with "down" key and located Purge Counter.
"Press the 2, 7, 8, and 3 keys in this order to reset the purge count to zero
Press the Stop/Exit key to return to the initial stage of the maintenance mode.
Press the 9 key twice to return to the standby state."

This worked brilliantly - no need to tamper with any parts of the printer. Purge Counter reset did it all. Fully functional printer.

Thanks TrickyDicky for info on verifying the error code and purge reset

How to the Reset Purge Counter on Brother Printer With Numerical Pad

I have not done it with Windows 7, but I have with Windows XP and Windows 8.1, so I would expect Windows 7 to not be a problem

Brother multifunction printers require that all ink be filled before you can print to it. If any ink is empty, you cannot print, even if you are printing only black.

initial error AF, check the scanner flex cable or any cable, either they are not fix or not intalled properly..

Fill ink by using the fill hole at the top of the ink cartridge. PDF instructions: https://www.google.com/search?q=mfc-5440cn+ink+cartridges&oq=mfc-5440cn+ink&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0l5.13602j0j8&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=93&ie=UTF-8#es_sm=93&espv=210&q=mfc-5440cn+ink+cartridges+refill+instruction

You probably mean Control Center 2. I do not know where to find it but Control Center 3 is available on the Brother Solutions Center website.Here is the linkhttp://welcome.solutions.brother.com/bsc/public/us/us/en/dlf/download_top.html?reg=us&c=us&lang=en&prod=mfc5440cn_allSelect the OS, the language and click Search button