Problem with HP Deskjet 5900. I have done all the things the utility recommends like cleaning the heads 4 times, and aligning. The pages print and the cartridge go back and forth but no ink hits the page. The utility indicates the cartridges are good -half full. What should I do?

place the alignment page in the printer and press scan. I sometimes have to do this 2 times.

You may have a clogged printer head. Try using HP's cleaning utility.

In general, you can access the printer's maintenance option at CONTROL PANEL, PRINTERS AND FAXES.

Right-click the desired printer model, then click PRINTING PREFERENCES.

Look for the MAINTENANCE tab. The options may not be the same, depeding on the brand of the printer. Run the head cleaning utility.

Test printer by printing a test page. Repeat the process if it doesn't give you the correct output.

Also, try to run the ALIGNMENT utility.

Hope this helps you.

Thank you for using fixya and have a nice day ^_^

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Hello

Calibration is one of the functions performed from the Printer Assistant icon on the desktop. If the Printer Assistant icon on the desktop has been deleted from the system, the same tasks can also be accomplished from the Printer Toolbox . The Printer Toolbox can be accessed through the Printer Folder or by right-clicking the Printer Icon on the Taskbar

Please follow these steps to calibrate your printer

Double-click the Printer Assistant icon on the desktop. The Printer Assistant menu will appear with a list of options

Select the Tools and Updates option or the Utilities option (depending on your driver version).

Printer Maintenance menu will appear.

Select the Calibrate Printer tab from the Printer Maintenance options

Click the Calibrate tab. The printer will print the first calibration page.

In the Cartridge alignment page, please inspect the straight colored lines in Sections A, B, C and D . Choose the straightest lines in each section to indicate the best cartridge alignment.

In the Page alignment area, please verify Section E . Then, select the bar and the arrow closest to the edge of the page without being cut off, to indicate the best page alignment.

In the Calibrate Device window, enter the selected alignment values in the Pen Alignment and in the Page Alignment fields and click the Continue tab

The second calibration page will be printed now. The page will contain two patterns: a square and a cross . The lines on the patterns should be horizontally and vertically aligned . Click the Done tab if the lines are correct or the Calibrate tab to repeat the calibration process

The first calibration page contains five sets of alignment patterns. The calibration will cover two areas of alignment. The Cartridge alignment is designed to obtain the best print quality and the Page alignment is designed to ensure that the print is aligned correctly on the page.



If the Printer Assistant and its files have been deleted from the system, the maintenance features in the Tools and Updates section of the Printer Assistant are also available in the Printer Toolbox .
Open the Printer Toolbox and perform the services by following the instructions below:

Right-click the Printer Icon on the Taskbar .

Click Open the Deskjet Toolbox option.

Select the Printing Service tab in the Printer Toolbox .

Choose the Calibrate the printer option.

NOTE:HP recommends to use HP plain paper when performing the cartridges calibration process.

NOTE:These printers could work with one or two print cartridges. HP recommends to perform the cartridge calibration process with the two cartridges installed in order to get the best print quality. Anyway, the printer can also be calibrated with one cartridge installed if the customer decides to work in that way.

To clean the print head from the control panel
1. Load letter, A4, or legal unused plain white paper into the input tray.
2. Touch Setup on the display.
3. Touch Tools.
4. Touch Clean Print Head.
The HP Photosmart cleans the print head and prints a page that you can recycle or
discard.

To clean the print head from the HP Photosmart Software
1. Load letter, A4, or legal unused plain white paper into the input tray.
2. In the HP Solution Center, click Settings, point to Print Settings, and then 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.
The Printer Toolbox appears.
3. Click the Device Services tab.
4. Click Clean the Print Head.
5. Follow the prompts until you are satisfied with the quality of the output, and then click
Done.
If print quality still seems poor after you clean the print head, try aligning the printer.
If print quality problems persist after cleaning and aligning, contact HP support.

have you cleaned the print head? done a test page? i had a simlilar problem with a lexmark but it turned out to be a refilled cartridge. if you are using genuine hp cartridges i would recommend printing a test page and checking the solid colours .

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=bpa00224&tmp_task=solveCategory&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&lang=en&product=372330

hope this helps!

First run a cleaning cycle and test print. You can get this from Control Panel - Printers - Select Printer name and right click - select Properties and then Maintenance.

Then

1. Select Normal or Best, rather than Draft, in the Paper Type/Quality option in the Page Setup Screen.
2. Align the print cartridges. Select the Calibrate panel on the HP deskjet utility screen, then click the Align button.
3. Decrease ink density or drying time.
a. Click File > Print > Paper Type/Quality.
b. Click the Ink tab.
c. Use the sliders to adjust ink density and ink dry time.

There should be an alignment/cleaning utility program bundled with your printer software. Run the utility to clean and align the print heads. If you still have problems, check to be sure the contact of the print heads aren't smeared or clogged.

I GOT A CLARIFICATION REQUEST AND I SENT FURTHER INFORMATION BUT AS OF YET I HAVE NOT RECIEVED ANY FURTHER INFORMATION BACK FROM "KEEPITSIMPLE".

have you selected best quality in page setup>printer>properties>quality/paper hope this helps regards Jim

I cannot remember if the tools menu is embedded in the properties of the printer driver. The previous poster I believe is correct. If it does not appear, go to start, run, all programs, then select the HP or Hewlett Packard section and look for an HP Toolbox or similar utility that will have options for cleaning/aligning/testing the printer..