printing without tri-color cartridge

[Phaw]

Hi,

I have HP Deskjet 2050A Al-in-one Printer J510h.  Can i use my printer if I only used black ink cartridge without putting a tri color cartridge? i only intend to use black ink, thats why. please advice. thanks in advance. 

[mdklassen]

Often, a printer will "cheat" -- mix a tiny amount of colour into a "black" page, to try to prevent the colour print-heads from drying-out.

Also, see: Can't print B&W with empty color cartridge

on this forum.

[Bob_Headrick]

Yes, the Deskjet 2050a can print in single cartridge mode with just one cartridge installed as described on page 31 of the user guide here.  There are a few considerations: 

• Only printing will work in single cartridge mode for this printer, you will not be able to make copies.
• Do not put tape back on the color cartridge to store it.  Doing so would cause color mixing which will ruin the cartridge.  If you have a color cartridge with ink that you would like to preserve store it as shown in the document here.

As mentioned in the above post there are printer models that do not allow printing without all cartridges installed (or for some printers having ink in all colors).  Your printer is a design that allows this.

HP and other printer manufacturers have different printer technologies for different needs.  For inkjet printers:

• Some have printheads built into the ink cartridges.  These printers can typically print with one or more of the colors completely empty, or even with color or black (but not both) cartridges removed. The Deskjet 2050a is an example.

• Other printers have separate ink supplies and replaceable printheads.  An example would be the Officejet Pro 8600.  The printhead in these printers can be replaced if they are damaged by running the printhead with colors out.  Some of these printers will allow printing with a color out, other will not.  If the printer is run without ink in one or more colors the printer may be damaged, but the user may be able to recover without having to send the printer for service. 

• Other printers have permanent printheads.  To run these without some ink in all the colors would risk causing damage to the printhead due to clogs, air ingested in the printhead or burned out printhead firing resistors. The Officejet 6700 is an example of this type of printer. For printers with fixed printheads this could require service to get the printer to print properly again when the ink is finally replaced.  

The document here describes how ink is used.  While the document is written for HP Inkjet printers the same principles apply to inkjet printers from other manufacturers.