You've filled the tanks on your ink tank printer, but pages come out blank, faint or missing a color. Ink tank printers feed ink from the tanks to a permanent printhead through thin tubes. If a tank ran dry before refilling, air can travel down its tube, and the printhead can't fire ink it isn't receiving. A closed valve lever or an unconfirmed refill accounts for most other cases. This guide checks the simple things first, then clears air without wasting ink.
What you might be seeing
- Pages are blank or a color is missing after a refill
- The test pattern has gaps in the color that ran low
- Pale or empty sections show in the clear ink tubes
- The printer still reports low ink with full tanks
Common causes
- Air in the ink tube
- When a tank drops below its lower line, air enters the tube and has to be flushed out.
- Refill not confirmed
- Many tank printers stop when they calculate a tank is empty, until you confirm the refill.
- Ink valve or transport lock closed
- Some models have a lever that shuts the ink supply for shipping.
- Dried nozzles
- If the printer sat idle while a tank was low, ink at the nozzles may also have dried.
- Wrong ink or wrong tank
- Ink for another model, or poured into the wrong tank, changes flow and color.
How to fix it, step by step
Work through these in order and test a print after each one. Most people are done within the first few steps.
Refill on a flat surface and keep opened bottles upright. Spills near the tanks can seep into the printer, and the ink stains permanently.
Check every tank, cap and cover
Look at each tank from the front; ink should sit between the lower and upper lines, ideally near the top after a refill. Press every cap fully into place and shut the tank cover, as some printers won't print with it open. Confirm each color went into the tank with the matching label, since not every model uses bottles that only fit one tank.
Confirm the refill on the control panel
Most ink tank printers keep a running count of ink used rather than measuring it. After a refill, the panel normally asks which colors you filled. If you skipped that prompt, look for Maintenance › Reset Ink Levels, Ink Level Settings or a similar option in your manual. Confirm only tanks you actually filled to the upper line, as this count guards the printhead.
Set the ink valve or transport lock to print
Some ink tank printers have a lever or switch beside the tanks, or under the scanner lid, that closes the ink supply for shipping. If the printer was moved or recently unboxed, find it in the manual and set it to the printing position. With the valve closed, the printer goes through the motions but delivers no ink, which looks exactly like an air problem.
Find out which colors are affected
Print the test pattern from the printer's maintenance menu. Gaps only in the color that ran dry point to air in that tube, while gaps scattered across several colors point toward nozzles that dried during an idle spell. Look at the tubes themselves too: a pale or empty stretch of tube is a clear sign of trapped air.
Run a standard cleaning, then pause
Run one head cleaning and print another pattern. If the affected color is returning, leave the printer for an hour or two, then repeat the cleaning once. Small amounts of air often work their way out with ordinary cleaning and a little printing. Avoid more than two cleanings back to back, since each sends ink into the waste ink pad.
Use the ink flush function once
If ordinary cleaning hasn't helped, use the stronger function, often labeled Ink Flush, Power Cleaning or Ink Charge. It draws a large volume of ink through the tubes to push out air, so fill every tank well above the lower line first, or the printer may refuse to start it. Run it once, then leave the printer overnight before printing another pattern.
Deal with a color poured into the wrong tank
If a little of one color went into the wrong tank, prints may look tinted. Print several pages of solid blocks in that color; the mixed ink is gradually used up and the true color returns. If a tank was filled entirely with the wrong color, stop printing and don't try to empty it yourself. The tubes and printhead then need professional cleaning.
How to keep it from happening again
- Refill a tank as soon as it nears the lower line
- Confirm every refill on the control panel
- Use the bottles listed for your printer model
- Close the ink valve or transport lock before moving the printer
Common questions
Are bubbles in the ink tank a problem?
Small bubbles floating in the tank itself are harmless and often appear right after pouring. The concern is air in the tubes that carry ink to the printhead, which shows as pale or empty sections. That usually happens only after a tank ran below its lower line.
How long should I wait after refilling before printing?
After an ordinary refill you can usually print right away. First-time setup of a new printer is different: its initial ink charge can take several minutes and shouldn't be interrupted. If you spot air in the tubes after a refill, a cleaning and a short rest work better than printing straight away.
Can I use third-party ink in an ink tank printer?
It's possible, but the printhead in an ink tank printer is permanent, so more is at stake. Ink with a different thickness or chemistry can clog nozzles or shift colors, and damage from unsuitable ink may not be covered by the warranty. The bottle listed in your manual is the safest choice.
This guide is general information written for common home and office printers. Menus and button names vary between models, so check your printer’s manual where a step differs. Printer Problems Solved is independent and not affiliated with any printer manufacturer. See our disclaimer.