Even with a new toner cartridge my P1102W is printing so light I can barely read it

[lbjay]

My printer is 8 years old - could that be the problem?

[Alex-TATS]

Hi Lbjay,

You can clean all spring contacts to the toner cartridge. You can also try and clean the laser/scanner glass if it has any spilled toner on it. 

[lbjay]

Thanks for getting back to me Alex-Tats. Since I'm not sure what the "spring contacts" are on my printer and I don't think my laserjet has "laser/screen glass" but I took your suggestion and "cleaned" the inside of the printer with a can of liquid air - it didn't seem too dirty inside but that didn't solve the problem of light printing even with the new toner cartridge. It especially sucks when I try to print out an envelope - the address on the envelope is barely legible it's so light!

I think the printer Gods are telling me it's time to go to Costco and and buy a new printer and bite the bullet on the new HP 85A toner cartrige I just installed.   Sigh.

[Alex-TATS]

If you remove the toner cartridge, look around it for metal bits. Those metal bits usually make contact with springs on the printer's side. Make sure those springs are not bent and clean and that make proper contact with the toner cartridge.

If this will not fix the issue then it should be something wrong with the HVPS (or just the power supply board) that charges the drum.

PS. :  When cleaning the interior of a laser printer, it is not recommended to blow compressed air into it. That's because any spilled toner could go on sensors or on the laser/glass and cause more issues. Use a toner vacuum cleaner instead.