Fix: Epson Printer Won’t Print Black and White without Colour Ink

Printers’ importance in a person’s everyday life is the same as a 5G network tower in every locality. The printer we require for doing school projects is old, as everything is digital now. But what’s not so digital are the documents and paperwork that we still need the hard copy for. 

What happens when you remember at 11 PM that there’s an important document to take out the print of, which is needed early in the morning, but you cannot go out at that time to look for any shop that can print it. And worse, if there’s a lockdown/curfew/shutdown. 

That’s why many people prefer to have a printer at home for the ease of everyone. In this pandemic period, where there’s no surety of when a complete lockdown will suddenly happen, you need a printer at home so that your child or even you can take out the print of your important documents or notes and read it on paper rather than on a laptop or phone.

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There’s a very interesting issue that often occurs with printers or, say, particularly Epson Printer. It is said that these printers won’t print black and white without colour ink. It’s a case that I understand can make you feel frustrated. But not to worry, as we are here for you with solutions that can beef up the situation. 

Note: Before beginning with any of the procedures, ensure that any previous work on the printer that was supposed to be carried out is cancelled. And this will work only on the SX420W/SX425W/NX420 series of printers. If you have any different models, you can still try this one out. 

Method 1: Set Grayscale In Print Option

The Steps are as follows.

Step 1: Load plain paper into the printer’s tray.

Step 2: Click on the File option. 

Step 3: Click on the Print or Print Set-up Option. (Varies windows to windows of the computer).

Step 4: Then move forward by clicking on Properties or Preferences.

Step 5: Choose the option Main. 

Step 6: After that, select the required or appropriate quality option settings for better print quality. 

Step 7: Select Plain or Envelope as the Type of Paper.

Step 8: In print options, choose the Grayscale check box.

Step 9: Now, simply close that settings window by clicking OK. 

Step 10: Now, print your document in black and white. Lastly, you have to click on the option “Print in Black”. 

Method 2: Force The Printer To Print In Black And White

Did you know that you can force the printer to print in black and white even when there’s an empty colour ink cartridge? Here’s to how:

Step 1: Close any application that you are using to print. And then click on Windows + R to open Run.

Step 2: Open the Control Panel by typing control and clicking on OK.

Step 3: Then click on Hardware and Sound and choose the printer you are trying to use by right-clicking on it.

Step 4: Choose Printer Preferences and open the colour.

Step 5: Select the Grayscale option and choose the high-quality setting from the drop-down.

Step 6: Finally, click Apply and OK that will save the changes. Then follow the instructions as per the previous one while printing out. 

If both of the above don’t work, then try it out! (I know you might be angry at this point or even devastated but hang in there, we will pass through it!)

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Method 3: Disable Epson Status Monitor

Follow the below-listed steps.

Step 1: On your keyboard, press the Windows key. 

Step 2: Type Control and then click on the Control Panel.

Step 3: Go to Hardware and Sounds, then to Device and Printers.

Step 4: Choose your printer and then click on Printer Preferences. 

Step 5: Moving forward, find the box that reads Speed and Progress.

Step 6: Check the Disable Epson Status Monitor box to disable it and then click on Save.

This will shut out the warning message that might occur due to using a third-party cartridge.

Method 4: Run Printer Troubleshooter

Lastly, the simplest and the only option that remains with us, in the end, is to run Printer Troubleshooter. 

Window Key + I → Update and Security → Troubleshooter tab → Printer → Run the Troubleshooter → Simply follow the instructions and fix the recommended problems.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you can carry on with your work without any hindrances! 

See Also: Color Printing Problems in Epson Printer