Unknown Printer

How to Identify and Fix Common Problems ?

Our sources include academic articles, blog posts, and personal essays from experienced technical support :

Dots are typically caused by foreign material inside the machine (for example paper dust, glue from labels or envelopes, paper clips, staples) sticking to or damaging the surface of the drum. Toner builds up on or sticks to these areas on the drum and creates black dots on the printed pages.
This happens when the rollers or the transfer belt inside the printer get dirty or covered in excess dirt, ink or toner powder, and as the paper is moved through the printer the `tracks` are being left on the page. This is normally the case when the tracks on the page are located at either end.
A Bad Toner Cartridge

Usually associated with compatible or re-filled cartridges, a leaky cartridge deposits toner inside your printer and onto your paper in places that it`s not intended, resulting in black spots.

Check the toner level

The first step for light and faded prints is to check that your toner cartridge is not running low or empty. If your laser printer has a built-in LCD screen, you should be able to view the toner levels on screen or via a printed test page accessed in the settings menu.

This is most often caused by using paper that is damp, is of poor quality, or not designed for this machine (ie: Inkjet paper) It can also be caused by the machine not being placed on a solid, level surface, poor calibration, or uneven distribution from a low toner cartridge.
If the paper is too thick, glossy or not designed for laser printing, ghosting will most likely occur. Dust and debris inside the printer can also cause ghosting as too much dirt can interfere with the drum units, transfer units and fuser units.
Check the ink levels

Sometimes, the printer may not print black ink because it is low or empty. You can check the ink levels on the printer`s display, or by using the software that came with your printer. If the ink level is low, replace the cartridge or refill it according to the manufacturer`s instructions.

Your printer can become misaligned if there is any paper stuck in the machine, print cartridges are clogged or dirty, improper installation of cartridges and using low quality cartridges. Additionally, a printer can become misaligned after the machine completes a large print job.
If your PC or the LCD screen on your printer is telling you that your ink cartridges are full but no ink is passing through to the paper, then it`s most likely that you are dealing with a clogged printhead. Blurry documents and images that appear faded are also signs that it`s time to remove the excess ink.
For cleaning, HP recommends using HP Equipment Cleaning Wipes, but you can use an HP-approved lint-free wipe and deionized or distilled water. Note: If dark spots appear on back side of prints, clean drum screen. Note: If minilab prints more than 2000 prints each day, clean drum screen up to twice daily.
Paper Jams

This is a common laser printer problem. Primary causes include grime, dust, worn rollers, or incorrect paper weight. The most basic way to prevent paper jams is simply through regular cleaning of your printer. Also, replace parts as needed.

A ghost printer is a deleted printer that keeps appearing and reappearing even though you`ve tried to delete it and then done a server reboot.
Streaks on your print jobs are a result of your copier glass being dirty. “Dirt” is created by fingerprints, dust, and other forms collected through usage. Often this will be detected by your device before streaks begin to appear, and a display will read that the glass needs to be cleaned.
Smears and smudges on the paper can be caused by dirt, dust, or toner accumulated on the rollers or transfer belt as it passes through the paper. Cleaning your printer, particularly the rollers, is one of the options for removing black markings from paper.
Regular washing and waxing helps to remove Black Streaks before they get good and stuck. A good regular wax job helps to prevent Black Streaks in the first place. A good layer of wax will help to minimize the way Black Streaks set into the surface. Waxing creates a physical barrier across the surface.
Why is it important to clean a laser printer? Printing is vital to all businesses so ensuring your laser printer is thoroughly cleaned is crucial as it allows your machine to continue working efficiently. Cleaning a laser printer is easy with the correct equipment, however they are prone to dust and debris.
The most obvious is most common on laser color printers and can be detected by a flashing message on the printer display screen. Other signs of a bad printer drum include printing blank pages, printing gray pages and strange sounds coming from the printer as it prints.
Ghost printing happens when an image or text is repeated more than once on a printed page. This is often caused by an issue with your drum unit, which is the electrically charged cylinder that transfers toner powder on to the paper.
Ghosting is usually considered the presence of a faint image of a design in solid printing areas that is not intended to receive that portion of the image. This print defect is always in the machine direction and usually is a repeated pattern.
1. Replace ink cartridges that are low on ink or empty. 2. Make sure ink cartridges are snapped into place and are properly installed in their appropriate slot.
Reasons why your HP printer has ink but won`t print

This may seem obvious, but it sometimes happens: first make sure your paper tray has paper in it. Misalignment, clogged printheads, faulty data communication or insufficient ink levels can also be sources of the problem.

Ghost imaging, often called cloning, is a software-driven data backup process that copies the contents of a computer hard disk in a single compressed file or set of files, referred to as an image.
The only real workaround is to remap your keyboard so that the key combination you want to use is one that your keyboard is able to register. Remapping your keyboard means changing the response that each key gives. For example, you can remap your keys so that when you press the A key, your computer types a B.

Relevant Questions and Answers :

the most relevant questions and answers related to your specific issue

HP Laserjet 1320tn printing grey instead of black
ANSWER : Try this test. Put a page into the manual feeder and do that same test. When the end of the page is just about to enter the printer, open the lid. Take out the toner cartridge and pull back the shutter. Look at the image and see if it is black. The explanation is that there is high voltage going to both the toner cartridge and the charge transfer roller below it. If the image on the drum is black, then the fault is at the transfer roller not getting enough high voltage. The transfer roller pulls the image off of the drum and down onto the paper. It would not be a laser scanner problem as any issue with it would not result in an overall gray image, but combination of gray and black. It will probably turn out to be a bad HV power supply, which will need replacement. I’ve never seen this particular problem on this model.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

Black line down right side of page
ANSWER : The black film is the upper fuser roller. You need to replace the fuser unit. Not hard to do. Remove the back “door” and flip down the two blue levers. The fuser will slide straight out.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

Black line printing in the middle of the page from top to bottom
ANSWER : Take out the toner cartridge and look at the drum. If you see the line, replace the cartridge. If you don’t, then you need to replace the fuser assembly.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

Print file sent but no printing occurs
ANSWER : Been working on these since they first were released. Never seen a problem like yours. If it happens again, try doing an engine test, as it bypasses the formatter board. The engine test is located at the right side of the manual tray opening. Look for a hole in the side wall. Stick something like a paper clip into it to actuate the test button. It will then print a lined test page. If it does that, then it points to the formatter board as the cause of your problem.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

Prints blank pages, won't print from computer
ANSWER : Don’t know why you replaced the fuser, but assuming you had print before, then it must have been something you did during the procedure. Only thing I can suggest is to recheck your work. Just because you reinstalled a connector doesn’t mean that it is seated firmly enough to work. Any flat ribbon connectors that you removed and reinstalled, check to see that the contacts are all flat and not peeled back.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

My 2550n Color LaserJet does not want to print in color
ANSWER : That model had issues with the carousel solenoid sticking. That might explain why it works after you let it sit for 10 minutes. The solenoid gets hotter with use which causes the deteriorated foam on it to become sticky and hold down the release plate instead of letting it go. This allows the carousel to spin when it is supposed to stop for each color. The solenoid is located on the right side of the printer. If you open the lid, it is just behind the opening at the top right. You need to remove the top of the printer and scrape off the goo on top of the solenoid body. I put a piece of thin sticky backed felt to replace it. Other people use electrical tape.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

HP LaserJet 2200D won't print configuration page
ANSWER : Find someone with a HP LaserJet 4100 and you can configure the card to the IP you want:

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer

Laserjet 4250 print quality issue (see image)
ANSWER : It looks like a fuser problem. One way to prove it is with the half-stop test. Put a sheet in the drop down manual feed tray. Send a print job and watch the paper. When the end of it is about to enter the printer, open the lid and take out the toner cartridge. Look at the printed image. If it looks OK, then it is a fuser problem. If not, then it is a toner cartridge issue since it hasn’t gone through the fuser.

Read Full Q/A … :
Unknown Printer