Ink Leak?

[Shellylp]

I have an HP Deskjet 3520 that has worked fine for years.  This morning I replaced the black cartridge with a new HP black cartridge.  When I printed the pages each line was missing half of the printing.  I checked the cartridge and seemed ok until I looked deep in the printer and saw wet ink.  Can this be causing the printing issue?  Why would a brand new cartridge from HP leak like this?  Can it be cleaned/saved?  Or do I need to replace it?

[Bob_Headrick · Accepted solution]

The troubleshooting steps in the document here may help resolve black not printing on your Desskjet 3520.  Note the ink in the service station area is normal. This is where ink is "spit" to keep the nozzles cleared.  It is not necessary or desireable to clean the service satation area.

If the standard troubleshooting did not resolve black not printing I would suggest removing the black cartridge.  Turn it over and examine the area around the ink port.  There are four orange plastic spots, left over from the protective cap.  Make sure these are flush with the cartridge body, if not carefully trim them flush.  If the plastic nubs protrude they can prevent the cartridge from seating properly.  Before replacing the cartridge in the printer dribble a few (maybe four) drops of hot water into the ink port in the printer and two drops into the ink port on the cartridge then snap the cartridge back in position.  

It may also help to manually clean the printhead as described in the post here.

I have also seen cases where leaving the printer overnight after the cleaning cycles allows black to recover.

If none of the above restores black printing your printer will likely require repair or replacement.

[Shellylp]

Thank you for your response!  I printed this morning after waiting all night and it seems to be ok now.  Hope it stays that way!