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Problem Solver

Print Quality Problems

The background is dark or dirty
White dots appear in the printout
Print quality is uneven darkness
Half-tone images print unevenly
Toner smudges
Areas are missing in the printed image
Completely blank pages are output
The printed image is light or faint
The non-printed side of the page is dirty

The background is dark or dirty

Cause What to do
You may not be using the correct type of paper for your printer. If the surface of your paper is too rough, printed characters may appear distorted or broken. EPSON special paper, or smooth, high-quality copier paper is recommended for best results. See Available paper types for information on choosing paper.

The paper path inside the printer may be dusty.

Clean internal printer components by printing three pages with only one character per page.


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White dots appear in the printout

Cause What to do

The paper path inside the printer may be dusty.

Clean internal printer components by printing three pages with only one character per page.


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Print quality is uneven darkness

Cause What to do
Your paper may be moist or damp. Do not store paper in a humid or damp environment.
There may be no toner left in the imaging cartridge. If the message on the LCD panel or in EPSON Status Monitor 3 indicates that the amount of toner left is low, see Replacing the imaging cartridge.

The Density setting may be too low.

Increase the Density setting in the Printing Menu on the control panel.


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Half-tone images print unevenly

Cause What to do
Your paper may be moist or damp. Do not store paper in a humid or damp environment. Be sure to use paper that is newly unwrapped or in the Extended Settings on the printer driver. If the printouts are still not what you expected, try adjusting the Light/Dark slider in the More Settings dialog box accessed through the Basic Setting menu.
There may be no toner left in the imaging cartridge. If the message on the LCD panel or in EPSON Status Monitor 3 indicates that the amount of toner is low, see Replacing the imaging cartridge.

The gradation setting is too small when printing graphics.

On the Basic Setting menu in the printer driver, click More Settings, select the Enh.MG button, then select Smooth.


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Toner smudges

Cause What to do
Your paper may be moist or damp. Do not store your paper in a humid or damp environment.
You may not be using the correct type of paper for your printer. EPSON special paper or smooth, high-quality copier paper is recommended for best results. See Available paper types for information on choosing paper.

The paper path inside the printer may be dusty.

Clean internal printer components by printing three pages with only one character per page.


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Areas are missing in the printed image

Cause What to do
Your paper may be moist or damp. This printer is sensitive to moisture absorbed by the paper. The higher the moisture content in the paper, the lighter the printout. Do not store paper in a humid or damp environment.

You may not be using the correct type of paper for your printer.

If the surface of your paper is too rough, printed characters may appear distorted or broken. EPSON special paper or smooth, high-quality copier paper is recommended for best results. See Available paper types for information on choosing paper.


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Completely blank pages are output

Cause What to do
The printer may have loaded more than one sheet at a time. Remove the paper stack and fan it. Tap it on a flat surface to even the edges. Then reload the paper.
There may be no toner left in the imaging cartridge. If the message on the LCD panel or in the EPSON Status Monitor 3 indicates that the amount of toner is low, see Replacing the imaging cartridge.
The problem may be with your application or interface cable. Print out a status sheet. See Printing a Status Sheet. If a blank page is ejected, the problem may be with the printer. Turn off the printer and contact your dealer.
The Paper Size setting may be incorrect. Make sure the correct paper size is set in the Tray Menu on the control panel.
MP Tray Size setting may be incorrect. When loading paper for which the size is not specified with Auto setting, specify the correct paper size on the MP Tray Size setting in the Tray Menu on the control panel.
The yellow tape may not be pulled out of the imaging cartridge. Make sure that the yellow tape has been pulled out completely. See Replacing the imaging cartridge for details.

The MP tray cover is not attached correctly.

Make sure that the MP tray cover is closed securely. Next, remove the imaging cartridge and confirm that there is no paper remaining in the printer, then reinstall the imaging cartridge.


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The printed image is light or faint

Cause What to do
Your paper may be moist or damp. Do not store your paper in a humid or damp environment.
The Toner Save mode may be on. Turn off the Toner Save mode using the printer driver or the printer's control panel menus.
There may be no toner left in the imaging cartridge. If the message on the LCD panel or in EPSON Status Monitor 3 indicates that the amount of toner left is low, see Replacing the imaging cartridge.

The Density setting may be too low.

Increase the Density setting in the Printing Menu on the control panel.


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The non-printed side of the page is dirty

Cause What to do

Toner may have spilled onto the paper feed path.

Clean internal printer components by printing three pages with only one character per page.


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Version NPD0274-00, Copyright © 2003, SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION