Faded print or missing text is quite common, as toners contain powder that can rest inside the toner unit.
It may be worth giving your toner cartridge a shake. This redistributes the toner powder around the cartridge, giving you quite a few more pages before you need to replace it. Just grab the cartridge with both hands and gently shake it from side to side, and up and down, for about 10 seconds. Then pop it back into your printer and try printing.
Some printers allow you to change the density settings of your ink and toner. Unbeknownst to you, your default setting could be low, causing you to get those faint prints. If your printer does have toner density settings, you should be able to find them once you’ve clicked on your printer in ‘Devices & Printers’. If it looks like you’re printing at a low density, increase it slightly and then try printing.
There are a few other possible causes of this so you may need to check each in a process of elimination to figure out what’s happening but in some cases, the problem can be caused by the drum.
- Remove the toner cartridge from the printer, make sure any travel tape has been removed.
- Check the chip on the toner for damage.
- Check the roller for any particles or additional toner powder, this can be cleaned with a damp kitchen towel
- Unplug the printer and remove the drum unit, check to see if the roller has toner stuck to it. If it does, then this will need replacing.
If you find that after following this procedure you are still having a problem please contact us, include your order number, the model of printer, copy of the test page showing the quality of the print, and a print quality report.