Printer problem

[Grounded]

I have an epson c90 printer, was working fine, suddenly the ink containers are blank, not showing any thing, therefore I cannot do a dam thing. the help page lists just about every problem but mine, any of you experts got any ideas?

[corkpix]

You need to find out whether the problem is with the printer, computer or
the cable between them.

Most printers can print a test page or nozzle check pattern when they
are not connected to the computer. This usually involves holding down
some button or combination of buttons when the printer is powered up.

See "Checking the Print Head Nozzles" in the C90 manual.

You hold down the maintenance button while the printer is
first powered up. If the test pattern prints properly, you can
suspect that the problems lies at the computer end of the cable.
If it can't print a self-test page, this indicates a problem with the
printer.

If the problem is with the printer, you have limited options unless
you have spare cartridges or you are willing to buy a new set
for a printer that bay be dead.

Make sure that any electrical contacts between the cartridge and
the printer are clean and dry. Try to run a head cleaning cycle.
You can find details of how to do a stand-alone print head clean
in the C90 manual.

Epsons are very prone to blocked print head nozzles. They need
to be used frequently to keep them running.

[deadshot]

My epson used to block often if I left it a couple of weeks.
What I do now is print off a tiny inch and a quarter size multi colour picture once a week , that doesnt use much ink and keeps them clear.
If I'm away for a few weeks and I come back to a blocked nozzle I take the cartridge out and hold the nozzle under a fine running tap,then I dry it on a tissue, that often clears it better than the clean cycle, which cleans all the nozzles whether they need it or not.

[VTphotog]

First step would be to unplug the power cord for a couple minutes. Remove and re-seat the ink cartridges. remove and re-seat the usb connectors at the printer and computer. Plug printer back in and look at the status monitor again to see if the ink shows up.
The status monitor should warn you when you get low on ink, but that can be suppressed. If you have done that, and kept printing, your carts could, actually, be out of ink. Even if there is ink remaining in the carts, if the chips have counted them down all the way, they are empty as far as the printer is concerned, and it won't print until you replace the carts.

brian

[TCav]

I suggest you unplug the USB cable from the back of the printer, plug it back in, unplug it from the computer, and plug it back in.

Frequently, especially during this time of year, static charges can build up and interrupt communication between a printer and a computer, or any two devices. (I've had to do the same thing with my cable box and DVD recorder occasionally.)

[Grounded]

No matter what I did I couldnt get it to work, nor could I move the ink cartridges. I figured best to delete all epson stuff, and reinstall, well that sort of worked, At least I can now see the amount of ink left, and can print OK, but I now have two printer icons in the system tray, the one that works, and the dud one, which I cannot remove, even with the add and remove option. So I still need help.

[VTphotog]

If you are using Windows 7, right-click on your taskbar and select 'properties'. Click on the 'customize button, and set the unwanted icon to 'hide'. That won't remove it from the system, but will get it out of your way. To remove it, you may be able to use the Control Panel. If it shows both printers there, you can remove the one you don't need.

brian