Receipt Printer Troubleshooting

If you come across a issue with your Epson TM-T88V Receipt Printer, please follow the steps below to troubleshoot the issue.

Firstly check the power LED on the top of the printer is lit, if not please check the power cables and connections.

Printer LEDs and Cables

The image below shows how the cables for your receipt will be set up. You should see 3 cables:

  • RJ12 – Cash Drawer Kicker Cable – This cable (looks like a telephone cable) goes to your cash drawer. If this cable is not connected the till drawer will not open correctly.
  • Epson Power Cable – This cable will lead to a black power block which has a (kettle style plug) going into it, please ensure that the mains cable is plugged securely into the power brick and is turned on.
  • USB Data Cable – The USB Data cable transfers the information between the computer and printer, if this is not connected the printer will not function.

Also please make sure the main power switch has not be accidentally been turned off, if it has please switch the printer back on.

Performing A Hard Reset

If the following steps do not work please try performing a hard reset on the printer. Please turn off the printer and then hold your finger on the Paper Feed button whilst turning the printer back on via the main power switch, hold your finger on the Paper Feed button for approx 3-4 seconds.

Cleaning The Receipt Printer (Prevent Overheating)

The Epson TM-T88V Receipt Printers have a built in thermal cut out feature, which means if the thermal printer head (the part that prints on the paper) gets too hot the printer will shut down to protect itself and prevent overheating. Due to the environment that the printer is located they can overtime get a build up of paper dust, hair, dust and residue from products inside. With this build up it can act as a heat insulator around the thermal printer head and causes the thermal printer head temperature to exceed its normal operating temperatures and shut down the printer to protect itself. To resolve this issue you will need to allow the printers thermal printer head to cool down and to clean the internals of the printer.

Firstly slide down the plastic cover as shown above.

Now check the white triangle near the adjustable gear, if it visible like the image above then the gear doesn’t need to be adjusted. If the white triangle is not visible turn the gear downwards until the triangle becomes visible again as shown above. Also CAREFULLY clean any paper dust, fluff, hair or product residue from the the cutter with either a paint brush, vacuum cleaner or hair dryer (MAKE SURE TO USE THE COLD AIR SETTING!). Once the triangle is aligned (if required) and the area is clean replace the plastic cover securely.

Once the paper cutter blade and nearby area is clean check the actually thermal printer head (as highlighted in the image above) and CAREFULLY clean any paper dust, fluff, hair or product residue from the the thermal printer head with either a paint brush, vacuum cleaner or hair dryer (MAKE SURE TO USE THE COLD AIR SETTING!). If a standard clean up of the thermal printer head doesn’t help we recommend using a small amount of Isopropyl Alcohol/Isopropanol (99%) on a cotton wool bud and gently wiping over the thermal head to clear any contaminants.

Finally as a good measure please CAREFULLY clean any paper dust, fluff, hair or product residue from the the paper roll bay with either a paint brush, vacuum cleaner or hair dryer (MAKE SURE TO USE THE COLD AIR SETTING!). Once you have finished these steps your receipt printer should be functional again if not please contact Technical Support.

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