HP Won't Power On

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KW

I have an HP Business Inkjet 1200. I bought it about a year ago, but it
was a refurb. It's always worked well.

We had a thunderstorm last night, and the power went out. I have the
printer plugged into a surge suppressor, but I wasn't able to shut down
the computer before the power outage. Nothing else seems to be
affected.

I can't get the printer to power on. When I press the power button,
nothing happens. The power cord has a small LED on the end that plugs
into the printer, and it lights up when the printer is plugged in, so
the power cable seems to be working. I tried unplugging it, plugging it
back in, leaving it unplugged for 10-15 minutes, etc.

I'm afraid the printer might have been damaged in some way by the power
outage, but I'm hoping there's some other explanation or way to fix it.

Karen
 
KW said:
I have an HP Business Inkjet 1200. I bought it about a year ago, but it
was a refurb. It's always worked well.

We had a thunderstorm last night, and the power went out. I have the
printer plugged into a surge suppressor, but I wasn't able to shut down
the computer before the power outage. Nothing else seems to be
affected.

I can't get the printer to power on. When I press the power button,
nothing happens. The power cord has a small LED on the end that plugs
into the printer, and it lights up when the printer is plugged in, so
the power cable seems to be working. I tried unplugging it, plugging it
back in, leaving it unplugged for 10-15 minutes, etc.

I'm afraid the printer might have been damaged in some way by the power
outage, but I'm hoping there's some other explanation or way to fix it.

Karen
Click to expand...

Most of he internal power supplies for the printers have a fuse
soldered on the board. You could check the continuity at the plug with
a VOM while pressing the "ON" button. If there is no continuity, the
fuse may be blown. You'd have to get to that internal board and solder
a new fuse in place, before going further.

PS. I usually don't power down during a storm because I have so much
replacement equipment that I can substitute in place. I never seem to
lose anything. Even when the lights went dim, indicating low voltage,
the computer kept running.
 
Protectors that don't have a dedicated 'less than 10 foot'
connection to earth may even contributed to damage of a printer. Surge
earthed, destructively, through that printer. What is damaged? Well
what was a surge path through that printer? Your printer suffered
damage when on a plug-in protector? We have seen that often. Makes
little difference whether the appliance is powered on or off.
Destructive surges seek earth ground. Either surges are earthed
before entering the building, or they may find earth ground,
destructively, through household appliances.

What must be fixed in your printer? Nobody can answer without
opening it and making a analysis at compoent level - to find what that
path to earth was. You could try to self test - where certain buttons
are held when power is turned on. If it works then the adjacent
protector shunted a surge, destructively through printer's data port -
via the computer. It is normal for surge to also travel through
computer data port without damage. But even that solution requires
the shop.

Sometimes you can get lucky. A surge constructed an electrical
connection that only blew an internal fuse. But again, it sounds like
you don't have sufficient technical knowledge to replace it. And
contrary to what was posted, a VOM while holding down the power button
canont detect that fuse as good or bad.

Learn a lesson here. Blackouts don't cause electronics damage. A
surge was permitted inside the building. Surge therefore found many
paths to earth - as least one destructively through your printer;
maybe because it was on a plug-in protector. Those plug-in protectors
have a history of compromising protection already inside all
appliances (ie printer). Only remaining question is the path of that
surge - to identify what hardware was harmed. But again, that
requires sophisticated tools. In fact, service techs typically cannot
make such analysis. They, instead, just swap electronics until
something works. Only the shop can save it now.

Notice what was damaged. The item that was on a plug-in protector.
It is a common problem with protectors that don't even claim to
protect from the typically destructive surges.
 
KW said:
I have an HP Business Inkjet 1200. I bought it about a year ago, but it
was a refurb. It's always worked well.

We had a thunderstorm last night, and the power went out. I have the
printer plugged into a surge suppressor, but I wasn't able to shut down
the computer before the power outage. Nothing else seems to be
affected.

I can't get the printer to power on. When I press the power button,
nothing happens. The power cord has a small LED on the end that plugs
into the printer, and it lights up when the printer is plugged in, so
the power cable seems to be working. I tried unplugging it, plugging it
back in, leaving it unplugged for 10-15 minutes, etc.

I'm afraid the printer might have been damaged in some way by the power
outage, but I'm hoping there's some other explanation or way to fix it.

Karen
Click to expand...
Obvious thing, plug it in to another computer and see if it is
recognised; if not you are looking at repair/replace
 
It sounds like their may have been a power surge either during the
thunderstorm, or upon the power restoring. Not all surge protectors can
fully protect a product, it depends on the product and the surge
protector.

Although a number of things might have failed, I would look for a fuse
in the printer first. It may have blown. Most of them are quite
inexpensive to replace.

Art
 
It sounds like their may have been a power surge either during the
thunderstorm, or upon the power restoring. Not all surge protectors can
fully protect a product, it depends on the product and the surge
protector.

Although a number of things might have failed, I would look for a fuse
in the printer first. It may have blown. Most of them are quite
inexpensive to replace.

Art
Click to expand...
True enough Art, but just popping the cover is difficult for many
people. Some come off easy, some don't. The fuses are often soldered
on and getting to the protected power supply can involve some
disassembly. If she could get a free estimate and the repair was
cheap, OK. Otherwise, if the printer won't power up at a good outlet,
she's done.
 
w_tom wrote:


The best information on surges and surge protection I have seen is at:
http://omegaps.com/Lightning Guide_FINALpublishedversion_May051.pdf
- the title is "How to protect your house and its contents from
lightning: IEEE guide for surge protection of equipment connected to AC
power and communication circuits" published by the IEEE in 2005 (the
IEEE is the dominant organization of electrical and electronic engineers
in the US).
And also:
http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/practiceguides/surgesfnl.pdf
- this is the "NIST recommended practice guide: Surges Happen!: how to
protect the appliances in your home" published by the US National
Institute of Standards and Technology in 2001

The IEEE guide is aimed at those with some technical background. The
NIST guide is aimed at the unwashed masses
Protectors that don't have a dedicated 'less than 10 foot'
connection to earth may even contributed to damage of a printer. Surge
earthed, destructively, through that printer. What is damaged? Well
what was a surge path through that printer? Your printer suffered
damage when on a plug-in protector? We have seen that often. Makes
little difference whether the appliance is powered on or off.
Destructive surges seek earth ground. Either surges are earthed
before entering the building, or they may find earth ground,
destructively, through household appliances.
Click to expand...

The IEEE guide explains plug-in suppressors work by clamping the voltage
on all wires (signal and power) to the common ground at the suppressor,
not earthing. The guide explains earthing occurs elsewhere. (Read the
guide starting pdf page 40).

Note that all interconnected equipment needs to be connected to the same
plug-in suppressor, or interconnecting wires need to go through the
suppressor. External connections, like phone, also need to go through
the suppressor. Connecting all wiring through the suppressor prevents
damaging voltages between power and signal wires. These multiport
suppressors are described in both guide.

Both guides say plug-in suppressors are effective. But ratings can range
from junk to very high.
 
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