Maintaining your ink jet printer can help improve print quality and, in some cases, make the printer last longer. Most ink jet printers have built-in methods of cleaning and aligning the print heads and rollers. Since every ink jet printer uses its own method of cleaning and maintenance procedures, be sure to check your ink jet printer’s user manual or online help for specific instructions. Most of these cleaning and alignment functions require the printer to use paper, so make sure there is plain paper in the printer’s input tray before starting the maintenance procedures.
Instructions
1. Use only the types of media the printer documentation recommends, and load the media correctly. Make sure to remove all scraps of paper in the ink jet printer after a jam.
2. Clean the print heads. Many ink jet printers have a setting in the software you can use, or a combination of buttons on the printer you can push, to make the printer clean the print heads. This can help remove any clogged ink that might interfere with the printing.
3. Run a nozzle test, if available, using the printer software, or a combination of buttons on the printer. The printer will print a row of each ink color so you can check to see if the ink patterns are complete and straight.
4. Align the print heads if the nozzle test or the printed pages show problems with incomplete or misaligned black or color ink. Use the setting in the printer software, or combination of buttons on the printer, to align the print heads. This will make the black ink print in the right place, and the color inks line up properly so that the colors print correctly.
5. Replace the ink cartridges if needed. Low ink cartridges can cause faded print, smears and spots on the page. Be sure to use the type of ink cartridges recommended by the manufacturer. (Using refilled ink cartridges may void the warranty.)
6. Reset the ink cartridge levels in the printer software, or by using a combination of printer buttons, after replacing the ink cartridges, so that the printer’s ink level information will be accurate.
7. Clean the paper rollers, if needed, by using the clean rollers command in the printer software, or by removing the roller and cleaning it with a soft, lint-free cloth.
8. Turn off and unplug the printer. Clean the outside of the ink jet printer, and the paper trays, using a clean, soft cloth. Dampen the cloth slightly with water if needed. Do not use cleaning chemicals on the printer.
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