Dealing with paper jams

Choosing appropriate paper and loading it correctly

Lexmark printers are very reliable, but printers always jam sooner or later. You can minimise the chances of getting paper jams by using good quality paper that is within the specifications laid down by Lexmark. The weight of the paper in gms/square metre, the texture of the paper and the moisture content are all important in achieving trouble free operation of your printer. The moisture content is particularly important in humid environments.

You should load the paper trays carefully and ensure that the paper clamps are set firmly against the edges of the paper: otherwise the paper may skew and then jam on its path through the printer. Do not use paper that has wrinkled edges or damaged corners as these sheets are most likely to jam in the printer. We do not recommend using paper that has already been through the printer once before. If you use paper that is outside the manufacturer's specifications, you will raise the probability of frequent paper jams and you may cause excessive wear on expensive components such as the fuser. We suggest that you read the printer's User Manual carefully and follow the directions given there.

Identifying printer problems

If your printer is producing frequent paper jams, you should try to identify and resolve the cause of the problem. Many printers have been seriously damaged by people attempting to remove paper jams: it is cheaper to prevent the problem from arising than pay for the repair costs of the resulting damage.

• If your printer is feeding multiple sheets of paper simultaneously, you may need to replace the separation pad in the multi-purpose feeder.
• If the printer is not picking up the paper at all, you may need to replace the paper pickup rollers in the main paper trays.
• If the printer is creasing the paper or folding one corner of the paper, you may need to overhaul the fuser.
• If the printer is usually jamming paper at the rear of the printer, you may need to overhaul the fuser.
• If the printer is jamming or fan-folding the paper at the top exit rollers (redrive assembly), you may have dislodged the spring on the top, left hand side of the back of the printer. Reconnect the spring.
• If the printer asks you to remove paper from the standard (output) bin although the output bin is obviously empty, you will need to re-seat the paper exit flag on the left hand side of the exit rollers (redrive assembly)

Treating the printer carefully

We recommend that you take great care when clearing paper jams. Many expensive printer repairs result from people attempting to clear paper jams without the necessary knowledge or care. If in doubt, ask for help! If you use excessive force you may dislodge or damage some components in the printer. For example, the printer has a number of paper sensors placed at strategic points along the paper path. The sensors enable the printer to monitor the progress of paper through the printer and to identify the site of any jam. If you dislodge or break one of the small plastic fingers that form part of the sensor, the printer will report a paper jam and refuse to operate even though you have removed all of the jammed paper. If you tear the paper, the pieces remaining in the printer will obstruct the paper path and cause further jams.

If you attempt to remove paper from the fuser using pliers, scissors, tweezers or similar tools, you will almost certainly need to replace the fuser afterwards. Please don't! You should call for help instead. The following advice for clearing paper jams is provided by Lexmark:

Lexmark's tips for clearing jammed paper:

Remove any print jobs from any output bins before opening the upper front door to remove jams. The printer sounds an alert when it jams, and displays an error message on the front panel display. The error code on the display enables you to locate the position of the jammed paper - so note the number eg 201 Paper Jam, 241 Paper Jam, etc.

• Gently pull on the paper. Use both hands, if possible.
• Do not force the paper; it may tear. If one direction is difficult, try pulling the other direction.
• If the paper does tear, be certain to clean all scraps from the paper-feed area.

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