Common Printer Problems with Solutions
The Printer Is Operating Very Slowly
This varies with what kind of printer you’re printing with. There are some printers (like picture printers) which print slowly for high-quality printing, while there are others who print very quickly but the output is poor quality. If you use the printer frequently and you’ve realized your printer has slowed down compared to before, then you might be required to modify the print quality in the print settings.
To alter the location, do the following on your Windows desktop:
To alter the location, do the following on your Windows desktop:
- In the taskbar search box, enter Control Panel. Open Control Panel and go to Devices and Printers.
- Click the printer you are using and choose ‘Printing Preferences’.
- Click on the ‘Paper/Quality’ option and choose the printing mode from the list given under ‘Quality Settings’.
- In case you can’t locate how to modify the setting for your printer, go through instructions for your printer model in the manual.
- It might also be possible that your printer’s rollers have begun malfunctioning, causing the speed of printing to slow down.
The Prints Have Faded Colours
The print quality is not only dependent on the printer but also on the ink or toner cartridge. Ink cartridges for use in inkjet printers are filled with liquid, whereas toner cartridges for use in laser printers are filled with powder. The ink within an ink cartridge can be dye-based or pigment-based, depending on the printer you have. If your printer is ink cartridge-based and the prints have faded colors, it might be that the ink has dried out and needs to be replaced.
Did you know that the paper you use also affects the print quality?
Make sure you’re using the correct type of paper whether coated or uncoated. Uncoated papers are printing papers that are non-reflective, whereas coated papers have a dull/matte or gloss finish. If the paper is not the problem, the toner might be. Attempt to remove the toner, shake it lightly a few times and reinstall it in the printer. Don’t touch the toner roll or it will leave fingerprints. This should fix the problem.
If you don’t print much, the toner settles and has to be ‘activated.’
Did you know that the paper you use also affects the print quality?
Make sure you’re using the correct type of paper whether coated or uncoated. Uncoated papers are printing papers that are non-reflective, whereas coated papers have a dull/matte or gloss finish. If the paper is not the problem, the toner might be. Attempt to remove the toner, shake it lightly a few times and reinstall it in the printer. Don’t touch the toner roll or it will leave fingerprints. This should fix the problem.
If you don’t print much, the toner settles and has to be ‘activated.’
A Blank Sheet Of Paper Appears After Every Document Is Printed
The reason for printing an additional sheet of paper is either due to the print settings or because the printer driver is corrupted or outdated. To correct this problem, you may want to try reinstalling or updating your printer drivers. This setting is most commonly applied in an office setting where the volume of prints is high and is helpful if there are multiple individuals sharing the same printer. An additional sheet of paper is printed out prior to each printout in order to label the document and its owner. These additional sheets are known as ‘Separator Pages’.
When you put separator pages between a certain number of copies, you can decide to place a separator page prior to or following every stack. If you don’t wish to have an empty sheet of paper following each print job, you can make the ‘Print Directly To The Printer’ choice by following these instructions:
When you put separator pages between a certain number of copies, you can decide to place a separator page prior to or following every stack. If you don’t wish to have an empty sheet of paper following each print job, you can make the ‘Print Directly To The Printer’ choice by following these instructions:
- In the taskbar’s search box, enter ‘Control Panel’. Click ‘Control Panel’ and choose ‘Devices and Printers’.
- Right-click on your printer and click on ‘Printer Properties’.
- Now, click the ‘Advanced’ tab, check the option Print Directly To The Printer. Click Apply, and then OK.
Only Half The Page Is Printed, While The Other Half Is Left Blank
This is a typical issue with most USB printers. If only half the page is being printed, there is certainly something amiss. Disconnect the printer, shut down the computer, and reboot both the machines. After the devices have been restarted, print a self-test page. If it still doesn’t print correctly, the issue may be with the printer, toner, drum unit, or roller. The error message should explain what the problem is. If it doesn’t, call a professional to get the issue fixed.
Prints Are Very Light In Colour
This most likely indicates that the print head is clogged. This is one of the problems with inkjet and ink tank printers where sitting on the printer for a couple of months without use results in dried ink and clogged cartridges.
You need to clean the print head using the printer’s utility program. If you cannot find the program, try opening it from your printer device. Run it a few times and then print out a test sheet to determine whether it’s printing correctly. The problems of ink and toner may include streaking and fading (which will most often signify a dirty print head) or toner in a laser printer that needs replenishment.
For the inkjet printer, the print head should be properly cleaned. There should be a cleaning feature in the printer utility app that was provided with your printer. The cleaning feature can be either light clean or heavy clean. You can first attempt to use the light clean feature as it won’t waste much ink. If it doesn’t work, you can use the heavy clean feature.
In laser printers, the problem would probably be caused by a low toner, meaning it’s already time to replace the toner. If you don’t happen to have an extra toner cartridge available, you can coax more life from the cartridge you currently have in use by shaking out the toner from the printer and carefully tilting the cartridge from one side to another. This redistributes the toner inside the cartridge and should provide you with sufficient prints temporarily.
You need to clean the print head using the printer’s utility program. If you cannot find the program, try opening it from your printer device. Run it a few times and then print out a test sheet to determine whether it’s printing correctly. The problems of ink and toner may include streaking and fading (which will most often signify a dirty print head) or toner in a laser printer that needs replenishment.
For the inkjet printer, the print head should be properly cleaned. There should be a cleaning feature in the printer utility app that was provided with your printer. The cleaning feature can be either light clean or heavy clean. You can first attempt to use the light clean feature as it won’t waste much ink. If it doesn’t work, you can use the heavy clean feature.
In laser printers, the problem would probably be caused by a low toner, meaning it’s already time to replace the toner. If you don’t happen to have an extra toner cartridge available, you can coax more life from the cartridge you currently have in use by shaking out the toner from the printer and carefully tilting the cartridge from one side to another. This redistributes the toner inside the cartridge and should provide you with sufficient prints temporarily.
Some Colours Are Missing From The Prints
This is a normal issue in printers and most of us believe it’s due to the ink running out. But there may be other reasons for this issue. You should Check the cartridge before you replace it. If cartridges are full, then it may be a clogged nozzle. Printers employ the use of RGB (Red, Green, and Blue) or CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key) colours and, if a nozzle intended to print any of these colours becomes clogged, it may result in incorrect colours or color omission in a document or photo print.
One more reason may be the ink dried up because of not being used. Inks dry out quickly if you do not use them regularly. Therefore, you can try replacing the ink.
One more reason may be the ink dried up because of not being used. Inks dry out quickly if you do not use them regularly. Therefore, you can try replacing the ink.
Wi-Fi Printing Is Very Slow
This problem may pop up if the printer is put very distant from the router or if there are many devices in the Wi-Fi network. Check your Wi-Fi router to see if it’s sufficient and make sure its firmware is updated. It must support 802.11 b/g/n and have a 5GHz band plus a 2.4GHz band for speedy wireless operation. You may also try installing a wireless extender to enhance its performance if necessary.
Paper Keeps Jamming Inside The Printer
The most frequent reason for this problem is paper misalignment. Ensure that you insert the papers correctly into the tray and don’t overfill the tray. If this does not fix the problem, refer to the troubleshooting section of the user manual of the printer. If this fails, call an expert to examine the problem. The most frequent cause of this issue is faulty or misaligned rollers that feed the paper inside the printer from the paper feeder. Replacing or maintaining those rollers may address this condition.
Print Jobs Are Sent To Another Printer
If you observe that your computer is selecting a new default printer (the one it automatically sends print tasks to), it might likely happen after upgrading from one version of an operating system to another.
To resolve this on Windows PCs, follow these steps
To resolve this on Windows PCs, follow these steps
- Press the Start (the Windows logo at the bottom-left part of the screen) button and click Devices and Printers.
- From Printers and Faxes, right-click on the printer you wish to make default and click Set As Default Printer.