• Streaky printing: If your printer starts to produce pages full of odd lines or streaks of color, your culprit could be one of a number of problems.

• First, check if the printer's heads are out of alignment. You can usually recalibrate the heads using the alignment tool in your printer software's utility section. This involves printing a pattern of lines on normal office paper and choosing which pattern looks best.

• If the streaks of ink appear along the length of the page or on the edges, the rollers or other parts of the transport system in your printer may have picked up some ink. Your printer's manual should include cleaning instructions, but if you can't find them, gently wipe surfaces that appear to have ink on them with a dry lint free cloth and see if this improves the next copy. Never use solvents or sprays, which can damage the printer, and try not to touch the ink cartridge.

• Don't attempt to dismantle the printer to get to hard to reach places as this may put the transport or ink delivery system out of alignment. If all else fails, contact the manufacturer and ask for cleaning instructions.

• Missing color: Clogged printer heads can sometimes produce a similar effect to misalignment. But other symptoms include prints that are missing a color (giving them a patchy appearance) or that just don't look right (for example, blues where there should be purples). Most printer software has a head-cleaning tool in its utility section. However, because this uses a substantial amount of ink — shortening the life of your expensive ink cartridge — it’s best not to use it without due cause.

• Activating this process is usually just a matter of clicking a 'clean heads' button in the software and waiting. In addition, many printers also have a manual system, where you have to press buttons on the printer itself in a given order.

• Printer pattern (This printer has blocked black, cyan and yellow heads. It definitely needs a clean.)If problems persist, it could be that:

* One or more colors may have run out in the color ink cartridge. If your printer has separate cartridges for each color, just replace the empty ones, otherwise you'll have to replace the entire cartridge.

* Your printer has faulty heads. In some cases, where the heads are included in the cartridge, the solution is as simple as installing a  new ink cartridge. However, some printers may need to be returned to the manufacturer to have the heads replaced, which can be  pricey — you may be better off buying a new printer.

troubleshooting sheet