Black bars when printing with a laser printer

Any technique, over time, begins to work not as it was originally intended. There are many reasons for this and they are very different. The most common malfunction, for both inkjet and laser printers, is the print strip. So, why does a black bar remain on paper during printing?

Why the laser printer prints in black stripes: reasons

Printers often have all kinds of troubles with printing. For laser printers, the trouble is that they often “strip” when printing. Why is this happening? Yes, there are many reasons:

• There is not enough toner in the cartridge.
• The cartridge is depressurized.
• The drum unit is damaged.
• Damage to the magnetic shaft or a foreign object on it (this is an eighty percent guarantee that there will be a strip at the edge of the sheet when printing).
• The waste bin is full.
• The metering blade of the toner is not securely installed.
• The contacts between the magnetic shaft and the drum unit are damaged.

This list can be continued further, it is quite extensive. But these are the most frequent and most likely causes of this malfunction. And let's see how to fix all these problems.

How to normalize the printer?

When you are troubleshooting your own laser printer, pay close attention to the nature of the bands. This will facilitate the identification of the causes that led to their occurrence.

• Suppose the printout goes to the center, across the entire sheet of strip. Usually, this indicates that the powder in the cartridge is running low. And the less the toner cartridge remains, the wider the band becomes. But if, after checking the cartridge, you find that there is more than enough powder there, it turns out that the feed system itself is out of order. The best way out is to contact the specialists of the service center.
• If the stripes on paper look like a bunch of small dots, then 90 percent of a hundred, this is a clear overflow of the waste toner bin. The hopper needs to be cleaned and it is advisable to do this before each refill of the cartridge. Do not be lazy. In some cases, strips of this type may also be due to improper installation of the metering blade. Pay attention to this moment.
• If you notice that there are faded black stripes across the sheet, then obviously you should not expect anything good. Usually they are caused by a worn magnetic shaft. In this case, you must either replace the shaft, or the entire cartridge.
• If the dark stripes go from one edge or along both edges of the sheet, then most likely the image drum has worn out, or maybe even been damaged. Sadly, you have to change it. The fact is that there is a special layer on the drum and over time it becomes unusable, in other words, it is erased. It is very difficult to restore it, so it is easier to replace it.

REFERENCE! If you see irregular stripes that are located on the entire sheet and create the appearance of a background, then the cause of this phenomenon may be poor quality toner. Another probable reason is that the magnetic shaft is dirty.

As you can see, there is nothing complicated. And eliminating such “striped problems” on laser printers is much easier than on inkjet printers. If the printer starts to strip, just pay attention to the shape of the stripes and the place where they appear. And at the same time check:

• Is there enough powder in the hopper;
• Is the drum unit OK?
• Check the condition of the cartridge;
• Is the waste toner box full?