Epson CX5000 All Lights Flashing!

[cliffrad]

Greetings all! Just recently, my Epson CX5000 turned on and all the lights were flashing (and an "E" in the copies window). It will not allow me to to anything! The printer is over a year old, so the warranty is gone. Help!

Cliffrad

[redcow]

If all of the lights on the control panel are flashing and you see the letter E in the Copy window, the print head may not be able to move back and forth freely. Follow these steps to make sure there's no jammed paper or other obstructions inside your Stylus CX:

2. Turn off the Stylus CX.
   
3. Open the scanner.
   
4. Remove any jammed paper or other obstructions from the paper path.
   
5. Carefully lower the scanner.
   
6. Turn the Stylus CX back on.

[cliffrad]

Redcow - Thanks for the idea. The print heads can easily move and the paper path is clear. However, I did find the ink pad (the little carriage to the far right) was stuck in the down position. I reset the mechanism and was sure that this was my problem. However, when the machine was reset and the turned on again, it still shows the flashing light/"E" syndrome. The carriage moves back and forth about two full times (very slowly) before it starts flashing. Any other guesses??

Thanks,

Cliffrad

[contink]

Could well be a "service required" message...

If you have access to the Print monitor utility it'd be worth seeing if that has any error messages that would help.

[redcow]

I'm not familiar with the printer that you have. But it should have a timing belt behind the print heads. Should be a thin mylar strip with timing marks on it.
Gently clean it. Lint free cloth. Try a little dampness if you have to. also the thing that the heads ride on...clean that. Maybe a little WD40.

[yisgood]

Inkjet printers have an excess ink pad beneath them to soak up the ink which doesnt wind up on the paper. When the pad is saturated, all lights flash and the printer wont work. It usually takes more than a year but it also depends on how much printing you've done. Sometimes you can reset the counter without actually removing the pad and if it's not really that bad, you can keep going for a while. Removing the ink pad is a big, messy job. If that's your problem, it's time to look for another printer. Check out the CX7400/cx8400. You can find it at places like buy.com for about $70 and often there's a rebate. You can find cheap replacement cartridges which work well at http://ccs-digital.com/ink.asp

[contink]

Just as a note...

I modified a CX6600 to use an external waste ink kit a couple of years back and that resolved the problem without the need to try wrecking the printer to get at the pads.

I don't know if the layout for the CX5000 is similar but this guide may help in the future for anyone else finding this issue and this post:
http://www.continuousink.info/forum/...pic.php?t=3830