Venetian blind effect on Canon PIXMA IP5000 graphics

[ericbalkan]

Hi. First time here and hope someone can give me some suggestions for a problem. My wife's Canon PIXMA IP5000 suddenly started printing graphics with bands of light/normal colors, like a Venetian blind effect.

If I print a test box of a solid color, for instance, I get alternating bands of normal and lighter colors, about 1/8" high and extending across the width of the graphic. Text prints fine. Just color graphics have the problem. Doesn't seem to matter what color. I use Canon carts, have done the cleaning and alignment operations.... On fixya.com, I've had suggestions that ink is leaking or the printhead needs to be cleaned, but those explanations don't seem right because the pattern is so regular.

Anyone see this before? Open to any other suggestions. Thanks.

 

[fotofreek]

How about the nozzle check? You mention that you use Canon carts. Are they with the original ink or refilled? how old are the carts? Are you sure that the tape is removed from the top so the air vent is exposed? Are you printing text with the plain paper selected? Plain paper selection uses only the large black pigmented ink cart for text.

 

[Smile]

Perhaps you have electrical problem? Try to clean the head contacts.

 

[ericbalkan]

I did the cleaning opeation, which I assume checks the nozzles. The Canon carts are original ink, and range in age from 2 weeks to 4 months. Yep, the tape is removed. The printer has been working fine for over a year -- this is the first problem we've had. Plain paper is selected.

I'll don't know where the head contacts are, but I'll look into that. Thanks.

 

[ghwellsjr]

The cleaning operation does not check the nozzles. The nozzle check is a printout that squirts ink from each nozzle onto a different place on the printed page so that you can see if they are all working. To do this on your iP5000, hold in the upper button that you can see when you open the front cover until the power light flashes twice and then release the button. Make sure you have paper in which ever path you select. Please do this and either upload the results or describe them to us.

 

[ericbalkan]

I've uploaded the result. The problem shows up clearly.

 

[embguy]

Sometimes the best way to get your cartridge going is to print out blocks of colors. I had a partial clogged print head. I needed to do a cleaning cycle before each print. Next day, it was partially clogged again. What I did was go to this website and print the color page a few time.
http://www.ink-refills-ink.com/InfoPages/1primepage.htm

 

[ghwellsjr]

Unfortunately, this problem is not clogged nozzles. This is an electrical problem because, as you can see, the entire bottom half of your dark cyan and your dark magenta are not printing at all. As Smile suggested, you might be able to fix this by cleaning the contacts. You need to remove all the cartridges and then lift the light grey lever on the right side of the carriage and pull out the print head. Get some paper towels because it may be messing. First make sure the gold contacts on the back side of the head are free of any ink and then take a pink pearl eraser and gently wipe it across the gold contacts. Wipe away any eraser debris and put it back together. I hope you are one of the lucky ones and can fix it. Let us know what happens.

 

[ericbalkan]

I cleaned the contacts and did the nozzle check again. Now the dark magenta bar is printing OK. But the cyan still isn't. :-(
Did it again but still no cyan joy.

This problem started when my wife replaced the cyan cart but didn't press it down all the way. What could've happened?

Thanks for the help so far. Any additional tips appreciated.

 

[embguy]

I think your print head is partially clogged. It seem to me that some nozzles are partially clogged and does not allow enough ink to flow through those nozzles. Since your wife did not put in the cyan cartridge completely in. ie the cartridge is a sloping position and the sponge is not in complete contact with all the nozzles. The nozzles which did not get enough ink will become partially clogged.

Do a deep cleaning and nozzle check print to determine any improvement. If yes, wait a few minutes before do another deep cleaning again.

Finally, try this method to unclog your printhead. http://www.nifty-stuff.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=3777&p=1