Common Laser Printer Faultfinding Hints

When it comes to print quality problems the most common issues that we encounter are as follows; Fuzzy Print, Lines, Grey Shade and Spots.

Fuzzy Print: Most of the time is caused by wet/damp paper or wet/damp Drum Unit. Replacing the paper and running some copies will normally correct this problem.

Lines: This is generally foreign matter which interferes with the charge or cleaning process in the image system. This can be resolved on some printers by replacing the Toner Cartridge or cleaning the Charge Unit. A contaminated scanner unit can cause black or white lines depending on the brand of print system. This can be cleaned by you on some printers though most require a technician.

Grey Shade: Over toning or bleeding toner is 90% of the time caused by the developer unit with Non genuine toner being a major cause of this fault. Replacement of the toner with genuine product will nine times out of ten solve this problem in printers where the Developer Unit is a part of the toner cartridge.

Spots: Can come in a couple of different forms, the first is splatter marks over the page caused by toner dropped from the Image Units (i.e. Drum, Developer or Toner Cartridge). The second is a line of repeating dots down the page which can be caused by a marked drum unit, dirty charge roller or a mark on the Fuser Unit. By measuring the distance between the dots we can get an idea of the roller causing the problem. This helps to target the culprit so it can be cleaned or replaced.

As with copy quality when it comes to mechanical problems the most common ones that you will find are covered by the following; Jams, Skewing, Creases and Garbled Print.

Jams: The most common cause being worn or dirty Feed Rollers. A clean with a damp rag can rectify the problem and if not ultimately replacing the rollers will do the job. Dirty sensors or stuck sensor arms in the paper path can create jams and more often than not require the experience of a technician. Finally check that the Paper Cassette guides are in the correct position and that the paper is flat and not folded up on any of the edges.

Skewing: Can be as simple as the Cassette guides not being snug against the paper hence causing the paper to start feeding crooked. Unevenly worn rollers can cause skewing and would require replacing to rectify the issue.

Creases: Most creasing is an issue with a faulty Fuser Unit as the pressure roller is deformed or its bushings are damaged. But it can also be due to damp/wet paper.

Garbled Print: Not as common with the use of USB cables but cables can still fail which can cause all sorts of problems including document to become corrupt and garbled.

As was stated before with copy quality problems it is a good option to try a different toner/ print cartridge. You may also want to try different paper if the problem is damp paper related.

Finally and the best option, if you have a problem that is mechanical or requires you to clean parts of the printer, call us to book a service for the machine. It may end up saving you in the long run.