hp mfp 377dw black ink

[atc-bp]

color printing ok, but black skips or misses altogether. Black cartridge is new HP

[Andr-1611 · Accepted solution]

Hello @atc-bp ,
Welcome to the HP Support Community!

1. Print these two reports:
   - Printer Status Report
   - Event Log
   upload here, click on the icon "Insert photos", "Set format = Large", original size at least 200 KB.
   But before you must remove or delete the personal data and printer serial number on the printout.
   
   
2. Then adopt these proposed solutions: Solution five: Print and evaluate a Print Quality Report and then troubleshoot the defects 

I suspect the black ink cartridge needs to be reclaimed.

Hope this helps! Keep me posted.
Andr-1611

If my post resolved your problem please mark this post as an "Accepted Solution".
Or click on the YES button to reply that the response was helpful and/or to say “Thank You”.

[Repairatrooper]

If you do not print a great deal, or you have left the printer sitting for a month or more, you could have a known issue called Black Ink Fade. This happens when the pigment in the black ink settles out of the ink carrier fluid and sinks to the bottom of the printbar assembly and clogs nozzles. (color ink in this printer is dye based and does not settle) HP updated the ink formulation to reduce the likely hood of this happening but if the cartridge you just replaced was of the old variety then there are some steps you need to take to resolve the issue. (if you still have the old cartridge, if the expiry date was previous to April 2022 then that cartridge contained the problematic ink). First step is to make sure that you update the firmware of the printer to the current revision to take advantage of updated maintenance schedules. Then, ensure that the new cartridge you installed has a expiry date later than April 2022. Install the cartridge.  Attached to this response is a solid black page in PDF format. You need to print 100 copies of this page. Yes it uses ink but it is really the only way to cure the problem, if it is curable at all, in some cases we have found the heads are simply too mucked up. Once you have printed the 100 pages, print the print quality page to see how well the fix worked. In some cases leaving the printed on and at rest will improve the results as the pigment clogging the heads absorbs fluid and is then forced out.

[atc-bp]

Thanks for your help, and the explanations about how the problem may have occurred. Sadly, the "blackpage" option did not use very much ink! I then tried the suggestion from Andr-1611 and bought a new cartridge. That did the trick, and printing is fine again. The cartridge I replaced was dated "JAN 2024" so probably was not suffering from the pigment issue you described...but the one before that was SEP 2022, and that had been sitting for a long time (without much ink in it, though.)

Appreciate your willingness to share what you've learned!

[atc-bp]

Thanks for the advice! Although the cartridge in question was recently purchased, I went ahead and ordered a replacement and that fixed the problem! Not sure why a cartridge that was new and working fine after installation would subsequently go bad, unless it's related to how long the printer was idle and powered down. Just in case, I'll be keeping it on and running a couple of pages a week until I can deliver it to the end user!

[Repairatrooper]

If you have not already, make sure you make a warranty claim for the defective cartridge.