Black has stopped printing - comes out as gray

[TheTeaLady]

I've been using my Photosmart 5520 4 in 1 for quite a while for personal and home business use.  All of a sudden, the black ink is now printing as light gray, not black.  I thought it might just need a new ink cartridge - replaced it with an HP unit - nothing changed.  I've tried all the instructions I can find on-line (HP Print and Scan Doctor 5.0) and still am getting the same result.   Other 3 colors are printing correctly.  Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

[Rainbow23]

Hi @TheTeaLady,

Welcome to HP Forums, this is a great place to get support, find answers and tips.

Thank you for posting your query. I'll be more than glad to help you.

I understand that you are facing issues with your HP Photosmart 5520 e-All-in-One Printer wherein the printer does not print in black properly.

This issue could occur if the nozzles of the printhead that print in black are damaged or do not work.

Let's go through a few steps that may help to fix this issue.

And here's the step by step guide in the link: Black Ink Not Printing and Other Print Quality Issues

Let me know how this works.
 

You have a good day ahead.

[TheTeaLady]

Thank you for your response.  I'd already done all the suggested aligning and printing and the only thing that's not working is the true black printing - it comes out light gray instead.  I agree that it probably has something to do with the black nozzle head, but I'm lookng for some other way to 'clean' the nozzle so that the ink can properly go through.

I'll try anything that's suggested

Again, many thanks!

[MKazi]

@TheTeaLady

Hi,

as @Rainbow23 is out of the office today, I'm replying to you. I appreciate the steps you have performed and have certainly done a good job.

The printhead for this printer is not removable, hence we cannot clean it manually. You may try to clean the printhead through the printer front panel a few times. However, if the issue persists then please with another black cartridge if available. If the second black cartridge also does not print black then definitely it's the printhead that has a problem.

If the second black cartridge prints fine then the initial black cartridge can be replaced (under warranty) through our HP phone support. You may contact out HP phone support to explore the hardware service options for your printer. 

I hope this information helps. Please feel free to keep me posted. Cheers! 🙂

[TheTeaLady]

After doing all the self-service diagnostics, I called into HP directly and was very politely told that since my unit was created in 2013, it's now antiquated technology and relatively un-fixable.  They offered me other units, which I'm considering, however, I probably won't order directly through HP since their prices are a little higher than what I can find with on-line companies.

I greatly appreciate the time and effort spent on this message board for my concerns and will stay with HP products because of their great 'track record'.

[MKazi]

@TheTeaLady

You're most welcome and thank you for the kind words. It keeps us going! 🙂

It has been a privilege to share this platform with you. Please do not hesitate to contact us for any questions in future. 

Take care! 🙂