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HP Deskjet D2500 Printer Series - Horizontal Streaks or Lines in the Printed Image

Issue

The printout shows streaks or lines. The lines are perpendicular to the direction the paper moved through the product and parallel to the movement of the ink cartridges during printing.
Figure : Defect, with the direction the paper moved through the product indicated

Solution

Follow these steps in order to resolve the issue.

Step one: Wait 30 minutes

If possible, let the product sit idle for 30 minutes, then try printing again. In some cases, a rest period allows the product to recover from temporary print problems.

Step two: Check ink levels and replace low or empty ink cartridges

The streaks or lines might be caused due to low ink levels in one or both ink cartridges. Check the ink levels using the HP Toolbox to determine if the ink cartridges are low on ink and need to be replaced.
note:
Ink level warnings and indicators provide estimates for planning purposes only. When an indicator shows low ink levels, consider having a replacement ink cartridge available to avoid possible printing delays. You do not need to replace ink cartridges until print quality becomes unacceptable.

Check ink levels

  1. Make sure that the product is on and connected to the computer.
  2. Double-click the HP Digital Imaging Monitor icon () on the right side of the Windows taskbar. The HP Solution Center dialog box opens.
  3. In the HP Solution Center, click Settings and click Printer Toolbox. The Printer Toolbox opens. The ink levels appear on the Estimated Ink Levels tab.
Figure : Estimated ink levels

Replace low or empty ink cartridges

Follow these steps to replace the ink cartridge.
  1. Make sure that the product is turned on.
    note:
    One or both the ink cartridge status lights might blink, indicating issues with the ink cartridges. The light on the left blinks when the tri-color ink cartridge (on the left) has an issue, and the light on the right blinks when the black ink cartridge (on the right) has an issue.
  1. Open the product cover.
    The carriage moves to the right side of the product.
    Figure : Opening the product cover
  2. Wait until the carriage is idle and silent, and then lightly press down on an ink cartridge to release it.
    • If replacing the tri-color ink cartridge, remove the ink cartridge from the slot on the left.
    • If replacing the black, photo, or gray photo ink cartridge, remove the ink cartridge from the slot on the right.
    Figure : Removing the ink cartridge
  3. Pull the ink cartridge out of its slot.
  4. Remove the new ink cartridge from its packaging and carefully remove the plastic tape using the pink pull tab.
      Figure : Removing the plastic tape
    1. Copper-colored contacts
    2. Plastic tape with pink pull tab (must be removed before installing)
    3. Ink nozzles under tape
      caution:
    Do not touch the copper-colored contacts or ink nozzles. Also, do not re-tape the ink cartridges. Doing so can result in clogs, ink failure, and bad electrical connections.
  5. Hold the ink cartridge with the HP logo on top, and insert it into the empty cartridge slot.
    • If installing the tri-color ink cartridge, slide it into the left slot.
    • If installing a black, photo, or gray photo ink cartridge, slide it into the right slot.
    Figure : Inserting the ink cartridge
  6. Push the ink cartridge in firmly until it snaps into place.
  7. Close the product cover.

Step three: Check the print settings

  1. In the program, click File and then click Print.
  2. Select the product from the drop-down list and then click Properties or Preferences.
  3. Click the Features tab and then select the print quality and paper type settings that match the print job.
    note:
    Using a high print quality setting with plain paper might cause bleeding colors.
  4. Click OK to save the new settings.
  5. Click Print to send the print job. If the problem continues, go to the next step.

Step four: Run the automatic utility to clean the ink cartridges

  1. Double-click the HP Digital Imaging Monitor icon () on the taskbar. The HP Solution Center screen opens.
  2. From the HP Solution Center, click the Settings menu.
  3. Click Printer Toolbox. The Printer Toolbox opens.
  4. Click Clean the Print Cartridges.
  5. Click Clean and then follow the on-screen instructions.

Step five: Print a diagnostic page

If these steps did not resolve the issue, print and evaluate a diagnostic page to resolve the issue.
  1. Make sure that there is unused, plain, white paper loaded in the input tray.
  2. Press and hold the Power button ().
  3. Keep the Power button pressed down and then press the Cancel button ().
  4. Release both buttons. The diagnostic page prints.
Figure : Diagnostic page

Step six: Note which ink cartridges printed which areas of the diagnostic page

Identify which ink cartridge printed which part of the diagnostic page, so that if there are defects, it will be possible to know which ink cartridge is the problem.
Different combinations of ink cartridges can be installed in the product, and different ink cartridge combinations print different diagnostic page patterns. The right and left ink cartridges will print in the same areas of the page no matter which ink cartridges are installed.
    Figure : Layout of the diagnostic page
  1. Printed by the left ink cartridge
  2. Printed by the right ink cartridge

Step seven: Check for defects on the diagnostic page

In general, if the product and ink cartridges are working correctly, the patterns (which look like grids of lines) should contain few or no missing lines. None of the colors should be missing, and there should be no streaks of ink on the page.

Missing lines or streaked bars

If a pattern shows more than a few missing lines, or a bar is streaked, that ink cartridge is not functioning correctly.
Figure : Example: the left ink cartridge shows a streaked bar - the ink cartridge is not functioning correctly
If the diagnostic page shows missing lines or streaked bars, click here (c01366967) (in English) to continue troubleshooting.

Colors do not match the color on the ink cartridge label

If any of the colors of the bars are very different from the color dots on the ink cartridge label, the ink cartridge is not functioning correctly.
Figure : One of the bar colors is very different from the color dot on the ink cartridge
If the diagnostic page shows colors that are very different from the colors on the ink cartridge label, click here (c01515900) (in English) to continue troubleshooting.

Missing colors

If any of the color patterns or bars are entirely missing, the ink cartridge is not functioning correctly.
note:
If printing in reserve mode, without all the ink cartridges installed, the patterns associated with the missing ink cartridge will also be missing.
    Figure : Missing colors
  1. All colors printed - no missing colors
  2. Yellow missing - the left (tri-color) ink cartridge is not printing correctly
If any of the patterns or bars are entirely missing, click here (c01367009) (in English) to continue troubleshooting.

Ink smears

If the diagnostic page shows smeared ink, the ink cartridges might need to be cleaned.
Figure : Smeared ink
If the diagnostic page shows smeared ink, click here (c01383843) (in English) to continue troubleshooting.

Step eight: Continued troubleshooting if the diagnostic page shows no defects

If no defects were evident on the diagnostic page, the ink cartridges and product are working correctly. Click here (c01383878) (in English) to continue troubleshooting.

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