What to Do When the HP Printer Not Printing Color Correctly?

HP is a well-known company that manufactures various hardware gadgets. HP printers are available in various specifications. You can find a good HP printer for your job easily. These printers are also very well-known for print quality. On the inkjet printer, you can get the printout of bright images or photographs easily. While using the HP printer, some users reported that the HP printer not printing colors correctly. Your printer can get into print quality issues due to numerous causes. But resolving the printer color error is not difficult. Users can seek the possible causes and then fix them easily.

Why won’t my HP printer print in color?

The basic reason behind printer color error is the storage of ink on the cartridge. Due to low ink, the printer starts providing faded printouts. But other issues can also cause HP printer not printing color errors.

1. Low ink on the cartridge
2. Third-party cartridge
3. The color cartridge is not installed correctly
4. Color printing mode is disabled
5. You have installed the wrong cartridge
6. Low-quality ink
7. HP Printhead is clogged 
8. Low paper quality

Resolving why won t my printer print in color?

Check the ink level on your cartridge

Whenever the print quality decreases, the user should check for the ink level. When the printer is working at a low ink level, the printouts seem faded. The printhead can’t get the ink enough to take bright printouts. You have to open your HP device and inspect the cartridge for ink level. 

1. Open the front cover 
2. Check the ink level on the cartridge
3. If the level is very low; remove the cartridge

Get the new ink cartridge and install it on your HP printer. Go to the computer and try to take a bright print out.

Check the expiry date on the cartridge

When the ink level of your cartridge is high but still getting faded printouts then check the expiry date. The ink cartridges also have an expiry date. After the provided date, the ink starts thickening. Due to the thick ink, the printhead can fetch it properly and the printouts look faded. The ink inside the cartridge also gets dry when you haven’t used the printer for a while. Open the cartridge and check the ink correctly. If the ink seems thick then add a few drops of solvent and reinsert it. When the printhead gets enough ink, it will start printing in good quality.

Don’t use the clone cartridge

Your HP printer won’t print color properly when you are using the clone cartridges. Original HP ink cartridges are costly but provide high-quality printouts. But when you install a third-party cartridge, the print quality reduces. These cartridges usually carry low-quality ink. Some of these clone cartridges may damage the printer also. For taking printouts at high quality; replace the cartridge and get the original HP cartridge. 

Installed cartridge in the correct slot

If the HP printer printing wrong colors then immediately check the cartridge slots. The user gets this error when he has installed the cartridge wrongly. Every cartridge slot is specified for the particular color cartridge. If the printer printing wrong colors that means you have installed the cartridge on the wrong slot. Open the printer front door and check the cartridges. Remove the wrongly inserted cartridge and then install it on the correct slot. Now take a printout and inspect whether you are getting the correct printouts or not.

Enable the HP printer color mode

When the printer is only giving the black and white printouts and not printing the color at all then check the mode. It occurs when the user has disabled the color print property of the HP printer. Enable the color mode of your printer. 

Go to the connected PC and tap on Settings

1. Go to Devices and Printers
2. Choose your HP printer and tap on Properties
3. Select the Printing preferences option
4. Hit the Paper/Quality tab
5. Choose Color

Tap on the OK button. Now take a printout from the HP device and then check for errors.

Clean the printout of your printer

The printer won’t print in color properly when the printhead is clogged. It moves on the page and imprints the characters. When you use the printer often, the printhead gets clogged. The dry ink on the head clogs it. For taking clear printouts, you have to remove all the dry ink from the printhead. The user can run a cleaning utility on the printer.

1. Go to the PC’s control panel
2. Select Printers and Scanners
3. Hit on the Properties tab and tap on Printing Preferences
4. Choose Service option

Click on Printer Services and choose Clean Printheads. Now it will start cleaning the printouts automatically. The user may need to run this function twice for better cleaning. The user can remove the clogged ink manually. Open the printer’s access door and the carriage will move to the middle. Now the user can easily access the printhead. Wait a few seconds until your ink cartridge stops moving. Now unplug the cable and printhead and remove the cartridges. Check the printhead and remove the ink from the head and nozzle with a clean cloth. After cleaning, insert the cartridges and close the door. Give a print command for a colored document and check the printout’s quality.

Check the quality of the paper

The printouts not only depend on the ink but the page also. Sometimes, the user inserts too thick or thin pages on the input tray. The ink can’t be on these pages correctly. You may get the faded or bloated printouts. The user should only use the pages with the correct thickness. Check the pages and if they seem too thin, remove them. Now use the good quality page for taking printouts with an HP printer. Every HP printer has a different print quality. When you switch the device, you will inspect the changes in print quality. Using the printers of the same company does not always provide the same features and services. If you are using the HP inkjet printer and then switching to laser then print-quality changes. Laser printers offer good printing speed and the user can take lots of printouts simultaneously. But the print quality will degrade a bit. HP inkjets may seem a little slower; they can provide bright and colorful printouts.

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