HP printers stopped printing Black

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HP printers stopped printing Black

So, I keep software up to date. I have 3 printers (don't ask why). An HP Officejet 6500 E709n that is hardwired to the router (wifi was not good), an HP Officejet 6000 E609n this is connected by wifi but I don't use it much, and an HP LaserJet P2055dn hardwired to the router. Up until a few days ago all the printers worked fine. The LaserJet still works (thank goodness!). However, the 6500 and the 6000 quit printing black. They'll print color, but no black. I have uninstalled all HP software and rebooted and reinstalled the software for 10.6. I've tried the HP software update. I've tried uninstalling the printers and installing them with every possible option: boujour, hp socket, IP. Every once in a while when I try to print a page to see if it is working after I've reinstalled one of them, it will print the one page I've asked it to, but then no more. It pretends to print, it just forgets to put ink on the paper. So, I know there is ink in both printers, the dashboard says there is, the website connection to the printers says there is, and the black ink is heavy. Fortunately I still have the one printer, the one I never use. I figure it was some update by apple that caused the problem, probably when they offered me the HP software update. It probably contains stuff for Lion, which I don't have. And, once it got on my computer, I don't seem to have an option to get rid of it. That's my guess. I really like my color printers (the 6500 still scans, thank you). I'd really like to make it work again. I'd figure it was the printer that was broken if it wasn't that I have two of them that run off the same drivers and both stopped at the same time. Any help appreciated. Steve

MacBook 13, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Nov 3, 2011 6:43 PM

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Answer 1

kostby

Level 4

2,964 points

Nov 3, 2011 8:33 PM in response to W Stephen Wilson

Have you run a deep cleaning cycle on one of the inkjet(s), particularly the black cartridge(s) to be certain that it is not ink cartridges simply being clogged. Clogged nozzels don't happen too often, but it does happen to printers that aren't used frequently. And sometimes the ink system can 'lie', or the cartridge or print-head just stop functioning in my experience.

I would think you could downgrade the drivers if older drivers are still posted on the HP website, or perhaps by using Time Machine to restore to earlier drivers.

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Answer 2

Nov 4, 2011 5:03 AM in response to kostby

First, of course, when the first printer stopped printing black I did the deep clean, but it didn't help. However, when the same thing happened to the second printer, I figured that wasn't the case. (Also, I took out the print cartridge and the print head and checked them for gunk. None.)

As far as old drivers go, I had re-installed the HP software for 10.6 and that hadn't helped. I hadn't thought to use time machine, so I tried that. I uninstalled all HP stuff and went back a month and restored the HP stuff in applications. That didn't work, so I used time machine again and restored all the HP stuff in /Library/Printers. I was thrilled to see it print a couple of test pages for me, but that happens from time to time when I reinstall. It didn't print again. So, I'm back where I started, both printers pretend to print, but forget to use black. It was a good thought, it just didn't work. Next? Steve

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Answer 3

Nov 4, 2011 5:31 AM in response to W Stephen Wilson

Okay. This time I decided to follow the time machine advice with extreme prejudice. I deleted everything HP in Applications and /Library and my/Library. I then tried to empty the trash, but it hung on and said it wouldn't give up HP because it wanted to keep using it. I went into root and clobbered it but good. Then I went into time machine and replaced all of the above with stuff a month old (back when life was good). Then I rebooted. I deleted the two printers that hadn't been working, because somehow system preferences remembered them as does the print command (which still has them). I reinstalled my main all-in-one OfficeJet 6500 and have now successfully printed 3 or 4 things. Thanks much. This was all very frustrating. Of course the next time apple looks for updates, they'll say I need to update my HP software, and I'll just have to resist being uptodate. Steve

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Answer 4

Nov 4, 2011 5:51 AM in response to kostby

Well, nothing's perfect. My HP 6500 prints, but the 6000 doesn't. That would be okay, but I can't scan. Seems there is more to life than what I changed. I'm trying some more stuff. Steve

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Answer 5

Nov 4, 2011 1:44 PM in response to kostby

I hope this is my last follow up. I got some feedback from the HP discussion group as well. I spent 6 hours today making my all-in-one 6500 work, so I'm not sure exactly what step made the difference. Like all good catastrophes, more than one bad thing happened at once. There is a real problem with the 6000, which is why it won't print black. Not sure what and don't care right now. The HP group told me how to check that. I messed with time machine a lot before I moved on. The HP group suggested a complete reset of the printing system. I did that, but then was unable to even see my 6500 when it was plugged in with a usb. Then I was unable to uninstall the HP software. So, I manually uninstalled everthing on the computer that look like HP, emptied the trash, and rebooted. The computer didn't come up. Tried my install disk. The computer didn't come up. Booted from an external drive thinking I could use time machine, but think that has to be done from the install disk or the main partition. Tried to boot once more and the computer came up (whew!). Then I installed the HP drivers and software for 10.6, not the new update for HP software. I was then able to install the 6500 and the laser printer. The 6500 now prints and scans. What a pain. Thanks much for the suggestion. It had potential. Steve

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Answer 6

kostby

Level 4

2,964 points

Nov 5, 2011 12:13 AM in response to W Stephen Wilson

Wow! It's unfortunate that it took all that time and effort to get it working! At least you have one working printer/scanner again.

I've encountered similar 'everything goes all wrong all at the same time' installs and upgrades, though most were with Windows PC's, servers, or enterprise systems. One of the reasons I turned to Apple in 2007!

I developed a rule many years ago: NEVER download, update, or install software or attempt to fix or install anything with hardware after 10 pm, because you'll likely be up all night. My first attempt to install a new Canon printer/scanner last year was like that. Software CD wouldn't read. Tried WiFi setup. Didn't install properly. Tried USB setup. Couldn't find the printer. TWO brand new USB cables were bad. And on and on...

I had a Canon inkjet a few years ago with one ink sensor that went wonky, and eventually found a Canon tech who sent me a super-secret confidential 'factory reset' button push sequence at power-on that reset ALL stored printer parameters, even page count, and then the printer worked fine for another two years. I don't know if such a thing exists for your HP 6000, but it might be worth a try.

And now, I don't automatically install ANY software updates on any systems. First I check these forums for problem reports and rants for a week or two, before deciding to install, or not. Why be an unpaid 'test dummy' for anyone, if you have a choice?

I came up with this graphic several years ago:

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