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Printer Troubleshooting
Stop kicking and thumping your printer! Here’s a step-by-step guide to troubleshooting common printer problems on your own.

PROBLEM: Your printer won’t print

Solution 1: Generally, you can classify printer problems into two categories: the hardware or the physical component, and the software or the program that you load into your computer. If your printer won’t print documents, check first if the cable connecting the printer to the electrical outlet is connected, and if the printer is switched on.
Solution 2: If your printer is already running but you still can’t print, check if the cable connecting the printer to the computer is properly attached. If the cable connectors are loose, push them tightly into the computer ports. If the connection is loose, the printer won’t be able to properly send information to the printer and vice versa.
Solution 3: See if there’s paper loaded into your printer. If your printer has more than one paper tray, check if you have loaded paper into the correct tray.
Solution 4: If the printer cables are properly connected and it still won’t print out your document, check if you have installed the printer driver. Most printers come with CD that you need to install in your computer first. This is the driver CD which contains the program to allow your computer to ‘see’ your device. To install, just plug in the CD into your CD drive, and follow the instructions. To check if the driver was successfully installed, click the ‘start’ button at the bottom of your screen, go to ‘control panel’ then click on the ‘printer and faxes’ icon. You should see an icon for the printer you’ve just installed.

PROBLEM: Poor print quality

Solution 1: If your printouts look faded, or if the prints change color, check ink levels. You probably need to buy a new toner or ink cartridge.
Solution 2: if your toner or ink is not the problem, your printer head might be dirty. To “clean” it, go to the control panel, double click the ‘printer and faxes’ icon, and look for your printer’s icon. Right-click that icon and choose ‘properties’. Choose the option ‘clean printer head’. You may also want to check your printer manual, as procedure may vary.

PROBLEM: Printer prints a blank page

Solution: Check your ink or toner levels. You might have no ink left. Replace your toner or ink cartridge. Check your printer manual for instructions on opening your printer and changing your toner ink cartridge.

PROBLEM: Paper jams

Solution 1: Check how your paper is inserted into the paper tray. Sometimes, printers have an attachment that will help you align the paper properly into the chute.
Solution 2: Paper jams can also be ‘cause by paper sticking together during printing. To solve this, pull the paper out of the tray, fan out the pages and then put the paper back into the tray.