The platen is the print surface and drive roller for your media. It normally does not require cleaning. Print operations tolerate some accumulation of paper and liner dust on the platen roller.
Contaminants on the platen roller can damage the printhead or cause the media to slip or stick when printing. Adhesive, dirt, general dust, oils, and other contaminants should be cleaned off the platen immediately.
Clean the platen (and the media path) whenever the printer exhibits significantly poorer performance, print quality, or media handling. If sticking or jamming continues even after cleaning, you must replace the platen.
The platen can be cleaned with a fiber-free swab (such as a Texpad swab) or a lint-free, clean, damp cloth very lightly moistened with medical-grade alcohol (90% pure or better) as described in this procedure.
To remove the platen roller:
Open the cover (and dispenser door, if the dispenser is installed).
Remove media from platen area.
Pull the platen-bearing latch-release tabs (1) on the right and left sides towards the front of the printer and rotate them up. (The images with the arrows below show the latches in their closed and open positions, respectively.)
Lift the platen out of the printer’s bottom frame. (The arrows in this image point to the platen bearings.)
Slide the gear and the two bearings off the shaft of the platen roller.
Perform this step for cleaning only:
Clean the platen with the alcohol-moistened swab starting from the center and working outwards.
Repeat the above step until the entire roller surface is cleaned thoroughly. While adhesives and oils may be thinned by the initial cleaning, they may not be completely removed.
If there is heavy adhesive build-up or a label jam, use a new swab to remove any residual contaminants.
Discard the cleaning swabs after use. Do not reuse them.
Ensure the bearings and drive gear are on the shaft of the platen roller.
Align the platen with the gear to the left and lower it into the printer’s bottom frame.
Rotate the platen-bearing latch-release tabs down on the right and left sides towards the rear of the printer and snap them into place.
Allow the printer to dry for one minute before closing the dispenser door or media cover and before loading the media.
