Grainy print quality

[Hope1010]

Help. My printer was fine a few days ago. Now the print quality is so grainy. I did clean cartridge, alignment,  I have full ink tank, and yes I have insta ink, so it's hp brand ink. I printed on photo paper on best setting but its still grainy. Wasted so much paper. Help. 

[Sneha_01]

Hi @Hope1010,

Welcome to HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

Grainy print quality can be frustrating, especially after performing maintenance tasks like cleaning and alignment. Here are some additional steps you can take to improve the print quality:

Print Head Cleaning: Even though you've already cleaned the cartridges, performing a more thorough print head cleaning might help. Many printers have a "deep cleaning" option in the maintenance menu.

Paper Type and Quality: Ensure that the paper type setting in the printer software matches the type of paper you are using. If you're printing on photo paper, make sure the setting is correctly selected for photo paper.

Print Quality Settings: Double-check the print quality settings in the printer driver. Make sure it's set to the highest quality possible. Sometimes, resetting these settings can make a difference.

Print Head Alignment: Perform another print head alignment. Sometimes it might take more than one attempt to get it right.

Check for Software Updates: Ensure your printer firmware and driver software are up to date. Sometimes updates can resolve print quality issues.

Manual Cleaning: If you're comfortable doing so, you can manually clean the print head and the area around the ink cartridges. Sometimes ink residue can build up and affect print quality.

Print a Test Page: Print a test page to see if the issue persists. This can help identify if the problem is with a specific color or area.

Environment: Humidity and temperature can affect print quality. Ensure your printer is in an environment within the recommended range for operation.

Reset Printer: Try performing a hard reset on the printer. Turn it off, unplug it from the power source, wait for a minute, and then plug it back in and turn it on.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

Please mark this post as “Accepted Solution” if the issue is resolved and if you feel this reply was helpful click “Yes”.

Rachel571

HP Support