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Problem Solver

Print Quality Problems

The background is dark or dirty
White dots appear in the printout
Print quality or tone is uneven
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.

Turn off the printer. 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.

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


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Print quality or tone is uneven

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 toner 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 a toner cartridge.

There may be a problem with the photoconductor unit.

Replace the photoconductor unit. See Photoconductor Unit.


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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.
There may be no toner left in the toner cartridge. If the message on the LCD panel or in EPSON Status Monitor 3 indicates that the amount of toner is low, see Replacing a toner 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.

There may be a problem with the photoconductor unit.

Replace the photoconductor unit. See Photoconductor Unit.


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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.

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

There may be a problem with the photoconductor unit.

Replace the photoconductor unit. See Photoconductor Unit.


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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 Toner 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 a toner 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.

There may be a problem with the photoconductor unit.

Replace the photoconductor unit. See Photoconductor Unit.


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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 toner 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 a toner cartridge.

There may be a problem with the photoconductor unit.

Replace the photoconductor unit. See Photoconductor Unit.


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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 NPD0167-01, Copyright © 2003, SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION