It’s a common tale: You need to print something but find that your printer is not printing black ink. You think Googling will help, but none of the forums you check offers a clear-cut resolution, leaving you wondering — now what?

Well, the first thing you must do is relax. Help is closer than you think. By the end of this short post, you’ll know exactly what it will take to fix the “printer not printing black ink” issue.

Without further ado, let’s get started.

Starting with Basics is Always a Good Idea

• Turn your Epson printer off
• Next, unplug its power source and disconnect the USB cables
• Wait for 2-3 minutes and then reconnect the printer and turn it on
• Print a test page. This option is typically present on the display screen of your printer
• Check the ink volume in the cartridges

When you are up against the “printer not printing black” issue, it’s necessary to check whether the ink cartridges are at fault. In case of after-market cartridges which don’t display ink levels, try the steps discussed next.

Check the Ink Cartridge

• Replace empty ink cartridges
• Ensure the ink cartridges are snuggled in nicely in their right slot
• In case you are installing a new cartridge, ensure the tape over the vent has been removed
• Check whether vents are clogged. If they are, use a pin to get rid of the clogging
• If you have installed a new cartridge and your printer worked fine with the old cartridge, install the latter and check if you get any sort of output

These steps can help determine who’s at fault: the printhead or the cartridges. In case the printer can print something when you use the old cartridge, you can safely assume the fault lies with the cartridge — not the printhead.

The new cartridge might be faulty, so consider replacing it.

But what if the printhead is where the problem lies? What if the issue persists even when you try the old cartridge?

In that case, try the next solution.

Checking the Printhead Never Hurts

A printhead transfers toner or ink onto paper for creating images and text and so is critical part of the printer. How does it transfer ink onto the printing page? It fires tiny ink droplets through numerous printer nozzles for creating a desired point.

If a nozzle becomes clogged, the prints may start appearing streaky or faded. The most effective method of fixing a print quality issue is by regularly cleaning the printhead.

How to do that? You may wonder.

Here are two easy ways to do that.

• We recommend using the automatic printhead cleaning feature that is built into most modern printers (if not all of them). You can access it via the maintenance menu on your printer’s display screen. Ink is required cleaning and de-clogging a printer, so it’s normal for cartridge levels to go down a bit when you run this process. Sometimes, the automatic cleaning feature of your printer may fail to do the job the first time. If that’s the case, you may want to run it one or two times more.
• The other way is to clean the printhead manually. To do so, turn the printer off and open its top. You’ll see the printhead assembly right away. Move the small plastic lever next to the printhead to release the printhead. Use an eyedropper to saturate the sponges in the printhead with Windex solution or distilled water. Let the water or cleaning solution sit for at least 15-20 minutes, though letting the printer soak overnight is best. After you’ve cleaned the printhead, print a few pages to check if the problem is fixed.

Other Solutions

Realign the Printhead

Realigning the paper feed with the printhead can sometimes fix the issue and get the printer working again.

For an Epson printer:

• Choose Set Up on the display screen
• Select Maintenance
• And then select Head Alignment

Changing to “glossy photo paper”

Change printer driver settings to choose “glossy photo paper”. This may push the printer back into action. Try this solution only if the printer has 2 black cartridges: one pigment-based and the dye. While pigment black is appropriate for matte paper, dye works great with glossy. It’s possible one of the black cartridge may jump start to work when you switch from one paper type to another.

Run the printer troubleshooter

If you find that the problem lies with neither the printhead nor the cartridge, it’s possible the issue is with the printer driver. This is why running the printer troubleshooter is a good idea. It can help diagnose (and fix) the problem.

Windows 10 and 11 users should type “Printer” in the Search bar on the taskbar and choose “Find and fix problems with printing”. Doing so will launch the printer troubleshooter. Follow the on-screen prompts. The program automatically detects and fixes printing issues.

Pro Tip – Keep the printer drivers up to date

Keeping your printer drivers up to date not only improves the printer’s functionality and fixes any security bugs but also keeps problems such as “printer not printing black” at bay. The easiest and quickest way to update printer drivers is by using a reliable and fast driver update software. We recommend everyone to give DriveUpdater a try.

Updating Drivers Automatically

Automatic driver update tools offer many benefits, the most important ones being:

• You can update device drivers automatically
• The software scans and updates all outdated or missing drivers at one go
• The tool picks the right drivers for your device and operating system, so you won’t have to worry about installing an incorrect driver by mistake
• Automatic driver updates are 100% safe

Driver Updater is one of the best driver update tools out there. Outbyte Driver Updater will give you access to a database of over 1 million drivers. It will regularly scan your PC, suggesting new driver versions to install. Driver Updater contains drivers for a variety of Windows devices. With just one click, you can update drivers in your system.

Step 1
Click here to Install and launch the app

Step 2
Scan all devices

Step 3
Install or update drivers automatically

 

Start Download