How to Troubleshoot a Canon Color Laser Printer

If you're having problems with your Canon color printer, you can probably fix it on your own. Here are some steps to troubleshoot a Canon color laser printer.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer
• Printer

1. Check that everything is plugged in properly. This includes power cords, USB cables and server cables.

2. Check for a paper jam. Newer printers will tell you the location of the jam, while older printers require that you open them up and search for the paper.

3. Be sure that your computer is networked to the printer if you are on a shared network. Open your control panel and click on "Printers." This will display all printers that your computer can access.

4. Consult your manual for specific troubleshooting tips.

5. Ask a friend to look at the printer. Sometimes the simplest problem will escape even an expert eye.

6. Check the Canon website for more assistance. Canon's Web site is easy to navigate and will help you look up documents to fix your problem.

7. Call Canon’s customer service hotline. Have all printer information handy, such as make and model number.

8. Print a test page to make sure that everything is lined up and ready to work again.

Tips & Warnings

• Shake your ink cartridge. If your ink supply is the culprit, sometimes a shake will fix it. Remove the cartridge, shake it and return it to the printer.
• Make sure the paper is in the load tray properly. If the paper is folded, wrinkled or not in the tray just right it might result in paper jams.
• Unplug and replug in your printer. Sometimes just restarting the printer will fix the problem.
• Use customer service as a last resort. During certain times of the day there will be more calls than operators to take them. If you have to wait a long time to get some help, it might just make the situation more aggravating.