How to Clear a Paper Jam on an All-in-One Printer

Even the best all-in-one printer jams occasionally, so you should become familiar with the clearing process before a paper jam stops you in your tracks. Most jams occur as the paper negotiates the turns and rollers inside the machine, so check these places first when the paper jam light starts blinking on your printer. Follow these steps to clear a paper jam on an all-in-one printer.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• User's manual
• All-in-one printer

1. Switch off the printer and disconnect the power supply. Allow any residual charge to fade away before putting your hands or metal tools inside the chassis.

2. Pin down the exact location of the jam. The three hot spots for a jam are the paper tray, anywhere between the feed tray and the print carriage, or between the print carriage and the output tray.

3. Take off the front paper tray if the sheet got stuck while it was still in the front area of the printer. If the sheet jammed here, you should be able to see most of the paper.

4. Pull on the sheet with both hands and steady pressure. Do not tug as you might rip the paper, leaving a chunk of it deeper in the machine.

5. Open the back panel to reach paper jammed between the feed tray area and the print carriage of the all-in-one printer. Carefully remove the jammed paper from the machine.

6. Use the carriage access door to reach a jam further inside the all-in-one printer. You may need to move the print carriage out of your way to clear the jam.

7. Return any access panels to their closed and locked positions. Plug your printer back in and flip the power switch.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid using different sizes and kinds of paper while printing. Save different paper types for a separate print batch.

• Correctly load paper into the feeder tray to reduce the chance of jams in the future. You can find instructions in your all-in-one printer's manual.

• Allow the printer to reset itself automatically before further use.

• Reaching inside an all-in-one printer while it is turned on is a good way to get shocked. Turn off the printer and allow the residual charge to dissipate before servicing.