Why Is My Ink Cartridge Printing Horizontal Lines Even Though Ink Flows Easily?

Customer Question

My black ink cartridge was working fine, but suddenly it's printing with horizontal lines. When I place the cartridge in a cup of water, the ink comes out easily, so it doesn’t seem clogged. I also used a syringe and a priming clip to draw ink from the bottom of the cartridge. The cartridge is spongeless. What could be causing the print quality issue?

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Answer

Understanding the Issue: Why You See Horizontal Lines

Even if ink flows freely when soaking the cartridge in water or drawing it through the nozzle using a syringe, that doesn’t always guarantee proper print function. There are two primary causes to investigate here:

1. Partial Clogging or Microblockage

Even though water can pass through the cartridge nozzle when submerged, there may still be microscopic debris, ink residue, or air bubbles trapped within the nozzles. These microclogs:

• Can prevent ink from spraying evenly during high-speed printing,

• Often results in horizontal banding or gaps in the printed text,

• They may not reveal themselves in a priming or gravity test.

If your nozzle check pattern shows broken or missing lines—especially consistent gaps in the black section—it’s a strong indicator of a partial clog.

What You Can Do:

• Run one or two cleaning cycles from your printer’s maintenance menu.

• If that fails, soak just the printhead portion of the cartridge in warm, distilled water or use a printhead cleaning solution.

• Gently blot the nozzle on a lint-free paper towel to ensure full ink contact.

2. Printhead Nozzle Wear or Damage

You mentioned using a syringe and clip to draw ink out of the cartridge, which is a valid method for priming. However, if too much suction is applied or if the printhead is older, there’s a chance the nozzle membrane or piezo elements have started to wear out or detach from the cartridge base. This results in:

• Reduced spray force,

• Inconsistent ink droplet formation,

• Horizontal lines crossed the page, despite the ink still flowing.

Spongeless cartridges are particularly susceptible to these issues because they rely entirely on pressure balance and membrane elasticity for ink delivery. If that balance is disturbed or the internal channels degrade, the nozzle won’t jet properly.

Additional Considerations

• If the cartridge has been refilled multiple times, the internal ink flow channel might be partially dried or collapsed.

• If air has entered the printhead’s microchannels during refilling or priming, it can also cause inconsistent spray.

When to Replace the Cartridge

If cleaning and priming do not resolve the issue, and you've confirmed the printhead is not physically clogged or blocked, then the problem likely stems from wear on the nozzle plate. In this case, replacement is the best long-term solution.

Final Note

Printer performance issues like horizontal banding can be surprisingly tricky to isolate because of how many tiny variables influence ink delivery. For this reason, we cannot offer remote diagnostics or one-on-one repair suggestions. However, we do provide a professional repair service through our in-person diagnostic facility (https://bchtechnologies.com/printer-repair-service). This service operates on a first-come, first-served basis, and there may be a wait time due to volume. If you prefer to troubleshoot on your own, we highly recommend browsing our YouTube channel homepage (https://youtube.com/@bchtechnologies) and using the search icon near the "About" tab to look for videos on priming, cleaning, and ink flow testing. We've produced hundreds of tutorials over the past nine years, and YouTube may also recommend other creators who can provide additional insights.

Thanks again for reaching out and trusting BCH Technologies for your printing questions. We're always here to help you get back to crisp, clean printing—keep us posted on how it goes!