Can you keep using it?
Can you keep using it?
Contact customer support if any of these apply
- !You want to prevent downtime and the warning is already recurring.
- !The printer is used heavily enough that the warning could become a full service stop soon.
What to check first
Step-by-step checks
- 1
Safe first step
Press OK only if you need to keep printing and understand the warning is still active.
Start with the official recovery step before moving on to parts or deeper servicing.
- 2
Escalate
Plan service or replacement before the pad reaches the full replacement condition.
- 3
Escalate
Avoid repeated cleaning cycles because they can shorten the remaining service life.
Background
What this message usually means
Epson uses W-11 on the ET-2980 series as a warning-stage ink-pad message. Epson says to contact support, but also notes that printing can continue by pressing OK. This is a service-planning warning, not a routine low-ink alert.
Before the message
What users usually notice first
Messages like this often appear after the printer fails one of its normal startup, supply, or paper-path checks and cannot return to ready state cleanly.
Diagnosis
Likely causes
The internal ink pad has reached a warning threshold.
The waste-ink counter is nearing its service limit.
Heavy cleaning or purge cycles have shortened the remaining pad life.
Service
When service or replacement is more likely
- -W-11 is a warning-stage service-life message, not a routine low-ink prompt.
Avoid wrong turns
Common misreads of this message
- -Treating the message like a confirmed failed part instead of a support clue about which system has stopped the printer.
- -Assuming any supply-related wording means the next step is automatically to buy a cartridge, toner, drum, or printhead.
See also
Related codes in this family
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More Epson printer families
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Guide
How to find the right printer model family before using error codes
How to match the right printer family or series before trusting an error page that might only be a near match.
Boundary
When to stop troubleshooting and move to support
Use the message once to classify the problem, then move to support if the printer still cannot return to ready after the first safe checks.
Keep browsing
Where to go next
Source notes
Epson's ET-2980 status table identifies W-11 as an ink-pad warning and notes that OK can continue printing.
Built around Epson ET-2980 and ET-2980U support guidance plus the linked product status-message table. Panel wording can vary slightly by firmware or regional variant.
Printer error codes can vary a little by firmware, region, and exact model variant. Use this guide as a family-level starting point and stop if the next step would require disassembly or service-mode changes.
Known family variants: ET-2980, ET-2980U
Last reviewed: 2026-04-12
Reference: Open reference