Printed Surface Is Scratched/Paper Is Smudged
16-May-2008
8200180100
Issue
Cause and Solution
Clean the Paper Feed Rollers. Cleaning the Paper Feed Rollers will wear the rollers, so perform this procedure only when necessary.
For details on cleaning, see [ Cleaning the Paper Feed Roller (Roller Cleaning) ].
When performing duplex printing, if the specified page size does not match the actual size of paper loaded in the paper source, the inside will become stained with ink, causing printed paper to become smudged.
Perform the Bottom Plate Cleaning to clean the inside of the machine.
For details on cleaning, see [ Cleaning the Inside of the Machine (Bottom Plate Cleaning) ].
NOTE
To prevent the inside of the machine from getting stained, set the page size correctly.
When printing documents such as photos, which takes longer to dry, the next sheet may be fed before the previous one has dried.
Either remove each printed sheet from the Paper Output Tray as soon as it is printed, or specify the Ink Drying Wait Time so that the machine will pause after each sheet has printed.
(Windows)
(1) Make sure that the machine is turned on.
(2) Open the printer properties dialog box.
(3) Click the Maintenance tab and then Custom Settings.
(4) Drag the Ink Drying Wait Time slide bar to set the wait time, and then click Send.
(5) Confirm the message and click OK.
(Macintosh)
(1) Make sure that the machine is turned on.
(2) Open the Canon IJ Printer Utility.
(3) Select Custom Settings in the pop-up menu.
(4) Drag the Ink Drying Wait Time slide bar to set the wait time, and then click Send.
(5) Confirm the message and click OK.
If you are printing using only black ink, try reducing the Intensity setting or increasing the Print Quality setting in the printer driver.
When you are printing a monochrome document or otherwise printing in grayscale, stacking the printout paper may cause undried ink to stain the sheets.
Reducing the Intensity setting or increasing the Print Quality setting will help to prevent this.
- Check to see if the paper you are printing on is not too thick or curled. See [ Compatible Media Types ].
- When performing Borderless Printing, print quality may be reduced at the top and bottom edges of the paper. Make sure that the paper you are using is suitable for Borderless Printing. For details, see [ Printing Area ].
- For Plain Paper
Turn the paper over and reload it to print on the other side.
Leaving the paper loaded in the Rear Tray for a long time may cause the paper to curl. If this happens, load the paper with the other side facing up. It may resolve the problem.
We recommend putting unused paper back into the package and keep them on a level surface.
- For Other Paper
If you are using paper with either any of the corners or the whole printing surface curled, the paper may become dirty, not feed properly, or both. Use such paper after correcting paper curl as follows.
(1) With the printing side (A) facing up, cover the paper with a fresh sheet of plain paper to avoid staining or scratching the surface.
(2) Roll up the paper in a direction opposite to paper curl as seen below.
(3) Check to see that the paper curl is within approximately 0.08 to 0.2 inches / 2 to 5 mm (B) in height.
We recommend printing curl-corrected paper one sheet at a time.
NOTE
Depending on the media type, the paper may be smudged or may not be fed properly even if it is not curled.
In such case, follow the procedure described above in "For Other Paper" to curl the paper before printing.
This may improve the print result.
Adjust the position of the Paper Thickness Lever according to the type of paper you are printing on.
See [ Compatible Media Types ].
Depending on the printing content, the printing surface may become scratched even for the types of paper to set the lever to the left. In this case, set the Paper Thickness Lever to the right.
* Reset the Paper Thickness Lever to the left when you finish printing. If the lever is not set back to the left, the inside of the machine is more likely to get dirty due to the wider clearance between the print head and the loaded paper. It may also reduce print quality.
NOTE
If the corners or edges of the paper are smudged, try to print with the Paper Thickness Lever set to the right.
Especially if you are using plain paper to print images with high intensity, the paper may absorb too much ink and become wavy, causing paper abrasion.
- When printing from your computer
Reduce the Intensity setting in the printer driver and try printing again.
(Windows)
(1) Open the printer properties dialog box.
(2) On the Main sheet, select Manual for Color/Intensity, and then click Set.
(3) Drag the Intensity slide bar to adjust the intensity.
(Macintosh)
(1) Open the Print dialog box.
(2) Select Color Options in the pop-up menu.
(3) Drag the Intensity slide bar to set the intensity.
- When copying
See Changing the Copy Settings and reduce the INTENSITY setting. Then try printing again.
If you are printing beyond the recommended printing area of your printing paper, the lower edge of the paper may become stained with ink.
Resize your original document in your application software.
For details on recommended printing area, see [ Printing Area ]