C86 Goes through printing process but nothing prints.

Hi,

Have you tried the steps below, if not, try them Turn on the printer by pressing the"Power" button. Check the red "Ink" light next to the powerbutton. If it is flashing, you need to first replace an ink cartridge. If the"Ink" light is off, proceed with the cleaning process. 2 Open the Epson Printer Utilityprogram installed on the computer connected to the printer. In the mainmenu, click the "Head Cleaning" option. Click "Start" tobegin the cleaning process. This may take several minutes. You will hear noisesfrom the printer and the "Power" light will begin to flash. 3 Load paper into the tray when the"Power" light stops flashing and you no longer hear noises. Click the"Print Nozzle Check Pattern" option on your screen, then click"Print" on the following screen. The printer will now print a testpage. 4 Click "Finish" if thetest page looks complete. If there are gaps in the image or white lines runningacross the page, the print head needs to be cleaned again. Click the"Clean" option on the final screen instead of "Finish" toclean the heads again. Once again, the printer will print a test page whenfinished. If the page does not meet your standards, clean the head until youare satisfied.

If this does not work, try the steps below.

The fix is described here:
http://inkjetprinterhelp.us/duraink.html

But I had a few problems trying to apply it. I wound up with one of those"extra" parts. (see http://www.fixyourownprinter.com/forums/printer/37654)

So, be advised that the fix is non-trivial to perform if you're a klutz likeme, and also you probably DON'T need to disassemble the print head. (On theother hand, if you DO disassemble the print head, and you see a little partlike the one I found, please tell me where it goes!).

Regards,
Ron

Here's the starting point for any print quality issues. The subject starts pretty broad, but if you follow the instructions, you should be able to solve your problem.

if the cartridges were out of the printer for any length of time the ink has dried up on the print heads. you most likely will have to replace the ink cartridges. then allign again before it will print correctly

Here's a link to your User Manual. Go to page 36 and it will walk you through the process.

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00044028.pdf

Did yellow and magenta print OK before the previous cartridges ran out? If so, it looks like your new cartridges are not working properly. Try another yellow and magenta cartridge - you can re-use the previous cartridges if they turn out not to be faulty. If new cartridges don't solve the problem, you can try soaking the print head, in case you have nozzles blocked with dried ink for some reason.

Turn the printer on, and as soon as the print head moves out of its parking position, pull the power cord out of the back, or turn the printer off at the mains. You may now carefully move the print head by hand over to the left hand side out of the way. Look inside the print head parking area on the right and you will see a small rubber cup that comes up to cover the print nozzles when the head is parked (to stop it drying out). Use a syringe or dropper to fill this cup with head cleaning fluid or distilled water. DO NOT USE TAP WATER. Carefully push the print head by hand fully into its parking position so that the cup full of fluid comes up over the print head. Do not turn the printer on at any stage in this process. Leave this for at least 24 hours, then turn the printer on and try a head clean/nozzle check again. If you get any magenta/yellow ink on the nozzle check, then there is hope! Repeat the head clean/nozzle check process 2 or 3 times, but not more. Leave for 24 hours for any air bubbles to disperse. If nothing, repeat the soak process once more. If still nothing, post a new comment detailing what you have done and the results.

Step one: Complete the alignment process If you have already installed new print cartridges, follow these steps to complete the alignment process.

1. After installing a new print cartridge, wait at least 20 seconds for the print cartridge alignment process to start.
2. Wait for the print cartridge alignment process to fully complete.
3. Make sure that the alignment page has printed on plain, white paper that has no other printing on it. If you need to create a new alignment page, load the tray with letter or A4 unused plain white paper and turn the product off and on again to create the page.

If an alignment page does not print when the product is turned on or off, the issue is resolved. If an alignment page continues to print when the product is turned on or off, you should replace the cartridges with new HP cartridges. Continue to Step two: Remove the print cartridges. Step two: Remove the print cartridges Follow the steps below to remove the cartridges. NOTE: When you remove and install the same print cartridge, the unit will not align the print cartridge as the unit remembers the alignment values for that print cartridge.

1. Press the Power button to turn the product on. The Power button is lit when the unit is on. Figure 1: Power button lit
2. Make sure that the paper tray is down, and letter or A4 unused plain white paper is loaded in the paper tray.
3. Lower the access door until it stops. Make sure that the print carriage moves to the right side. Figure 2: Lower the access door
4. Wait until the print carriage is idle and silent, and then using your thumb, lightly press down on a print cartridge to release it. Figure 3: Print carriage
   • If replacing the tri-color print cartridge, remove the print cartridge from the slot on the left.
   • If replacing the black or photo print cartridge, remove the print cartridge from the slot on the right.
   Figure 4: Proper position of the print cartridges 1 - Tri-color print cartridge 2 - Black or Photo print cartridge
5. Pull the print cartridge toward you and out of its slot.

Step three: Install the new print cartridge

1. Remove the new print cartridge from its packaging and, being careful to touch only the black plastic, gently remove the plastic tape by using the pink pull tab. Figure 5: Remove the tape 1 - Copper-colored contacts 2 - Plastic tape with pink pull tab (must be removed before installing) 3 - Ink nozzles under tape CAUTION: Do not touch the copper-colored contacts or ink nozzles. Touching these parts can result in clogs, ink failure, and bad electrical connections.
2. Slide the new print cartridge forward into the empty slot. Then gently push on the upper part of the print cartridge forward until it clicks into the socket.
   • If you are installing the tri-color print cartridge, slide it into the left slot.
   • If you are installing a black or photo print cartridge, slide it into the right slot.
   Figure 6: Print cartridge locations 1 - Print cartridge slot for the tri-color print cartridge 2 - Print cartridge slot for the black and photo print cartridges
3. Close the print cartridge access door. Figure 7: Closing the print cartridge door
4. If you installed a new print cartridge, the print cartridge alignment process starts after about 20 seconds.
5. The unit aligns the print cartridges. Recycle or discard the print cartridge alignment sheet.

If you have completed all the steps listed above and are still experiencing a problem, service the product. Cause The product aligns the print cartridges every time at cartridge installation or replacement to ensure the highest-quality prints. The alignment page continues to print when the product is turned on or off, or when a print job is started, for any of the reasons below.

• The automatic alignment process is not complete.
• The ink cartridges are not properly installed.
• One of the ink cartridges is defective.
• One of the ink cartridges is low or out of ink. Black and all three colors must be available.
• Protective tape on a new ink cartridge has not been removed.
• Contacts on the ink cartridge are not meeting the contacts in the carriage correctly.
• Cartridge is remanufactured or refilled. Refilled or remanufactured ink cartridges may have been damaged during the refilling process or have clogged ink nozzles.
• The product needs to be serviced.

If you have already tried 3 consecutive head cleanings and nozzle check from the computer, tried reseating the inks and tried replacing the ink and it still acts like its printing but just provides a blank page chance are your printer already has hardware issue. The ink delivery system is already clogged. If your printer is still within the 1-year warranty period I suggest that you call Epson Tech support for more options otherwise, you would need to get the product repaired by an Epson certified service center. To locate a servicer in your area click on the link http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/SuppProductSearch.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes

I hate Epson. Had problems with Stylus C82 and now my replacement Stylus C86 has given me nothing but trouble.
I've just replaced all four ink cartridges and now when I print I'm only getting blank pages. I uninstalled, reinstalled, and nothing is working. I even called Epson, twice, only to be routed to the Phillipines where neither person was very helpful, in fact, had a hard time understanding their English. So this is what I;m going to do. I'm taking this bloody Stylus C86 outside and smash it with a hammer..then I'm going to buy a HR Printer...and if anybody from Epson reads this...good luck...your products SUCK!!

There can be problems with cheap cartridges. Try another brand just to be sure. But if the printer is faulting- I don't think it is - it will have to be replace, there not a repair option. It it is fairly new - try the Epson web site - a low cost swap out replacement may be on offer,

The printer determines the amount of ink left in the cartridge by counting the number of ink "shots" when printing, head cleaning etc. This information is stored in the "chip" on the cartridge. Thus, it is not an actual measurement of the ink left, but an estimate calculated by subtracting the total shots from the original full ink quantity. This estimate can sometimes be grossly in error, usually due to a cartridge replacement not being carried out correctly. However, for all four cartridges to be suddenly out of ink is odd. The cheapest way to check this out is to buy a chip resetter on e-bay (currently one for sale at £3.25). Reset all your cartridges to "full", and see if the printer will now recognise them as full. If so, you can buy a new set OK. If the printer still says the cartridges are empty, post a new comment to this effect and we can provide further help.