HP LaserJet 4250n User Manual

							Managing the print cartridge
This section provides information about HP print cartridges, their life expectancies, how to
store them, and how to identify genuine HP supplies. Information also appears about non-
HP print cartridges.
●
HP print cartridges
●
Non-HP print cartridges
●
Print-cartridge authentication
●
Print-cartridge storage
●
Print-cartridge life expectancy
●
Checking the supply level
●
Cartridge-low and cartridge-out conditions
HP print cartridges
When you use a genuine HP print cartridge, you can obtain several types of information,
such as the following: 
● Amount of toner remaining
● Estimated number of pages remaining
● Number of pages printed
Non-HP print cartridges
Hewlett-Packard Company cannot recommend use of  non-HP print cartridges, either new or
remanufactured. Because they are not HP products,  HP cannot influence their design or
control their quality. Service or repair required as a result of using a non-HP print cartridge
will  not be covered under the printer warranty.
Using genuine HP supplies ensures the availability of all HP printing features.
Print-cartridge authentication
The printer will let you know if a print  cartridge is not a genuine HP print cartridge when you
insert it into the printer. If you believe that  you purchased a genuine HP supply, visit us at
http://www.hp.com/go/anticounterfeit .
Print-cartridge storage
Do not remove the print cartridge from its package until you are ready to use it. 
Always store the print cartridge in the  proper environment. The temperature should be
between -20°C and 40°C (-4°F to 104°F). The  relative humidity should be between 10% and
90%.
CAUTION
To prevent damage to the print cartridge, do not expose it to light for more than a few
minutes.
ENWW Managing the print cartridge 109
 
						

							Print-cartridge life expectancy
The life of the print cartridge depends on the amount of toner that print jobs require and the
length of life for the components inside the  cartridge. When printing text at 5% coverage
(typical for a business letter), the HP print cartridge lasts an average of 10,000 (Q5942A) or
20,000 (Q5942X) pages.
At any time, you can verify life expectancy by checking the supply level, as described in
Checking the supply level .
Checking the supply level
You can check the supply (toner) level by using the printer control panel, the embedded
Web server, HP Toolbox software, or HP Web Jetadmin.
To check the supply level  by using the control panel
1. Press MENU to open the menus.
2. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  INFORMATION, and then press 
(SELECT button).
3. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  PRINT SUPPLIES STATUS PAGE ,
and then press 
 ( SELECT button). See Supplies status page  for information about the
supplies status page.
To check the supply level  by using the embedded Web server
1. In your Web browser, type the IP address  for the printer home page. This takes you to
the printer status page. (See 
Opening the embedded Web server .)
2. On the left side of the screen, click  Supplies Status. This takes you to the supplies
status page, which provides supply level information. (See 
Supplies status page  for
information about the supplies status page.)
To check the supply level  by using the HP Toolbox software
You can configure HP Toolbox to notify you when  the print cartridge is low. You can choose
to receive alerts by e-mail or as a pop-up message or taskbar icon. To check the supplies
status by using the HP Toolbox software, click the  Status tab, then click  Supplies Status .
To check the supply levels by using HP Web Jetadmin
In HP Web Jetadmin, select  the printer device. The device status page shows supply-level
information. 
Cartridge-low and cartridge-out conditions
The printer alerts you if the print cartridge is low on toner or out of toner.
110 Chapter 3 Managing and maintaining the printer ENWW
 
						

							When the cartridge is low on toner or drum life
When the cartridge is low, the printer control panel shows the  ORDER CARTRIDGE
message. For the HP LaserJet 4250 series, the  message first appears when about 15%
(10,000-page cartridge) or about 8% (20,000-page cartridge) of the life remains in the print
cartridge. For the HP LaserJet 4350 series, the  message first appears when about 25%
(10,000-page cartridge) or about 15% (20,000-page cartridge) of the life remains in the print
cartridge. This percentage is set with the intent of providing approxima\
tely 2 weeks of typical
use before the cartridge is depleted. You should have time to purchase a new cartridge
before the old cartridge is depleted.
The default is for the printer to continue printing  until the cartridge runs out, but you might
prefer to have the printer stop  instead of continuing when the  ORDER CARTRIDGE
message first appears—for example, if you want print quality to remain consistently high
during print jobs, or if you do not want the cartridge to run out during a long print job. To
configure the printer to stop, in the  CONFIGURE DEVICE menu, under SYSTEM SETUP ,
set  CARTRIDGE LOW  to STOP . Then, when  REPLACE CARTRIDGE  appears, the printer
will stop printing. You can resume printing by pressing 
 ( SELECT button) for each print job.
When the cartridge is out of toner or drum life
The  REPLACE CARTRIDGE  message appears in one of these situations:
● When the print cartridge is out of toner.  If CARTRIDGE OUT  is set to CONTINUE  (in
the  SYSTEM SETUP  submenu of the CONFIGURE DEVICE  menu), the printer
continues printing without interaction until the cartridge reaches the end of drum life. HP
does not guarantee print quality after the  REPLACE CARTRIDGE message first
appears. Replace the print cartridge as soon as possible. (See 
Ordering parts,
accessories, and supplies .) The REPLACE CARTRIDGE  message remains until you
replace the print cartridge. If  CARTRIDGE OUT is set to STOP, the printer stops printing
until you replace the print cartridge or resume printing by configuring the printer to
continue: In the  CONFIGURE DEVICE  menu, under SYSTEM SETUP , set CARTRIDGE
OUT  to CONTINUE .
● When the drum life of the print cartridge is out . You must replace the print cartridge
to continue printing. No override is possible, even if toner remains in the cartridge. (See
Ordering parts, accessories, and supplies .) This situation occurs to protect the printer.
ENWW Managing the print cartridge 111
 
						

							Cleaning the printer
Use the cleaning procedure on the following page every time you change the print cartridge
or whenever print-quality problems occur. As much as possible, keep the printer free from
dust and debris.
●Clean the outside of the  printer with a slightly water-dampened cloth.
● Clean the inside with a dry, lint-free cloth.
CAUTION
Do not use ammonia-based cleaners on or around the printer. While cleaning the printer, be
careful not to touch the transfer roller (the  black, rubber roller located underneath the print
cartridge). Skin oils on the roller can cause print-quality problems.
Cleaning the inside of the printer
Use these steps to clean dust and residue from the inside of the printer.
To clean the inside of the printer
1. Turn the printer power off and unplug the power cord.
112 Chapter 3 Managing and maintaining the printer ENWW
 
						

							2. Open the top cover and remove the print cartridge.
WARNING!Avoid reaching too far into the printer. The adjacent fusing area might be hot.
CAUTION
To prevent damage to the print cartridge, do not expose it to light for more than a few
minutes. Cover the print cartridge with a sheet of  paper while it is outside of the printer.
3. Wipe any dust or dirt off the paper  feed guides (shaded areas) with a dry, lint-free cloth.
NOTEIf toner gets on your clothing, wipe it off with  a dry cloth and wash clothing in cold water. (Hot
water sets toner into fabric.)
4. Using the green handle, lift the paper-access plate and wipe off any residue with a dry, lint-free cloth.
5. Reinstall the print cartridge, close the top cover, plug in the power cord, and turn theprinter power on.
Cleaning the fuser
Run the printer cleaning page to keep the fuser  free of toner and paper particles that can
sometimes accumulate. Accumulation of toner and particles can cause specks to appear on
the front or back side of your print jobs.
To ensure optimum print quality, HP recommends that you use the cleaning page every time
you replace the print cartridge or on an automatic interval  that you can set up. If you have an
optional duplexer installed, you must run cleaning pages manually.
ENWW Cleaning the printer 113
 
						

							The cleaning procedure takes about 2.5 minutes to complete. A CLEANING message
appears on the printer control panel display while the cleaning is taking place.
Running the cleaning page manually
In order for the cleaning page to work  properly, print the page on copier-grade paper (not
bond, heavy, or rough paper).
To run the cleaning page manually
1. If a duplexer is installed, open the rear output bin.
2. Press  M
ENU to open the menus.
3. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  CONFIGURE DEVICE , and then press
 (SELECT button).
4. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  PRINT QUALITY, and then press 
(SELECT button).
5. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  PROCESS CLEANING PAGE , and
then press 
 ( SELECT button).
6. If a duplexer is installed, close the rear output bin.
Running the cleaning page automatically
Using the procedure below, you can set the printer to print cleaning pages automatically at
an interval that you select. In order for the cleaning page to run without intervention, you
must keep the selected size and plain paper type  available in the printer. The printer will not
interrupt a printing job in process.
To run the cleaning page automatically
1. Press  M
ENU to open the menus.
2. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  CONFIGURE DEVICE , and then press
 (SELECT button).
3. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  PRINT QUALITY, and then press 
(SELECT button).
4. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  AUTO CLEANING, and then press 
(SELECT button).
5. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  ON, and then press  (SELECT button).
6. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to  CLEANING INTERVAL , and then press
 (SELECT button).
7. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to the desired interval between 1,000 and
20,000 pages, and then press 
 ( SELECT button) to save your selection.
8. Use 
 (UP button) or  ( DOWN button) to scroll to  AUTO CLEANING SIZE , and then
press 
 ( SELECT button).
9. Use 
 (UP button) or  (DOWN button) to scroll to the paper size that you want the printer
to use for cleaning pages ( A4 or  LETTER ), and then press 
 (SELECT button) to save
your selection.
The printer automatically prints a cleaning page at the interval and page size that you
selected. You can discard the output page created by the cleaning process.
114 Chapter 3 Managing and maintaining the printer ENWW
 
						

							Performing preventive maintenance
You should replace certain parts when the PERFORM PRINTER MAINTENANCE message
appears on the printer control panel display. This  will help ensure that your printer maintains
optimum performance.
The maintenance message will appear every 200,000 pages. The message can be
temporarily cleared for approximately 10,000  pages by using the CLEAR MAINTENANCE
MESSAGE  item on the Resets submenu. (See 
Resets submenu.) To check the number of
pages the printer has printed since new maintenance-kit components were installed, print
either a configuration page or a supplies status page. (See 
Configuration page  or Supplies
status page for details.)
To order the printer maintenance kit, see 
Part numbers . The kit includes:
● fuser
● rollers (transfer, pickup, and feed)
● installation instructions
NOTE
The printer maintenance kit is a consumable item and is not covered under the original
printer warranty or under most extended warranties.
After a maintenance kit is installed, the maintenance-kit counter must be reset.
To reset the maintenance-kit counter
1. Turn the printer power off and then on.
2. When XXX appears on the control-panel  display, press and hold down 
 (SELECT
button). Continue holding down  (SELECT button) until all three printer control panel
lights flash once, and then stay on. This might take up to 10 seconds.
3. Release 
 (SELECT button) and press  ( UP button) to scroll to  NEW MAINTENANCE KIT .
4. Press 
 (SELECT button) to reset the maintenance-kit counter.
NOTE
Perform this procedure only after a maintenance kit has been installed. Do not use this
procedure to temporarily clear the  PERFORM PRINTER MAINTENANCE  message.
ENWW Performing preventive maintenance  115
 
						

							Replacing the stapler unit
Use these steps to replace a defective stapler unit in the optional stap\
ler/stacker.
To remove and replace the stapler unit
1. Locate the stapler unit on the right side of the stapler/stacker.
2. Rotate the stapler unit toward the front of the printer until the unit clicks. Hold the stapler
unit in this open position.
3. Push down on the tab at  the top of the stapler unit.
4. Hold the tab down and pull the stapler  unit up and out of the stapler/stacker.
116Chapter 3 Managing and maintaining the printer ENWW
 
						

							5. Disconnect cable that connects the stapler unit to the stapler/stacker. (Only the blue part
detaches.) Release the white tab that contains  the blue cable connector by opening the
tab to the left.
6. Remove the new stapler unit from its packaging.
7. Connect the cable on the  new stapler unit to the stapler/stacker.
8. Place the peg that is located on the bottom  of the new stapler unit into the hole in the
stapler/stacker.
ENWW Replacing the stapler unit117
 
						

							9. Press down on the tab at the top of the stapler unit and push the unit into the stapler/
stacker.
10. Rotate the stapler unit toward the rear of  the printer until the unit clicks into place.
11. If the stapler cartridge is not installed in the stapler unit, install it now. (See Loading
staples.)
118 Chapter 3 Managing and maintaining the printer ENWW