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How do you troubleshoot an HP printer that won't print?

findmebuddy

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You have sent a print command and are waiting for your printer to deliver a print. However, what you see is that your HP printer does not print black and delivers a blank page with blurred ink marks alerting you to some serious printing problems. Hp Printer Not Printing What is more frustrating is that the black ink cartridge is full enough but still your printer refuses to print black.

If that's a routine problem with your old HP printer and you're about to retire it, this HP printer not printing guide is worth a try. Also, if yours is a newly purchased HP printer, these troubleshooting steps won't disappoint. So do you know what makes your HP printer not printing black? Let's dig deeper and find out the reasons and the most effective ways to fix it. https://www.findmebuddy.com/how-to-fix-hp-printer-not-printing-issues/

Why doesn't my printer print black?

Some might think that an empty or dry ink cartridge is causing problems, but that's just one reason. We investigated some faulty printers that did not print black and these are the reasons we observed.

  • Dry or empty ink cartridge: The problem ink cartridge is restricting the flow of ink.
  • Clogged print head and nozzle - prevents the free flow of ink.
  • Printer components are not original: Duplicate parts damaged the printer.
  • Printhead is out of alignment: Uncalibrated printheads do not allow black ink to spread across the paper.
  • Outdated printer driver: Bugs in older versions of the driver can cause the printer to not print black issues.
How do I fix an HP printer not printing black issue?

That's pretty simple and requires you to follow a few basic steps to get beautiful prints from your new or old HP printer. This is what you should do.

Step 1. Check the black ink cartridge

The first thing you should do to resolve the HP printer not printing problem is to check the ink cartridges. Be sure to replace dry, clogged and empty ink cartridges as they will not allow you to print and can also cause further damage to your printer.

  • Open the printer cartridge access door and remove the ink cartridge from the slot.
  • Shake the ink cartridge well and see if it shows any movement of ink.
  • If not, you need to replace the ink cartridge with a new one.
  • Buy an original HP ink cartridge and replace the old one.
  • While installing the new toner, check to make sure the vents are not clogged. If you found them clogged, use a pin to clean the vents.
Step 2. Clean the print head

People ask why my printer won't print even after replacing the ink cartridges. Well, changing ink cartridges is not a waste of time, but sometimes it is not enough to solve HP printer not printing black problem. The next thing to try is to clean the printhead by following the steps below.

  • Turn on your printer.
  • Locate the Printer Maintenance option on the control panel.
  • Follow the instructions on the screen to perform automatic print head cleaning.
  • The process may take 1-2 minutes to complete.
  • After cleaning is complete, your printer will print a test page. If you are satisfied with the print quality, it indicates that the problems with the printer not printing black are resolved.
  • If it's still there, you should try manual cleaning. Subsequent steps will walk you through the process.
Manual print head cleaning (try only if you are sure about it)

  • Take a plastic container, fill it with warm water.
  • Submerge the paper towel two inches in the water.
  • Uninstall all ink cartridges from the printer.
  • Open the cartridge access door, lift the latch, and carefully remove the printhead from the printer.
  • Put the print head in a container filled with water.
  • Wipe off excess ink from the print head. Do it with the damp cloth.
  • After cleaning the print head, let it dry naturally and then install it inside the printer.
  • Also install the ink cartridges, turn on the printer and try to print.
Step 3. Use the HP Print and Scan Doctor, if the printer still does not print black

You can simply fix HP printer not printing black with internal tool HP Print and Scan Doctor from Hewlett-Packard. Use the following steps to resolve the issue.

  • Search for HP Print and Scan Doctor in the web browser.
  • Download and install the software on your PC.
  • Now open this software, accept the license agreement.
  • Select your printer and click Next.
  • On the next screen, click Repair Printing.
Step 4. Update the HP printer driver

HP is quite particular in releasing new driver versions and those updates also include the fix for HP printer not printing black issues. However, drivers may update automatically if you have turned on the auto-update feature. Here's what you need to do to manually update your printer drivers.

  • Connect your printer and computer to the same wireless network.
  • Open the Chrome browser and visit the HP support website.
  • Browse the webpage and click the Download Drivers button.
  • Choose Printers from the list and enter the model number of the HP printer.
  • Click Submit.
  • You will see the list of available updates on the screen.
  • Select them all and download the entire package to your computer.
  • Go to the Download folder in File Explorer, right-click the HP printer setup file, and click Run.
Step 5. Align the printhead

An uncalibrated printer generates several problems like the one we are discussing here in this blog. If your printer won't print black or you're having trouble printing in general, then you should make sure to have your printer calibrated by experts. If you want to try it yourself, the following steps might help.

  • Make sure the printer's Control Panel is lit, or you need to restart your printer once.
  • Locate Printer Maintenance or Tools in Control Panel.
  • Choose the Align Printhead option from the list.
  • Doing this will calibrate your printer and print a test page shortly after.
  • In case print head alignment does not fix the problem of printer not printing black, then you should think about calling in the experts.
Step 6. Use the built-in Printer Troubleshooter

If nothing else works, treat this as your last resort. The Printer Troubleshooter is built into the Windows PC and can be an answer to all of you who are complaining that my HP printer is not printing, how do I fix it? Follow the simple steps mentioned below to fix the problem.

  • Go to the search bar at the bottom left corner of your system and type Troubleshooting.
  • Click Printer and select Run the Troubleshooter.
  • It may take a few minutes to detect the problem.
  • Select your HP printer model and click Next.
  • Follow the instructions on the screen, finally restart the system and the printer to solve the problem that the printer does not print black.
Conclusion:

Well, great, you just learned how to fix HP printer not printing black problem, and that too by yourself. Trying these six steps will help get your printer back on track and deliver elegant-looking black prints. If you are still having trouble solving the printing issue, please feel free to contact us for further assistance. Our HP printer support experts are available 24/7 to help you deal with such unpleasant issues.
 

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