How to Clean a Contaminated Print Head

Ink can sometimes dry around the print head, causing print quality issues.

The print head is a vital part of a printer. Each droplet of ink that moves from the print cartridge and through the spray nozzles must pass through the print head before contacting the paper. Sometimes droplets of ink may gather around the print head and dry, causing a buildup that will cause print quality issues. If the problem continues the print head could become completely clogged, causing the print to not print at all.

Things You'll Need

• Cotton swabs
• Isopropyl alcohol

Instructions

Self Cleaning

1. Turn the printer on and wait for the printer to go through its warm-up process before continuing.

2. Open the computer's control panel, then double-click on the printers folder. Find the printer with the contaminated print head and right-click on it. Select "Printing Preferences."

3. Find the printer's maintenance section in the Printing Preferences box. The exact location of the maintenance section will vary depending on the printer model. Select the level of cleaning you want to perform on the print heads. The printer will now clean the print heads itself.

4. Hold down the power button on your printer if there is no maintenance section in your printer's preferences. Press the cancel button while still holding the power button down until the desired level of cleaning has been selected. The printer will now clean the print heads itself.

Manual Cleaning

1. Unplug the printer's power cord and disconnect any cords connecting to the computer. Let the printer cool down for at least 15 minutes before proceeding.

2. Open the printer's access door and find the print cartridges.

3. Remove the print cartridges from the carriage. Do not force the cartridges out, or they could rupture.

4. Locate the print head in the printer. Wet a cotton swab with isopropyl alcohol and rub the swab against the print head.

5. Allow the print head to dry before returning the print cartridges and closing the printer's access door. Plug the power cord and computer connections back into the printer.

Tips & Warnings

• Some printers have a rubber seal around the print head. Be cautious to not get the isopropyl alcohol onto the seal, since it will dry the rubber out, causing the seal to crack and leak ink.

References

• Smart Computing: How to Clean a Dirty Print Head
• HP: HP Business Inkjet 1200 Owner's Manual