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What Can Go Wrong With A Photocopier?

Photocopiers are a basic office. Whether you’re relying on a single or multi-function machine, there’s no denying that an office photocopier can be busy as a staff! Without regular service, demand can lead to copying issues such as paper jams, cartridges and toner issues, streaks or lines on paper, wrinkled pages, discolored printing, and random spots across your prints. Luckily, the most common photocopier problems can usually be fixed in minutes. Some can even be avoided with proper maintenance. Serving not only prolongs your copier ‘s life, but also ensures that you don’t have any troubleshooting problems.

Paper Jams

The exact cause of the paper jam may vary, but it may be due to the incorrect size of the paper used, the paper not being properly loaded, and other causes. When these issues arise, the copyer attempts to pull the paper through, resulting in a paper jam.

To fix the problem, the paper jammed must be removed manually and the paper of the correct size and alignment must be loaded into the paper tray.

Another issue that can cause paper jams is the dust of paper. This builds up over time and can cause a clogging of the paper feeder. To prevent this from happening, the paper dust inside the machine should be periodically wiped clean.

Issues of Cartridge and Toner

There’s nothing more frustrating when you’re right in the middle of printing a big project and you run out of toner, or worse, the toner is full, but it doesn’t work properly.

If the issue is that you’ve just run out of toner, you’ll receive a “low toner” warning, this issue is a quick fix, you’ll just need to replace the empty toner cartridge.

If the toner cartridge is malfunctioning, it is more than likely to be caused by one of a few things. It could be a manufacturer’s error, if this is the case, you can ask the manufacturer to replace the cartridge. The second common reason is incompatibility issues, if you try to use a toner that is incompatible with the machine you are trying to use, you may experience print issues.

 Streaks or lines on paper

If your copier keeps showing up with stripes, lines or other deformities-even if the paper is snowy white when you look at it in the feeder-you can make your important documents look sloppy and unprofessional.

Streaks or lines on paper often occur because there are foreign substances on the scanner glass or problems with the photocopier fuser. If you use a multi-function machine, it can also be the result of a malfunction of a drum or a developer unit. For example, a drum blade malfunction can cause large lines to appear vertically down the printed page.

Copies Either Too Dark or Too Light

Over or under the saturation of the images is very obvious to the human eye, problems with excessive lightness or darkness in the prints can ruin an otherwise good photocopy. Usually the problem is due to the imbalance in photocopier density controls. When your copier is experiencing lightness and darkness issues, this should be the first thing you ‘re looking at. It is easy to reset the density levels and often fixes the problem.

Spots on The Page

Another very annoying issue with the copy is the dots on the page. If the dots are in the same spot every time, it is more than likely that there will be a smudge or some foreign object on a glass or mirror.

If the spots are in a more random order, the issue could be caused by a defective drum, in which case the drum should be replaced.

Wrinkled pages

Wrinkled or wrinkled pages out of the copier machine are usually due to worn out feed and out rollers that cause sticking or jamming. You can either purchase replacement trays or hire a copy specialist to repair the fuser assembly to fix this problem. While it may look like it’s just a case of some paper being stuck or overloaded in your machine, wrinkled pages are often a sign that your copier has endured too much wear and tear to function properly.

By Geraoma - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8782801
By Geraoma – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8782801

Are You Looking for Copy Machine Repair Service Near Concord, California?
   

Office Machine Specialists has been servicing and selling office equipment since 1995. A family run business that has dedicated our efforts to providing the best equipment options and after-sales service to our clients. Our goal is to ask the right questions and guide our customers to make smart decisions about new machine leases and purchases.  We were servicing copiers long before the internet was a viable resource, and have transitioned to the digital workflow environment of color printing, scanning, account control and fleet management. With over 20 years in the industry we have extensive experience with many brands and consider OMS to be a valuable resource to any organization. Contact us for all of your copier needs here!