When you have a wide format printer, you have a wealth of opportunities to advertise and even show off a little. But if you want that magical miracle device to continue to produce sharp, clear, and eye-catching prints for you, you need to know how to deal with the little issues that spring up. Your printer and the ink it uses come with their own prescribed set of tips for dealing with glitches and blotches. Here’s how to go about troubleshooting common wide format printer ink problems. And don’t forget: if you feel like you’re in over your head, help is just a phone call away! Until then, here are several ways to make specific ink problems go away.
The Ink Must Flow
When ink spills and runs everywhere, anything goes. Wide format printers, on the other hand, contain and focus ink so that you get as much as you need for the job and every pigment stays in place. But what if you begin to see blank or streaky prints and inconsistent colors, or the monitor flashes warnings about ink errors and the like? Fortunately, these are often easy fixes. The print heads may have become clogged because the ink dried up in the nozzles. Activate the printer’s self-cleaning function. It will proceed to clear the nozzles and produce a test page to ensure the ink is flowing again. On the other hand, streaks and inconsistent prints could mean it’s time to replace the ink cartridges since they’re either empty or on their way to being so. Check the monitor as well. It may already be flashing an alert to replace the cartridges. Then, run a setup cycle and test. If the prints continue to look terrible, it might be time to call the technician to come in, open it up, and give the system a thorough cleaning.
The Whole Smear
Ink smudging and smearing means that the colors are all there and going onto the page—just not in the right order. Wet and smeared ink, unsightly smudges when you touch the colored parts of the page, and other transfer issues could indicate several things. You might be using the wrong paper or other media, giving the ink nothing to adhere to. Check your printer owner’s manual, and make sure the paper is compatible with the printer. On the flip side, your printer might be applying too much ink, making the printout a bit too wet or chalky. Check the monitor to see if you should lower the ink settings to prevent oversaturation. Lower the print resolution as well for drier prints. Then again, you may need to reconsider how much time you allow your prints to dry before grabbing them from the tray. Run a fan or a heater nearby to hurry up the drying process. Just make sure the fan doesn’t blow away your printouts!
Inconsistent Colors
Colors should remind you of rainbows, not the gray and drizzly skies that come before they appear. If colors look faded or incorrect, look different from on the computer screen, or feature unsightly “banding” in more heavily colored portions, any number of issues could be present. As ever, mind your ink cartridges. When they’re almost or completely empty, they’re not doing you any favors. Keep them up to date and full. Check the color calibration between your monitor and printer as well. Most design software provides the option to sync the two. A more technical problem to consider is that your printer’s printheads inside the device might have become misaligned. Luckily, many printers let you realign them through the device’s maintenance settings. If things still seem wonky, contact a technician to take a deeper dive into the device.
(Don’t) Let It Bleed
Ink needs to go where it’s supposed to and stay put. Sadly, that’s not always the case. The ink can sometimes run past the borders of the image it should be creating. In other places, it may get a bit blurry around the edges. Most of the troubleshooting tips above still apply. Check the paper to ensure it’s ready for the ink to adhere and stay put. Splurge a little to ensure you’re using the highest quality paper for the job as well. See if the settings are all wrong for the paper or project too, and fiddle with them until the prints come out sharp and clear. Make sure the setting matches the paper or other media in use. Get a feel for the environment as well, meaning the area around the printer. Too much moistness on the media or in the surrounding room may make the media wet and likely to bleed colors. Invest in a dehumidifier, and ensure you’re storing your paper or film in a cool, dry place.
Using the Right Brand
We all like to save money, but sometimes the best choice isn’t always the cheapest one. In fact, when using cheap or off-brand printer cartridges and other supplies in your wide format printer, it may cost more to use them in the long run. Cheap ink makes cheap prints, and rerunning those prints with the proper brand will cost you. Often, the printer may not even recognize the cartridges you installed, throwing off your schedule. For Canon printers, use only pigment ink for Canon printers. Cheaper cartridges may also be poor in quality, prone to corrosion, and otherwise incompatible with your printer in both physical and electronic ways.
Inky Fingers
Aside from the prints themselves, look for excess ink elsewhere, inside and outside the printer. If you see pools of ink on the printer’s base inside or find your hands have suddenly taken on assorted hues after handling the cartridges, a leak is likely. The easiest and most common diagnosis is that you have a defective ink cartridge somewhere. Find it, remove it, and dispose of it safely, taking care not to spill any more pigment on yourself. It may also be that you didn’t put the cartridge in right, causing it to crack or break open. Again, remove it and dispose of it. Less often, high and low temperatures inside and around the printer may contribute to cracking cartridges. After removing and properly replacing the cartridge, check out the place where you’re storing your extra cartridges. If the cartridges are in a space that contributes to their destruction, it’s time to move them to a safer area.
Those are the basics of troubleshooting common wide format printer ink problems. For more ideas and wide format printer answers, contact us today for a consultation. We look forward to hearing from you!
