HP Deskjet 3050 J610 Series. Print comes out very light in body of document, but not on headers

[Molly9094]

Hi.  I just replaced the ink in my printer but it's not printing out as before.  I was going thru setting and tried several ways, and still can't get the print to be dark enough to read.  When I do AOL mail, the header comes out dark (with to, from, date, etc), but the body is very pale gray.  Would you please help me figure out the settings, or how to get the default back?  thank you so much, I really miss printing and hate writing in long hand 🙂  [Edited for Personal Information]

[MissTeriLynn · Accepted solution]

Hi Molly9094,

Welcome to the HP forums!

I see from your post that you have a Deskjet 3050 that after changing the cartridge isn't printing as it had before. I'm sorry to hear this, but I will certainly do my best to assist you!

Just to be safe, I'd like to test the hardware of the printer to make sure that everything is fine on that end first. If you print a Network Configuration Page does it come out all in solid black?

If you were to print from somewhere on your computer such as Notepad (Windows) or Text/Edit (Mac) does that come out as it should or does it also have a lot of pale grey?

Once I know this information we can move forward!

Hope to hear back from you soon!!

[Molly9094]

hi and thank you for the reply and help.  Since the time I posted, I reinstalled the program and can print on Notepad.  However, when I print from AOL, the header shows but the body is very pale gray, hardly readable.  I'm happy though, better than nothing for sure.   Right now I can't complain.  Thank you again.

[tkoweb]

This is what happens to me.  Before I set up wireless I was able to print a clear and dark black test from notepad.  Now I got my wireless all set up and did the same test print from notepad and it's very faint gray.

Do you know why or what i need to change.  I set it up for photo best quality too to try that. Same issue.

Thank you,

Tko

[MKazi]

@tkoweb

Welcome to HP Support Forums. 🙂 I came across your post and understand that you have an HP Deskjet 3050 All-in-One Printer and after connecting it wirelessly, it prints very faint gray. Maybe I can help. I appreciate the steps you have performed and have certainly done a good job.

The print quality of a printer depends on the ink cartridges/printhead. It is not dependent on the connection type, be it USB or wireless. I recommend you to perform the below steps to isolate the issue and arrive at a solution: 

• First, let's check the ink levels. Usually, if the ink level is below 25% then the print quality will deteriorate. 

1. Load U.S. letter or A4 size, unused, plain paper into the input tray.

2. Turn on the printer.

3. In Windows, search for your printer model, and then click your printer in the results.

   The printer software opens.

4. In the printer software, double-click Estimated Ink Levels .

   The HP Toolbox opens.

5. Click the Estimated Ink Levels tab.

If the ink levels are fine and not low then I suggest you to clean the ink cartridges manually as descried below:

• Remove the cartridge out.
• Hold the ink cartridge by its sides.

• Inspect the ink cartridge contacts for ink and debris buildup. Do not touch the copper-colored contacts or the ink nozzles. Touching these parts can result in clogs, ink failure, and bad electrical connections.

• Lightly moisten a clean, foam-rubber swab with distilled water, and then squeeze any excess water from it.
• Clean the face and edges around the ink nozzle with the swab. Do not clean the ink nozzle plate.

1. Nozzle plate - Do not clean

2. Area surrounding ink nozzle - Do clean

3. Ink cartridge contacts - Do not clean

• Either let the ink cartridge sit for 10 minutes to allow the cleaned area to dry, or use a new swab to dry it.
• Slide the ink cartridge at a slight upward angle into the empty slot, and then gently push up on the ink cartridge until it locks into place.

Figure: Push the ink cartridge into its slot

• Repeat these steps to clean the area surrounding the ink nozzle on the other ink cartridges.
• Close the ink cartridges access door.

Once you perform the above steps, please try to print and check the print quality. Feel free to let me know how it goes. Good luck! 🙂

[SteveMcC1953]

Ive cleaned the cartridges, in the printer and by hand. The header comes out dark, but the rest is very light in tone. Ive run the alignment too, without any success.