Before you begin. This procedure is general reference information, not professional advice. Equipment varies by manufacturer, model, and year. Always follow the documentation supplied with your equipment — where it differs from this page, follow the manufacturer. Verify that you have the tools, the working conditions, and the ability to do this task safely. If anything is unclear, if the equipment is damaged, or if the task exceeds your experience, stop and use a qualified professional. You are responsible for your own safety and for the outcome. This site accepts no liability for any loss, damage, or injury arising from the use of this information.
Specifications marked unverified could not be traced to a manufacturer source. Do not rely on them — obtain the value from your equipment documentation.
Summary
An inkjet printer builds its ink pattern with hundreds of tiny nozzles, and a nozzle check pattern is the fastest way to see whether any of them are blocked. This page walks through printing that pattern, reading it, cleaning the print head only when the pattern shows a fault, and printing the pattern again to check whether cleaning worked. The method is the same on almost every maker's printer: print, read, clean if needed, print again, compare.
What this page will not do is print one universal number for how many times you can clean before you stop. Epson's own documentation allows three standard cleaning cycles before a mandatory twelve-hour wait. Canon's documentation for its PIXMA G7000 series allows two standard cleanings before it asks for a deep clean, then a twenty-four-hour wait if that does not work either. Brother publishes cleaning intensities instead of a cycle count. Cleaning more than your printer's own limit wastes ink and, on many printers, can fill the waste ink pad early. Read your own printer's instructions for the exact limit before you start.
Necessary equipment
| Item | Note |
|---|---|
| Plain white paper | Paper with a colour or a pattern gives an unclear result. |
| Replacement ink cartridge or ink bottle material | Get a replacement only if the printer shows a colour as empty. |
Print and read the nozzle check pattern
Estimated 4 min to 4 min
- Read the ink level for each colour before you print the pattern.<1mReport a problem with step 1, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- A low or empty colour can cause a gap that is not a fault in the print head.
- Load white paper into the paper tray.<1mReport a problem with step 2, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Open the maintenance menu on the printer control panel or in the printer software.<1mReport a problem with step 3, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- The menu name and its location are different for each printer maker.
- Select the option that prints a nozzle check pattern.<1mReport a problem with step 4, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Wait until the printer finishes the nozzle check pattern.1mReport a problem with step 5, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Do not use the printer while it prints the pattern.
- Examine each colour block in the pattern for a gap or a broken line.<1mReport a problem with step 6, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Go to the last section if every colour block is complete.<1mReport a problem with step 7, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Keep this pattern if a colour block shows a gap or a broken line.<1mReport a problem with step 8, Print and read the nozzle check pattern
- Compare this pattern with the pattern that you print after you clean the print head.
Clean the print head
Estimated 3 min to 4 min
- Find the option that cleans the print head in the same menu.<1mReport a problem with step 1, Clean the print head
- If the menu offers a choice of intensity, select the lowest intensity.<1mReport a problem with step 2, Clean the print head
DO NOT SET THE PRINTER TO OFF WHILE THE CLEANING CYCLE RUNS.
The printer can fail to print correctly afterwards.
CLEAN THE PRINT HEAD ONLY WHEN THE PATTERN SHOWS A FAULT.
A cleaning cycle uses ink and can fill the waste ink pad early.
- Select the option to start the cleaning cycle.<1mReport a problem with step 3, Clean the print head
- Wait until the cleaning cycle finishes before you use the printer again.2mReport a problem with step 4, Clean the print head
- Print the nozzle check pattern again.<1mReport a problem with step 5, Clean the print head
- Compare the new pattern with the pattern from before you cleaned the print head.<1mReport a problem with step 6, Clean the print head
Decide whether to clean again or stop
Estimated 3 min to 7 min
No tier-1 source was found for this value. Take it from the documentation supplied with your equipment.
Source: Checking and Cleaning the Print Head (Control Panel) · tier 1 · accessed 2026-08-04
Source: Checking and Cleaning the Print Head (Control Panel) · tier 1 · accessed 2026-08-04
Source: Cleaning the Print Head · tier 1 · accessed 2026-08-04
Source: Cleaning the Print Head Deeply · tier 1 · accessed 2026-08-04
Source: Clean the Print Head From Your Brother Machine · tier 1 · accessed 2026-08-04
- Stop if every colour block in the new pattern is complete.<1mReport a problem with step 1, Decide whether to clean again or stop
- Find the highest number of cleaning cycles your printer's own instructions allow.<1mReport a problem with step 2, Decide whether to clean again or stop
DO NOT CLEAN THE PRINT HEAD MORE TIMES THAN YOUR PRINTER'S INSTRUCTIONS ALLOW.
Extra cleaning wastes ink and can fill the waste ink pad.
- Clean the print head again if a gap remains and the last clean improved the pattern.<1mReport a problem with step 3, Decide whether to clean again or stop
- Do this only if you are under your printer's cleaning-cycle limit.
- Do not clean again if the pattern is still faulty after you reach that limit.<1mReport a problem with step 4, Decide whether to clean again or stop
- Wait the length of time that your printer's instructions give before you clean again.<1mReport a problem with step 5, Decide whether to clean again or stop
- Wait times are different for each printer maker.
- Run the nozzle check again after you wait.<1mReport a problem with step 6, Decide whether to clean again or stop
- Contact the printer manufacturer's support if the pattern still shows a fault.1mReport a problem with step 7, Decide whether to clean again or stop
Terminology
This page uses one term for each item and holds it throughout, as ASD-STE100 requires. Equipment sellers and other guides use the names below for the same parts.
- nozzle check pattern
- Also called: test page, print head test, test print, printer test pattern, alignment page
- print head
- Also called: printhead, print nozzles, jets, ink head
- head cleaning
- Also called: clean the cartridges, unclog the printer, clear blocked nozzles, printer cleaning cycle
- power cleaning
- Also called: deep cleaning, strong clean, intensive cleaning
- waste ink pad
- Also called: ink absorber, waste ink tank, maintenance box, ink pad
When to use a professional
Stop if the pattern still shows a fault after the cleaning-cycle limit and its wait time. Contact the printer manufacturer's support for the next step.
Do not touch or remove the print head. On most printers, contact with it can cause permanent damage and can end the warranty.
Contact a repair technician if the printer reports an internal fault that its own menu does not clear. A full waste ink pad and a carriage error are two examples.
Common questions
Why is my inkjet printer missing lines or printing gaps in colours?
Almost always a blocked or dried nozzle in the print head, and the nozzle check pattern is how you confirm it. Print the pattern, look at each colour block, and a gap or a broken line points at that colour's nozzles. Low ink can cause the same symptom, so check ink levels first before you assume the print head needs cleaning.
How many times can I clean the print head before I do damage?
The safe limit is set by your printer's maker, and it is genuinely different from brand to brand. Epson's support documentation allows three standard cleaning cycles, or one power cleaning, before it asks you to wait at least twelve hours. Canon's documentation for its PIXMA G7000 series allows two standard cleanings before a deep clean, and a twenty-four-hour wait if the deep clean does not fix it either. Brother does not publish a fixed cycle count at all; instead it gives three cleaning intensities and tells you to replace the ink cartridge if cleaning does not help. None of these numbers apply to every printer, so check your own model's documentation before you clean a fourth or fifth time.
Why do I need to keep the old nozzle check pattern?
Because a clean run with nothing to compare it against proves nothing. The only way to know whether cleaning actually helped is to print a new pattern and hold it next to the one from before you cleaned. Cleaning again and again without checking the result is how a cartridge empties into the waste ink pad for no real gain.
Is a small gap in a brand-new printer's nozzle check pattern normal?
A single small gap can appear on a printer that has been sitting unused, and it often clears after one cleaning cycle. A pattern with several missing lines, or a whole colour missing, on a printer that has never printed before points at a setup problem, such as ink that has not fully loaded, rather than a worn print head.
The print head will not clean up no matter what I do. What now?
Stop once you reach the cleaning limit that your printer's own documentation gives, and wait the time it specifies before you try again. If the pattern still shows a fault after that wait and one more clean, contact the printer manufacturer's support rather than continuing to clean. Repeated cleaning past that point wastes ink and, on many printers, can end with a full waste ink pad error instead of a fixed print head.
Does head cleaning work the same way on an HP printer?
The general method is the same: print a quality or nozzle check pattern, clean only if it shows a fault, then check again. HP's own OfficeJet Pro 9010 series documentation walks through this in more detail, including its own cartridge and printhead-alignment steps. See this site's HP OfficeJet Pro 9010 print-quality record for that model specifically.
Related procedures
- How to fix streaky, faded or lined printing on an HP OfficeJet Pro 9010 series printer
- Why does my laser printer print faded, streaky, or smudge when I touch it?
- How do I replace the toner cartridge and the drum unit in a laser printer?
- How to fix a paper jam on an HP DeskJet 2700 printer
- How to fix a printer that says offline in Windows 11 and Windows 10
Sources
Every specification on this page is traced to one of these sources. Tier 1 is a manufacturer document, a published standard, or a government safety authority. See Standards for the full tiering rule.
- Tier 1Checking and Cleaning the Print Head (Control Panel)
- Tier 1Checking the Nozzles and Cleaning the Print Head Using the Product
- Tier 1Cleaning the Print Head
- Tier 1Cleaning the Print Head Deeply
- Tier 1Clean the Print Head From Your Brother Machine
Revision history
Current version 1 · updated 2026-08-04 · next review due 2027-08-04
- v1 · 2026-08-04First draft. Built from Epson's own support documentation (files.support.epson.com for the EcoTank ET-3930/3950/L6370 series, and download4.epson.biz for the EcoTank ET-16600 series), from Canon's official online-manual portal (ij.manual.canon) for the PIXMA G7000 series, and from Brother's official online-manual portal (support.brother.com) for the MFC-J1010DW/J1012DW/J1170DW. Every source was fetched and read directly, with verbatim quotes taken from the fetched page before any figure was published. HP's support.hp.com KB documents and Canon's support.usa.canon.com Salesforce-hosted KB articles render client-side and returned no extractable text on repeated fetch; per the sourcing rule that a source not read is not a source, neither is cited and no number from either is published here. An earlier search also surfaced a Brother help.brother-usa.com article and a Canon India (in.canon) article that matched the search terms but described the wrong product (a Brother P-touch label printer and a Brother GTX garment printer, respectively) or were an archived 2008-era Canon model; all were read and discarded as inapplicable rather than cited. The fact that cleaning consumes ink and that repeated cleaning can fill the waste ink pad is corroborated independently by Epson, Canon and Brother's own documentation, so it is published as a general NOTICE hazard. The cleaning-cycle limit and wait time are not treated as universal, because Epson, Canon and Brother each publish a different figure for their own products (3 cycles/12 hours; 2 cycles then a deep clean/24 hours; and cleaning intensities with no fixed count, respectively): the general specification routes the reader to their own printer's documentation, and three brand-specific verified specifications carry the exact figures this session did confirm, each traced to the manufacturer document it came from. HP is linked through this site's existing hp-officejet-pro-9010-print-quality record rather than re-cited with a new figure here, because that record's underlying manual PDF could not be independently re-extracted as readable text through this session's tools. spec_key is omitted on every specification in this record: data/specs.json is a protected registry this session could not write, so every verified specification here surfaces gate check 2's spec_key warning rather than a false cross-check.
Corrections to this page are listed in the public corrections log. Reports that are credible and not yet verified are listed in the public errata register, and an open one renders above the step it concerns.
Comments and corrections
Found an error? A correction with a manufacturer source is applied and logged publicly. You can also write to corrections@fixchecklist.com.
Every step above carries its own report control, which tags the report with that step so a correction reaches the right place. For anything about the procedure as a whole — the order of the sections, a step that is missing, something that did not match your equipment — use this: report something about this whole procedure.