C224e/C284e/C364e/C454e/C545e cyan dev unit problems

[Tech Helpdesk]

i have heard through a good source that this has been an issue for quite a while.

it seems to be a problem with the drum lifes.

while there is no issues with copy quality and how many copies it seems to be the amount of minutes the drums are doing ecspecially the black drum.

i have C224e go for a year to 18 months with out a problem or even a call and all of a sudden the cyan dev unit has been completely drained.

the drum minute life seems to be the problem as after replacing the drums i have had far fewer failures than i have had previously.

let me know your thoughts.

Hi mate,

This is what we have been doing and so far all is well.

1 – Print off management lists before and after work and also print off halftones at 128 and 200 and check the quality.
2 – Check / change and reset every drum at 100 – 130% to return voltage correction levels to normal state.
3 – Check the condition of the transfer belt and replace at 100-130% and clean the IDC sensors
4 – Check and return to factory defaults (if req) – D Max Image Density, TCR Level setting, Image Background Voltage Adjustment, Transfer Output Fine Adjustment, etc.
5 – Check the TCR values on each colour they should be around 6.5% if not tone up manually.
6 – If the developer units are over-life and the print quality is ok then reset the units using the developer reset tool.
7 – Initialize and Stabilize the machine, then Gradation Adjust(minimum 3 times each for print and copy) and ensure the convergence values are 60 or less on both)
8 – Obtain final management lists and halftone prints to confirm quality.

Regards

[minimerlin]

Well greetings...I have just joined the Cyan Dev Unit Failure Group! Last month I replaced a cyan dev unit for depletion but with all readings as normal! Machine only done 1k colour since then and today back to machine..again cyan dev depleted..not spillt. Drum lives just expired. Toner replenishment is working and all shutters working. Ordering new dev tank and replaced cyan drum. Will renew all colour drums on rtf call for dev tank. I hope this does not mean the start of our epidemic!

[hotfuser]

Well greetings...I have just joined the Cyan Dev Unit Failure Group! Last month I replaced a cyan dev unit for depletion but with all readings as normal! Machine only done 1k colour since then and today back to machine..again cyan dev depleted..not spillt. Drum lives just expired. Toner replenishment is working and all shutters working. Ordering new dev tank and replaced cyan drum. Will renew all colour drums on rtf call for dev tank. I hope this does not mean the start of our epidemic!

replace the drums as this seems to be the solution.

i started this thread a while ago now and i have only just seem to have got to the bottom of this.

it seems to be the drum life is causing the issue. as i have had machines go 18 months to 2 years and the first problem that happened was cyan dev depletion.

replacing drums if the minutes are well over life has seemed to have culled the problem so far.

[EarthKmTech]

that wasn't the case for me as i was putting a new drum in each time i was changing the cyan dev unit. as on each failure the charge unit was again full of cyan toner.

[hotfuser]

that wasn't the case for me as i was putting a new drum in each time i was changing the cyan dev unit. as on each failure the charge unit was again full of cyan toner.

it was the black drum mainly that seemed to be causing the issue

[hotfuser]

quieting down now as changing the black drum has slowed the issue.

if the minutes on th k drum are double change it as it will save in the long run :-)

[EarthKmTech]

quieting down now as changing the black drum has slowed the issue.

if the minutes on th k drum are double change it as it will save in the long run :-)

This doesn't reflect my experience.

All our e series machines are sent out setup for life extension on all consumables, all drums routinely run over life non stop. (to my disgust) I've had black drums so worn out they start making black lines down the prints, still with no consequences to the colour parts.

This non e series machine I wrote about is the only one I've experienced this on to date and its black drum was near new during the problems.

What ever it was doesn't seem to be happening anymore.

[giddyupngo]

I know this is an old thread, but I have had a couple machines mis-reporting TCR levels, where they drift low (usually) in just one color. Our theory is that toner mist or toner spills get to the Front side board (that the developers plug into) and short it out/damage it. We typically put a meter on the developer connector (while machine is on and door/waste toner sensors appropriately tricked) and measure the voltages on the pins. If the voltages on the problem color seem to match the working color, but the TCR level is a few percent off, we conclude that the front side board is shot. Replacing it has worked fine so far. You can buy some time with manual toner adds, but the TCR will typically drift off again without board replacement.

[femaster]

Just a side note, I have not read the entire thread, so maybe others have experienced my current situation...

I have yet to have any issues with drained cyan dev units to date, but I did have an issue this past week with a cyan dev unit that had leaked developer out the back of it on a C454e. The customer was running a large set of color brochures and everything went "pink" on them. Upon testing, there was no cyan output at all. Removed everything and found that the drive gears on the dev unit were covered in toner/developer and were worn down to nothing, and there was a small pile of developer in the back of copier. Dev unit was at 47% used. Checked all the other dev units and they were all clean with no problems.

[copier tech]

This bulletin was recently released.

It basically says not to let ANY unit run over life & keep the FW up to date.

Most of my Bizhub users have high expectations so I replace all units before they cause a print quality issue, hence I rarely see this issue.

Failure of Image Unit or Developer Unit 2017.pdf