Why are some lines missing on a printout?

You need to have your printer go thru head cleaning cycle. Check to make sure the ink is not leaking from the cartridge. Are you using OEM ink or second hand?

the answer to your question is yes,it can still print with only one cartridge installed.
If you do not have a replacement cartridge, and the quality of your printouts is not a concern, you can still print in ink-backup mode. Consider the following guidelines before printing in ink-backup mode:

• If you remove the tri-color cartridge, printouts will be in grayscale.
• If you remove the black or photo cartridge, the product will print more slowly and the colors in the printouts will vary.
  press OK button to clear the error message like cartridge missing after removing one cartridge.
  
  

OK, you're going to have new ink jet cartridges to start with. I know they are expensive, but missing lines is a telltale sign of depleted ink. One may only be able to get 100 printed pages on avg. out of ink jet cartridges for consumer models.

Try original equipment manufacturer cartridge, in this case Epson cartridges to ensure quality output, and trouble free operation.

Make sure you align cartridges to get clear printouts that are calibrated properly.

Good luck on this repair.

If the print-heads are clogged, and your attempts to "unclog" have failed, it's time to responsibly recycle the printer, and buy a new Epson (hopefully, one that uses the same ink-cartridges that you have been using).

What should I do if the printer will not recognize the cartridge after refilling?

• Turn on the printer and remove both cartridges
• Place both cartridges in front of you so that you can see the contact foil, with the nozzles facing downwards
• With adhesive tape, cover the FOUR upper contact points on the far left contact column of both cartridges
• Reinsert the two cartridges and close the cover
• Open the cover again after 2 or 3 seconds
• Wait until the printer gives you the cartridge carriage (If there seems to be a problem with either of the cartridges, ignore it)
• Open the cover and remove the two cartridges
• Place both cartridges in front of you so that you can see the contact foil, with the nozzles facing downwards
• Remove the adhesive tape
• Clean the contacts, reinsert the cartridges and close the cover.
• Most imp.
  If you refill your cartridges more then 3 times,then it is expired and that's why it is not displayed in your printer.For this,you have to go for ma new cartridge.
  or some these steps
• Try below steps.May be it will helpful.
  
  1. I used a Q-tip with Isopropyl Alcohol and cleaned the gold contacts on both the cartridge and the mating contacts in the printer.
  
  2. Then from the Setup Menu, I found a menu called Tools. From there I ran "Align Print Cartridges".
  
  3. From the same menu I also ran "Clean Print Cartridges"
  4. I then ran a few test prints by going into the Setup Menu and then choosing "Print Report" and then selecting "Self-Test Report". It prints grid patterns in black & white as well as magenta, yellow and blue. The black grid pattern had some missing lines until I printed this report a few times.
  
  5. I made a few photocopies and now the printouts no longer have large stripes of missing ink as it did in the earlier steps.

three options to be checkout. 1)the cartridge ink is near to empty.if this is the case  get your cartridge refilled or replace it with new. 2)the head unit in which the cartridges r installed.in that head the holes from where the ink comes out may be blocked so it needs cleaning manually by removing the head. 3)or the third option the printout is set on draft mode .if this is the case go to printer properties and change that draft setting to normal mode printing.

The HP88 printhead can dry out and cause clogging in the black part of the K/Y (black/yellow) printhead.

This has been a major problem for a few client schools of mine and for me in my attic space where air conditioning and/or hot dry air causes clogging.

You may want to consider purchasing a new printhead and an alternative black ink supplier (non HP) that uses Dyebase ink instead of pigment as this doesn't clog in the same conditions.

However, please note that if you do this it means you may lose your warranty (certainly on the printhead) and the printout won't be as clear for text as the black ink can "bleed" slightly into other colours. It has however solve the problem of clogging in one school that went through 5 printheads in two terms/semesters until we switched.

hey payne


here is a copy of your problem.

Issue The printer is working, but colors in the printed output are missing, faded, or dull in comparison to the original. Solution Step one: Check the paper Verify that the paper type is appropriate for the project. If the paper is too fibrous, the ink applied by the printer might not fully cover the print surface. Step two: Check the print settings

1. In the software application you are trying to print from, click File and then click Print . The Print dialog box opens.
2. Verify that your printer is selected and then click Properties . The printer Properties dialog box opens.
3. Click the Printing Shortcuts tab.
4. In the What do you want to do? menu, select a task. The What do you want to do? menu lists most printing needs, but you might need to modify some of the options. Options on the Printing Shortcuts tab include:
   • Print quality: If you are unhappy with the quality of your printouts, try increasing the print quality. To print more quickly, try decreasing the print quality.
   • Paper type: If one of the options matches your paper type exactly, choose it rather than Automatic.
   • Paper size: Make sure this matches your paper.
   Additional options: click the Basics tab, then click Advanced Features . The Advanced Features window opens.
   • Ink volume: Adjusts the amount of ink printed on a page. For lighter images (less ink), drag the slider to the left. For darker images (more ink), drag the slider to the right. The lighter the ink volume, the faster the printout will dry.
   • Dry time: Provides extra drying time for slow-drying printouts. Drag the slider to the left for less drying time, or to the right for more drying time. The printer will hold onto the printout until the dry time has elapsed.

Step three: Check the ink levels NOTE: If you have installed a refilled or remanufactured print cartridge, or a cartridge that has been used in another printer, the ink level indicator will be inaccurate or unavailable.

1. Open the Printer Toolbox .
   1. Open HP Solution Center .
   2. Click Settings .
   3. Click Print Settings .
   4. Click Printer Toolbox .
   NOTE: You can also open the Printer Toolbox from the Print Properties dialog box. In the Print Properties dialog box, click the Services tab and then click Service this device .
2. Click the Estimated Ink Levels tab. Figure 1: Estimated ink levels - both cartridges low

If the steps above have not resolved the issue, print and evaluate a self-test page to determine if the cartridges or printer is causing the problem.

1. Load the input tray with unused plain white paper.
2. Press and hold the Cancel ( ) button and then press the Start Copy Color ( ) button.
3. Release both buttons. The self-test page prints.

Step five: Note which cartridges printed which areas of the self-test page You must identify which cartridge printed which part of the self-test page, so that if you find defects on the page, you will know which cartridge is the problem. However, you can install different combinations of print cartridges in your printer, and different cartridge combinations print different self-test page patterns. Your self-test page may not look exactly like the picture below, but the right and left cartridges will print in the same areas of the page no matter which cartridges are installed. Step six: Look for defects In general, if the printer and print cartridges are working properly, the patterns (which look like grids of lines) should contain few or no missing lines. None of the colors should be missing and the colors of the blocks at the bottom of the page should match the labels below each block. Also, there should be no streaks of ink on the report. Missing lines or streaked bars If a pattern shows more than a few missing lines, or a bar is streaked, that print cartridge is not functioning properly. Figure 4: The magenta pattern shows missing lines and the bar is streaked

I had the same problem. I was using original brand cartridges and it was still not working. Here's how I got it to work. I recommend doing each step and then trying to print a test page to see if it is working.

1. I used a Q-tip with Isopropyl Alcohol and cleaned the gold contacts on both the cartridge and the mating contacts in the printer.

2. Then from the Setup Menu, I found a menu called Tools. From there I ran "Align Print Cartridges".

3. From the same menu I also ran "Clean Print Cartridges"

4. I then ran a few test prints by going into the Setup Menu and then choosing "Print Report" and then selecting "Self-Test Report". It prints grid patterns in black & white as well as magenta, yellow and blue. The black grid pattern had some missing lines until I printed this report a few times.

5. I made a few photocopies and now the printouts no longer have large stripes of missing ink as it did in the earlier steps.

Good luck. Hope this helps.

White lines through copies White lines can appear on a copy in either a horizontal or vertical direction. How the white line appears on the copy will determine the cause and solution. Horizontal lines Horizontal white lines usually indicate the ink cartridge is running out of ink or has some clogged ink nozzles. Try the following steps: 1. Some of the ink cartridge ink nozzles may be clogged with dry ink. Use the ink cartridge cleaning service to try to clear them. Follow the steps below: 1. Verify that there is plain white paper in the Input tray. 2. Press Setup. 3. Press or to select Tools and then press OK. 4. Press or to select Clean Print Cartridge and then press OK. The unit prints a test page. 5. Examine the test page. If the print quality of the page is good, stop here. If the print quality appears to be getting better, run the Clean Print Cartridge utility again 2. If the self test appears better, Increase the copy quality setting (Normal or Best) and try copying again. If the quality is still poor, continue to the next step. 3. If the quality is still poor, one or more of the cartridges may be low on ink or empty. Follow the steps below to check the ink levels. 1. Open HP Solution Center. 2. Click Settings. 3. Click Print Settings. 4. Click Printer Toolbox. 5. Click the Estimated Ink Levels tab. Figure 1: Estimated ink levels - both cartridges low NOTE: You can also open the Printer Toolbox from the Print Properties dialog box. In the Print Properties dialog box, click the Features tab and then click Printer Services button then click the Estimated Ink Levels tab. 6. Replace any ink cartridge that is low on ink. 4. If the ink levels are not low, clean the cartridge face and electrical contacts at the back of the print carriage. 1. Open the front of the unit to access the ink cartridges. 2. After the ink cartridges are at the center, unplug the power cord from the back of the unit, and remove the ink cartridges. The power cord must be removed to ensure that the unit is not damaged during the cleaning process. 3. Clean the cross-hatched area of the ink cartridge with a soft clean cloth that is slightly dampened with clean water to remove any build up. Avoid cleaning the ink cartridge nozzle plate. Cleaning this area can force foreign matter into the ink nozzles and plug them. Figure 2: Cleaning the ink cartridge 1 - Clean in the cross-hatched area only 2 - Do not touch the nozzle plate 3 - Clean the copper-colored contacts 4. With a soft lint free cloth slightly dampened with clean water, clean the copper-colored contacts on the back of the ink cartridges. 5. Allow the cartridges to dry before reinserting them. 6. Close the unit, and plug the power cord back in. 7. Print a self-test page to check the results. Follow the steps below to print a self-test page. 1. Press Setup. 2. Press or until Print Report displays and then press OK. 3. Press or until Self-Test Report displays and then press OK. The self-test report prints. 5. If the problem is not corrected by cleaning the ink cartridges, replace the ink cartridge(s). Vertical lines Vertical white lines usually indicate the scanner did not calibrate correctly. This can be caused by debris on the scanner glass or white reference pad. Try the following steps: 1. Turn off the HP all-in-one product and unplug the power cord. 2. Open the document cover to access the scanner glass. 3. Using a non abrasive glass cleaner, thoroughly clean the scanner/copier glass, and white lid backing on the inside of the top cover. CAUTION: Spray the cleaner onto the cloth. Never spray fluids directly onto the HP all-in-one product. 4. Plug in the power cord and turn on the HP all-in-one. Let me know what happens, Good Luck, Tim