They manage to be scary, annoying and ruin your card. So what do you do? Occasionally and unfortunately sometimes printers get clogged. Learn how to quickly clear the jam to get back to printing your work!
Steps
Step 1. Turn off the printer, wait a few moments and then turn it back on again
Sometimes the printer clears the jam by itself during the start-up cycle. Sometimes, resetting it causes it to check for the presence of paper again and stops detecting a block that is no longer there.
Step 2. Check the control panel, if it has one
Many printers have a small screen that displays a line or two of text. When they are jammed, they can try to give an idea of where the block is and to suggest a solution. If it doesn't, go ahead and try to find the point where the problem arises for yourself.
Step 3. If you can see the card, try to gently pull it away
Otherwise or if the printer is still locked, start opening it. Look carefully inside, between trays and lids, to try to identify where the paper should not be.
Step 4. When you find the paper misplaced, try to pull it out carefully
If you can, try to pull it to the side that sticks out.
Step 5. Open the paper trays
If they look like drawers, try to free them and pull them out to their full length. Put them aside and look inside the printer where they were positioned to see if the paper has been raised but has not yet been dragged all the way inside. Bring out everything you can achieve.
Make sure there is paper in the drawers, but that they are not full. Sometimes too much or too little paper causes a jam or the printer simply detects it as if it were
Step 6. Open the front and / or top covers
They usually open by simply lifting or pulling them gently, but you may need to touch a lever. If they do not open easily, avoid forcing them.
Step 7. Remove the print cartridges
In a laser printer, usually by lifting a front or top cover, you will have access to the toner. If you still haven't found the paper, carefully pull out the cartridge. Take it out. Some printers may require a couple of latches to be released in advance.
Step 8. Open any back or side covers that are present
Also check each manual feed tray. Check for paper or other obstructions and remove them. It can be useful to use a mirror when checking the trays in the back and it may be necessary to move the printer away from the walls to be able to open them comfortably and reach the innermost parts.
Step 9. Clean all dirty parts inside the printer if necessary
Consult the manual. It is more likely that you will need to remove the paper rather than clean parts.
Step 10. Reinstall any removed print cartridges and paper trays and close the printer cover
You can reinsert most of the items by noting how they were removed and putting them in reverse order.
Step 11. Turn the printer back on if it was off
Step 12. Give it time to warm up if a reboot cycle follows
Step 13. Check that the printer is online
- You may have to turn off the printer again and restart it to reset after clearing the jam.
- You may have to open and close the front or top cover if you haven't opened it yet to clear the jam.
- Perhaps you will have to press a button to get it back online (it is often large, green and labeled "Ready", "Start" or "Go").
- The panel, if it exists, will display "Online" when the printer is active. If the printer is not online, the reason should appear.
- If there is no panel, you will probably see a green light when the printer is active and you will not see it - or it will be red - if it is offline. The user manual (you can always search the Internet for the model of your printer) will explain all the error codes in detail.
Step 14. Try printing again
Some models keep in memory the jobs that have not been completed and re-launch them automatically. In other cases, you will have to send them back to print.
Advice
- Be systematic and remember what you opened and how, so you can close it again.
- When you open the printer, check the path that the paper must make from the entrance to the cartridges, to the exit. Follow this path as best you can.
- If any parts of your printer are worn or old, try to get it repaired or buy a new one.
- Never pull or push the paper or the various ports and levers of your printer too hard. Understand that they have been designed to be easily extracted. If you seem to be failing, try to move the levers or latches.
- The levers are usually made of plastic in a contrasting color, different from that of the printer body and cartridges. Many also have a label indicating whether to push or pull.
- Make sure the latches are fully re-engaged when you reinsert the print cartridges, paper trays, and all covers.
- If you've just cleared a jam and it comes back right away, your printer might need maintenance. Repeated clogging could be due to worn or misaligned parts inside the printer.
- Not all of these steps are suitable for all printers. If you have a large laser printer with four color toners, a duplexer and multiple trays, you will have many more places to check than in a simple inkjet printer. The good news is that more complex printers often offer additional clues as to where to look and how to get there.
- Try using the user manual to access more detailed instructions. This article is indeed very generic.
- If the printer is for public use, such as at a school, library, copy shop or workplace, do not forget that you can usually ask staff for assistance. They may know the particular printer better than you: being less experienced, you could damage it.
Warnings
- Parts of a laser printer may be very hot. Proceed with caution.
- Do not insert your fingers or hands into places on the printer where you may not be able to get them out.
- Before inserting labels or transparencies into a printer, check that they are intended for that use. Otherwise, the adhesive or plastic could melt: it could be very expensive to repair.
