Maintenance

Replacing Ink Cartridges

1. Turn on your printer.

2. Lift the scanner base unit.

   

   The ink cartridge carrier moves and stops at the loading position unless the printer is busy.

3. Press down on the ink cartridge lever to raise each ink cartridge lid.

   

4. Remove the old ink cartridges.

   

5. Store the cartridges in an air-tight container, such as the storage unit you received with your photo cartridge, or dispose of them properly.

6. If you are installing new ink cartridges, remove the sticker and transparent tape from the back and bottom of each ink cartridge.

   

   NOTICE: Do not touch the gold contact area on the side or the metal nozzles on the bottom of the ink cartridges.

7. Insert the new ink cartridges. Make sure the black or photo ink cartridge is secure in the left ink cartridge carrier, and the color ink cartridge is secure in the right ink cartridge carrier.

   NOTE: For normal printing, use a black cartridge and a color cartridge. For photo printing, replace the black cartridge with a photo cartridge.

   

8. Snap each lid closed.

   

9. Lower the scanner base unit until it is completely closed.

   

Aligning Ink Cartridges

Your printer automatically prompts you to align the ink cartridges when they are installed or replaced. You may also need to align ink cartridges when characters are not properly formed or are not aligned at the left margin, or when vertical or straight lines appear wavy.

To align the ink cartridges from the operator panel:

1. Load plain paper. For more information, see Loading Paper.

2. Press the down Arrow button to scroll to Maintenance.

3. Press the Select button .

4. Press the up or down Arrow button to scroll to Align Cartridges.

5. Press the Select button .

   The alignment page begins printing. The ink cartridges align when the page prints.

To align the ink cartridges from the printer software:

1. Load plain paper.

2. In Windows Vista™:

   1. Click ® Control Panel.

   2. Click Hardware and Sound.

   3. Click Printers.

   In Windows^® XP, click Start® Control Panel® Printers and Other Hardware® Printers and Faxes.

   In Windows 2000, click Start® Settings® Printers.

3. Right-click the Dell 968 AIO Printer icon.

4. Click Printing Preferences.

   The Printing Preferences dialog box opens.

5. Click the Maintenance tab.

6. Click Align Ink Cartridges.

7. Click Print.

   The ink cartridges align when the page prints.

Cleaning the Ink Cartridge Nozzles

You may need to clean the nozzles when:

• White lines appear in graphics or solid black areas.

• Print appears smudged or too dark.

• Colors fade, do not print, or do not print correctly.

• Vertical lines appear jagged, or edges appear rough.

To clean the nozzles from the operator panel:

1. Load plain paper. For more information, see Loading Paper.

2. Press the down Arrow button to scroll to Maintenance.

3. Press the Select button .

4. Press the up or down Arrow button to scroll to Clean Cartridges.

5. Press the Select button .

   The cleaning page begins printing.

To clean the nozzles from the printer software:

1. Load plain paper.

2. In Windows Vista:

   1. Click ® Control Panel.

   2. Click Hardware and Sound.

   3. Click Printers.

   In Windows XP, click Start® Control Panel® Printers and Other Hardware® Printers and Faxes.

   In Windows 2000, click Start® Settings® Printers.

3. Right-click the Dell 968 AIO Printer icon.

4. Click Printing Preferences.

   The Printing Preferences dialog box opens.

5. Click the Maintenance tab.

6. Click Clean Ink Cartridges.

   The cleaning page prints.

7. If the print quality has not improved, click Clean Again.

8. Print your document again to verify the improved print quality.

If you are still not satisfied with the print quality, wipe the nozzles with a clean, dry cloth, and then print your document again.

Cleaning the Exterior of the Printer

1. Make sure that the printer is turned off and unplugged from the wall outlet.

   CAUTION: To avoid the risk of electric shock, unplug the power cord from the wall outlet and disconnect all cables to the printer before proceeding.

2. Remove paper from the paper support and paper exit tray.

3. Dampen a clean, lint-free cloth with water.

   NOTICE: Do not use household cleaners or detergents, as they may damage the finish of the printer.

4. Wipe only the outside of the printer, making sure to remove any ink residue that has accumulated on the paper exit tray.

   NOTICE: Using a damp cloth to clean the interior may cause damage to your printer. Damage to the printer caused by not following the correct instructions for cleaning will not be covered under warranty.

5. Make sure the paper support and paper exit tray are dry before beginning a new print job.

Restoring Factory Default Settings

Menu settings marked with an asterisk (*) indicate the active settings. You can restore the original printer settings, often referred to as the factory default settings.

1. Make sure the printer is on.

2. Press the down Arrow button to scroll to Maintenance, and then press the Select button .

3. Press the down Arrow button to scroll to Reset Defaults, and then press the Select button .

4. With Yes highlighted, press the Select button .

   NOTE: If a network adapter is attached to the printer, Also reset all Network Settings to factory defaults? appears. Press the left or right Arrow button to select Yes or No, and then press the Select button .

NOTE: Some settings such as phone lists, time, date, and country are not changed.

Restoring Language to Factory Default

You can restore the language on your display to factory default without using the printer menus.

NOTE: Using this key sequence will also restore all other selected settings to factory default.

1. Turn your printer off.

2. Press and hold the Start button and the Cancel button .

3. While holding the Start button and the Cancel button , press and release the Power button .

4. Continue holding the two buttons until the Initial Setup screen appears.

5. Press the left or right Arrow button to select your language and country. Press the Select button to save each selection.

6. Use the keypad to enter the time, date, your fax number, and your fax name. Press the Select button to save each selection.

   The printer aligns the ink cartridges after your final selection.