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HP OfficeJet Pro 8700 Printers - Paper Jam Error

This document is for HP OfficeJet Pro 8720, 8725, 8728, 8730, 8732M, 8740, and 8745 All-in-One printers.

During a print job, the printer stops feeding pages and a Paper Jam error message displays on the printer control panel. This indicates that paper might be jammed inside the printer.

note:
Paper jams can be real or false. The printer might report a paper jam even when there is no jammed paper. The following steps apply to both real and false paper jams.

Video overview

Step 1: Clear jammed paper from the printer

Paper jams can occur in multiple areas of the printer. If you cannot find the paper jam in one area, continue to the next area until the jam is located.

note:
Avoid using thicker paper. No more than 105 g/m² (28 lb bond) for plain paper or 200 g/m² (110 lb index) for cards.

Clear jammed paper from the input tray

Remove any jammed paper that is accessible from the input tray area.

Pull out the input tray.
Gently remove any jammed paper from the area. To avoid tearing any whole sheets of paper, pull the paper with both hands.
Remove any torn bits of paper or debris in the input tray area. You might need to use a flashlight.
Insert the input tray back into the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, check for jammed paper in another area of the printer.

Clear jammed paper from the ink cartridge access area

Remove any loose or jammed paper that is accessible from the ink cartridge access area.

Turn off the printer, and then disconnect the power cord and any other cables.
Lift up and push back the ink cartridge access door.
If the carriage is not obstructed, move the print carriage to the right or left of the printer and remove any jammed paper. To avoid the paper tearing, use both hands to pull out the paper.
Remove any torn bits of paper or debris in the ink cartridge access area. You might need to use a flashlight.
Close the cartridge access door.
Reconnect the power cord and any other cables to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, check for jammed paper in another area of the printer.

Clear jammed paper from the output area

Remove any jammed paper from the output area of the printer.

Turn off the printer, and then disconnect the power cord and any other cables.
Lift up and push back the cartridge access door.
Lift up the inside cover, and then remove any jammed paper, torn bits of paper, or debris. You might need to use a flashlight.
Lower the inside cover, and then press down until it snaps into place.
Close the ink cartridge access door.
Reconnect the power cord and any other cables to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, check for jammed paper in another area of the printer.

Clear jammed paper from the duplex area

Remove any jammed paper from the duplex area.

Pull out the input tray.
Locate the duplex door, above the input tray area.
Pull the duplex door towards you to open it.
Press down to open the inner door.
Gently remove any jammed paper from inside the printer. To avoid the paper tearing, use both hands to pull out the paper.
Remove any torn bits of paper or debris in the duplex area. You might need to use a flashlight.
Lift up, and then close the inner door.
Lift up, and then push back the duplex door until it snaps into place.
Insert the input tray back into the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, check for jammed paper in another area of the printer.

Clear jammed paper from the rear of the printer

Clear a paper jam from the rear of the printer.

Turn off the printer, and then disconnect the power cord and any other cables.
Turn the printer so that the rear access door faces you.
Press the two tabs inward on the rear access door, lower the rear access door to open it, and then remove any jammed paper.
Press the two buttons inward on the paper path cover, and then pull the cover out of the printer.
Remove any jammed paper. To avoid the paper tearing, use both hands to pull out the paper.
Remove any torn bits of paper or debris from the rear of the printer. You might need to use a flashlight.
Insert the paper path cover back into the printer.
Close the rear access door.
Reconnect the power cord and any other cables to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, check for jammed paper in another area of the printer.

Clear jammed paper from the automatic document feeder

Clear jammed paper from the automatic document feeder (ADF).

Lift the cover of the ADF.
Pull out any jammed paper from the rollers.
Close the ADF cover.
Lift up the ADF tray, and then remove any jammed paper from under the tray.
Remove any torn bits of paper or debris in the ADF. You might need to use a flashlight.
Close the ADF tray.

If you have checked and removed any jammed paper from each printer area and the error persists, continue to the next step.

Step 2: Make sure the carriage can move freely

Make sure the carriage moves freely across the width of the printer.

Turn on the printer, if it is not already on.
Lift up and push back the cartridge access door.
Wait until the carriage is idle and silent before you continue.
With the printer turned on, disconnect the power cord from the rear of the printer.
Unplug the power cord from the power source or electrical outlet.

warning:
You must unplug the power cord to move the carriage by hand and reset the paper feed mechanism without the risk of electrical shock.
Use a flashlight to check for any paper or objects that might be restricting the carriage, and then remove any paper or objects that you find.

caution:
If the paper tears when you remove it from the rollers, check the rollers and wheels for torn pieces of paper that might remain inside the printer. If pieces of paper remain in the printer, more paper jams can occur.
Reach inside the printer through the ink cartridge access door, and then manually move the carriage.
- If the carriage is stuck on the right side of the printer, move the carriage to the left side of the printer.
- If the carriage is stuck on the left side of the printer, move the carriage to the right side of the printer.
- If the carriage is stuck in the middle of the printer, move the carriage to the right side and then the left side of the printer.
Remove any loose paper or obstructions found.
Make sure that the carriage can move freely across the width of the printer. Firmly push the carriage to the left side of the printer, and then push it to the right side.
Close the ink cartridge access door.
Reconnect the power cord to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, continue to the next step.

Step 3: Clean the paper feed rollers

Dust, paper fiber, and other debris might accumulate on the paper feed rollers and cause paper jams and paper feed issues. Clean the rollers inside the printer, and then try to print again.

Clean the rollers from inside the ink cartridge access area

Clean the rollers inside the ink cartridge access area.

Turn off the printer, and then disconnect the power cord and any other cables.

warning:
You must disconnect the power cord before reaching inside the printer to avoid risk of injuries or electric shock.
Lift up and push back the cartridge access door.
Lightly dampen the swab with the water, and then squeeze any excess liquid from the swab.
Press the swab against the rollers inside the printer, and then rotate the rollers upwards with your fingers. Apply a moderate amount of pressure to remove any dust or dirt buildup.
Allow the rollers to dry completely (approximately 10 minutes).
Close the ink cartridge access door.
Reconnect the power cord and any other cables to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, clean the rollers in another area of the printer.

Clean the rollers from inside the rear of the printer

Clean the rollers inside the rear of the printer.

Turn off the printer, and then disconnect the power cord and any other cables.
Turn the printer so that the rear access door faces you.
Press the two tabs inward to open the rear access door, and then remove any jammed paper.
Press the two buttons on the paper path cover, and then pull the cover out of the printer.
Lightly dampen a clean, lint-free cloth with bottled or distilled water, and then squeeze any excess liquid from the cloth.
Press the cloth against the rollers, and then rotate them upward with your fingers. Apply a moderate amount of pressure to remove any dust or dirt buildup.
Repeat the cleaning steps on the paper path cover rollers.
Allow the rollers to dry completely (approximately 10 minutes).
Insert the paper path cover back into the printer.
Close the rear access door.
Reconnect the power cord and any other cables to the rear of the printer, and then turn on the printer.

Try to print. If the error persists, clean the rollers in another area of the printer.

Clean the rollers in the ADF

Clean the paper feed rollers in the ADF.

Lift the cover of the ADF.
Lightly dampen a clean, lint-free cloth with bottled or distilled water, and then squeeze any excess liquid from the cloth.
Press the cloth against the rollers, and then rotate them upward with your fingers. Apply a moderate amount of pressure to remove any dust or dirt buildup.
Rollers

Separator pad
Allow the rollers to dry completely (approximately 10 minutes).
Close the ADF cover tightly at both ends.

Try to print. If the error persists, continue to the next step.

Step 4: Reset the printer

Sometimes a paper jam error persists even though there is no jammed paper (false paper jam). Reset the printer, which might clear a false paper jam error, and then try to print again.

With the printer turned on, disconnect the power cord from the printer.
Unplug the power cord from the power source.
Wait 60 seconds.
Reconnect the power cord to a wall outlet and to the printer.

note:
HP recommends plugging the printer directly into a wall outlet.

Try to print. If the error persists, continue to the next step.

Step 5: Service the printer

Service or replace your HP product if the issue persists after completing all the preceding steps.

Go to Contact HP Customer Support to schedule a product repair or replacement. If you are in Asia Pacific, you will be directed to a local service center in your area.

To confirm your warranty status, go to HP Product Warranty Check. Repair fees might apply for out-of-warranty products.

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