I have been troubleshooting my MP530 for the 6A00 error, following everything I could find about it...
I have slid the print head back and forth, checked/ cleaned the pads on the purge unit, cleaned the print head, even opened it up just to look for obstructions/etc.
My observations:
I noticed my print head doe not seem to want to return to it's park position (most of the time), it goes to a spot a few inches to the left of it and then the error code is shown.
I have also noticed the purge unit in action: pads go down, wipes come across, pads go up. It usually does this however, when the print head isn't above it (that's why I saw it)...
In my troubleshooting I have determined that ink is being purged; after a thorough print head/ absorber pad cleaning and a few repeats of the on/off process I observed ink on both the pads and the print head again so it seems that the purge unit is working... This only works the few times that the print head decides to properly seat itself on the purge unit (I assume). Also, the error code comes up at two different times depending on the sequence of events:
If the carriage does not find it's home after startup and ends up about 6 inches from the far right then the error occurs right away.
If the carriage does park itself then everything seems fine after startup (no error codes) until I try to print/scan/etc. The error code comes as soon as the print head tries to start the print job.
My questions:
If it is a purge unit error (that is the 6A00 code right?) then what is the proper mechanical sequence of the purge unit that I should be looking for? It seems to be doing it's job, just not in sync with the print head. How does the carriage interact with the purge unit (does the print head always sit on the unit, it the unit supposed to be up or down when parked? What is the proper startup sequence of the print head? Is the purge unit just supposed to go down when the carriage approaches and up when it's parked?) Also, is there a way to reset the movements/timing of both the print head and the purge unit? Why could my print be parking itself away from the unit? Is it scared? Did it forget where it lives? Did it get bored of it's old house?
Lot's of questions, but hopefully someone can shed some light on this...
Thanks for any help you can offer!
I have slid the print head back and forth, checked/ cleaned the pads on the purge unit, cleaned the print head, even opened it up just to look for obstructions/etc.
My observations:
I noticed my print head doe not seem to want to return to it's park position (most of the time), it goes to a spot a few inches to the left of it and then the error code is shown.
I have also noticed the purge unit in action: pads go down, wipes come across, pads go up. It usually does this however, when the print head isn't above it (that's why I saw it)...
In my troubleshooting I have determined that ink is being purged; after a thorough print head/ absorber pad cleaning and a few repeats of the on/off process I observed ink on both the pads and the print head again so it seems that the purge unit is working... This only works the few times that the print head decides to properly seat itself on the purge unit (I assume). Also, the error code comes up at two different times depending on the sequence of events:
If the carriage does not find it's home after startup and ends up about 6 inches from the far right then the error occurs right away.
If the carriage does park itself then everything seems fine after startup (no error codes) until I try to print/scan/etc. The error code comes as soon as the print head tries to start the print job.
My questions:
If it is a purge unit error (that is the 6A00 code right?) then what is the proper mechanical sequence of the purge unit that I should be looking for? It seems to be doing it's job, just not in sync with the print head. How does the carriage interact with the purge unit (does the print head always sit on the unit, it the unit supposed to be up or down when parked? What is the proper startup sequence of the print head? Is the purge unit just supposed to go down when the carriage approaches and up when it's parked?) Also, is there a way to reset the movements/timing of both the print head and the purge unit? Why could my print be parking itself away from the unit? Is it scared? Did it forget where it lives? Did it get bored of it's old house?
Lot's of questions, but hopefully someone can shed some light on this...
Thanks for any help you can offer!