HP Deskjet 2722 Printer leaving few blank / smeared / smudged characters

[Logicwave]

Hi

I have HP Deskjet 2722 printer. Recently i have been having some problem with print quality - it leaves few characters (of black ink) blank / smudged / smeared on the print. It is happening with few characters on each page while rest of the print comes fine (e.g. in attached print report there are following issues - on line 1. "P" is missing on HP ; on line 4. "ES" is smudged / smeared on word CARTRIDGES, in center of page "ck" is missing from word Black.

I have tried multiple options - cleaning print head (level 1 and level 2 cleaning), cartridge is good as well (both black and colored), however nothing seems to work. If anyone has any suggestions / recommendations please share. Thanks so much.

[sandytechy20]

@Logicwave

Welcome to the HP support community.

I understand that you are getting print quality issues, I am glad to assist you.

Manually clean the area around the ink nozzles

1. Gather the following materials:

   • Dry foam-rubber swabs, lint-free cloth, or any soft material that does not come apart or leave fibers (coffee filters work well)

   • Distilled, filtered, or bottled water (tap water might contain contaminants that can damage the ink cartridges)

        CAUTION: 

     Do not use platen cleaners or alcohol to clean the ink cartridge contacts. These can damage the ink cartridge or the printer.

2. Press the Power button  to turn on the printer, if it is not already on.

3. Open the ink cartridge access door.

4. Gather the following materials:

   • Dry foam-rubber swabs, lint-free cloth, or any soft material that does not come apart or leave fibers (coffee filters work well)

   • Distilled, filtered, or bottled water (tap water might contain contaminants that can damage the ink cartridges)

        CAUTION: 

     Do not use platen cleaners or alcohol to clean the ink cartridge contacts. These can damage the ink cartridge or the printer.

5. Press the Power button  to turn on the printer, if it is not already on.

6. Open the ink cartridge access door.

7. Wait until the printer is idle and silent before you continue.

8. Lightly press down on the ink cartridge to release it, and then pull the ink cartridge out of its slot.

   

9. Lightly press down on one of the ink cartridges to release it, and then pull the ink cartridge toward you out of its slot.

10. Hold the ink cartridge by its sides.

    

11. Inspect the ink cartridge contacts for ink and debris buildup.

       CAUTION: 

    Do not touch the copper-colored contacts or the ink nozzles. Handling these parts can result in clogs, ink failure, and bad electrical connections.

    

12. Lightly moisten a foam-rubber swab or lint-free cloth with distilled water, and then squeeze any excess water from it.

13. Clean the face and edges around the ink nozzle with the swab.

Refer to this HP document for further assistance:- Click here

Keep me posted.

If this helps, please mark the public post as an accepted solution so that it benefits several others.

Cheers.