White or Color Ink Not Printing Well

Sometimes you might find that the file you are printing has more muted colors then you remember. Maybe it has lost some color vividness or the color has changed from earlier prints. You also may see that the white layer is either thinner or banding. While there are different causes for this issue, most likely it is a problem with your printer's nozzles. If you have lost one of the 4 CMYK nozzles on the head, the color may change because one of the nodules is either missing or not firing as much or at all, resulting in a color change from prior printing. As a result, your printer's cap and or head is not getting enough ink to print the images correctly. The cap and the head have an interconnected relationship. Let's start with the cap. Your cap controls the pulling the ink through the system. That is the first thing you should check to see if your caps are dirty or clogged.

1. Feel the cap lips around the top of the cap. If these edges feel rough or look uneven on one side, then the cap needs to be replaced. Without a tight seal, the print head will not get enough ink.
   
   
2. If the edges are smooth, then your cap may need to be cleaned out. Power off your printer, and open the small door below the head carriage. Lower the printer's capping station by using the knob. Turn it left, all the way down. Slide the head carriage to the left over the deck area to get access to the caps. Leave in this position for now.
   
   
3. Next fill each cap with super hot distilled water or blue head cleaner, and let stand in the caps for 20 minutes to help loosen the ink stuck in the cap and lines at the bottom of the printer.
   
   
4. After 20 minutes, go to the waste bottle and pull out the line for either CMYK, white or adhesive and then attach your syringe to one of these lines. Start pulling on the syringe, this will empty the caps of all fluids. You are manually draining the cap, lines, vacuum and waste lines all at the same time, flushing the cap. Do this to each line from the waste bucket. This should clear any blockages in the cap. If needed, repeat this process a few times in order to fully flush out the caps. Your caps should now be clear. Good job! Now let's get the head working again.
   
   
5. Place hot water, or blue head cleaning solution into the caps and overflow each cap a bit. Send the head to home and reseat. Let it stand and soak for 20-30 minutes.
   
   
6. Once soaked, your next step is to run an ink load or ink pump on all heads. This will evacuate the cap contents and also reload ink back into both the head and cap. Run for around 15-20 seconds.
   
   
7. After your ink load is done, run only one weak clean on all heads.
   
   
8. Next, try the CHECK or color test to see if the color and or white have gotten any better. Again you may have to repeat this a few times to get the best results.