My first visit to Computer & Printer Repair, I encountered a temporary sign on the overhang above…read morethe entrance, a temporary sign on the door, and a closed door with a keypad. It was locked.
I phoned the number on the sign, and someone answered promptly. I described my problem: color prints, black doesn't.
The guy said $40 to inspect, $80 more to fix (if possible), plus parts if necessary -- but only $40 to unclog ink. If they can't fix it, the initial $40 includes recycling fees. Not bad to fix a $300 printer with scanner. They could visit or I could take it there.
I said that I was already there.
The guy said that they were in Olympia for an on-site job, and gave me instructions on dropping off my printer. I did so, and waited for news.
Turns out that the color cartridges were too low to test, so I had to but a color pack. (Thanks, Staples, for the Amazon price match.) I dropped off the ink.
They fixed it very quickly, and said that the ink flush was all it needed. $80 plus tax.
I picked it up, and finally got to meet the guy who did the repair.
Alas, the printer failed the power-on self-test when I plugged it in at home. On a Sunday afternoon. I didn't get a chance to bring the printer back for another look until Friday.
Next day, when they're not officially even open, they called and said it worked fine for him. (Classic computer service occurrence, right?) He suggested I try it again.
Then, before I got a chance to head there to pick it up, he called again. He had reproduced the problem! He contacted someone at Brother, and updated the firmware. Problem still there. He tinkered, and found a solution: bypass part of the power-on self-test by leaving the top door open when plugging it in. Hooray! (He also said a new system board would solve the problem for real, but he couldn't get a price quote on Saturday.) Bonus: no charge.
So I picked it up, and plugged it in. Oops, forgot the work-around. Fail. Unplug, wait, open top door, plug in again. Lots of start-up noises. Set the time and my wifi settings. And it printed something that had been sitting in the printer queue!
I printed more today, and it's still working. Success.
Bonus printer shopping advice:
- Brother and Canon are good stuff, but if one breaks, they can fix it.
- Epson is good, but the nearest place for repairs is somewhere in Oregon.
- Avoid HP printers. They're good, but their ink policies are trouble.