Even high-quality business printers in Anchorage, AK, have to be maintained on a regular basis. It’s not much different from any other appliance. At first, everything works great, and your prints come out picture-perfect. But after a while, you may notice that the pages are streaky or the lines aren’t as sharp as they used to be.
Check the Nozzles
The first check is the simplest: print a test page. The computer screen will show you what the test page should look like. If the image doesn’t match what your printer delivers, you have work to do. If the lines on the test page are solid and clean, the print heads are fine. If you notice the lines are broken, or there are blank parts on the test page, follow the next step to clean and align the print heads.
Clean & Align Your Print Heads
You don’t need any cleaning supplies for this step. Instead, use your printer’s software to run two different programs. Cleaning the print heads is first. You can print out another test page and see if it fixed the issue. If the images aren’t aligned correctly on the page, you may also want to align the print heads. There should be an option to do so with your printer’s software. How does your test page look now? If it’s still not perfect, it’s time to do some deep cleaning.
Deep Clean the Printer
Before you start this process, please unplug your printer. Next, grab a damp cloth and wipe down the inside of your printer. You can use a Q-tip to clean hard-to-reach nooks or even a soft toothbrush. Just be gentle and don’t scrub hard to avoid damaging the printer.
If you’re used to using compressed air to clean electronics, you may be tempted to try the same on your printer. Whether you’re dealing with laser printers or inkjet printers, stay away from compressed air and don’t vacuum the inside, either.
You can also manually clean the print heads as well as the paper feeder rolls. Be careful to avoid spilling ink on yourself or damaging the printer.
Use Original Cartridges
Ink can be expensive, and you may be tempted to save money on no-name versions. However, if you want high-quality results, it’s best to use only original cartridges. Are you still having trouble with your printer?
Follow These Troubleshooting Tips
If your pages are streaky, smeared, or blurry, your toner cartridge is most likely the culprit. Try wiping down the laser scanner and mirror. Next, take out the cartridge, wipe it down, and reinstall it. If this doesn’t fix the issue, you may need to replace the cartridge. The last resort would be having to replace the drum unit.
If there are unusual spots of color on your paper, you might have a leaky cartridge. Simply replace the leaky ink cartridges with OEM originals, and you should be good to go.
If your printer is only printing half the page, you might be dealing with a software problem. But if you print out a test page and it’s only showing half the page, try changing the ink cartridge. If that doesn’t work, you might have to replace the drum unit.
If you follow these maintenance and troubleshooting tips, you should be able to get the same high-quality prints you’re used to. If not, it might be time to purchase a new business printer for your business in Anchorage, AK.