HP OfficeJet Pro 6968 pooling black ink on side and not printing black

[Sambunny]

It seems to be a common issue that black ink stops working. I've tried cleaning the print heads and using a kit to clean the print heads, but it isn't printing black or blue ink. It will print properly after I've cleaned the print head, using the printer settings, three times. I have to do this every time I want to print something. Also, I've noticed some ink pooling inside of the printer. Is this normal?

[TEJ1602]

@Sambunny, Welcome to HP Support Community!

I see that you are experiencing print quality issues on the printer and I appreciate your efforts in trying to resolve the issue.

The ink pooling is not regular and this could be due to defective ink or printer ink system.

If you have already performed the steps from the document Black or Color Ink Not Printing, Other Print Quality Issues and the issue persists, it could be a hardware failure.

Please reach out to the HP Support in your region regarding the service options for your printer.

Hope this helps!

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

[Sambunny]

Hi there,

Thank you for your reply. I have tried all of the suggestions on the document but to no avail. I have to clean the print head at least 3 times each time I want to print a document. Today I had to clean it 6x and even the last result is subpar. I am afraid that by cleaning the printhead so many times before printing will lead to a waste of ink, however, this would be a greater loss to HP than to me since I pay the monthly subscription for their recycle program. Please note that I use recycled paper to clean the printheads.

[TEJ1602]

@Sambunny

Glad that the issue is taken care of, it is okay with regards to the ink. Replacing inks are still better than replacing the entire unit.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!