Sunday 10 January 2016

How to fix “There is a problem with the printhead” on your HP Officejet 6830

This is how I fixed my HP Officejet 6830 printer after I got the error message, "There is a problem with the printhead". The error code was 0xc19a0003. From the number of problem reports on HP’s support web site, it seems that this is a common fault with this printer.

The problem seems to stem from excessive ink leakage. The bottom of my printer, under where it parks the print head, was saturated with ink; it had obviously been dribbling in - see screen shot below.



If you have the same problem, here is how to fix it:


  1. Open the cover as you would to change ink cartridges.
  2. Disconnect the power.
  3. Remove all the screws of the inner top cover - see screen shot below. You will need either a star screwdriver of the right size, or a flathead screwdriver that exactly fits the screws.
  4. Gently lift off the inner top cover put it out the way; you do not need to disconnect the cables; just place it on the side so that you can access the printer’s internals.
  5. Make a note of the plastic location tape’s orientation as you will need to put this back exactly the way it came. Note which end is left or right, and which side is top or bottom.
  6. Remove the location tape.
  7. Remove the screws from the print head’s base - see second screen shot below.
  8. You will now be able to lift the whole assembly, including the printhead and its bar, up and tilt it upside down; you do not need to disconnect any cables.
  9. Clean the bottom of the printhead with a lint-free wipe of some sort. My printhead had excessive ink.
  10. Put everything back, the reverse of the above instructions.
  11. Plug the power back in.
  12. Turn it on.
  13. On the printer’s control panel, swipe left and go to Setup / Printer Maintenance and select Clean Printhead.
  14. Clean the print heads.



At this point, my printer was working again. You may not have the same success, of course, and you shouldn’t do this if your printer is still under warranty. My printer was 18 months old and was out of warranty.

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