laser printer cartidge roller

Factual Questions
1

I was getting a recurring spot on my printouts, and thought I might have touched the roller. My brother suggested wiping off the roller, which I did with a paper towel. I how get a recurring wide splotch.

Is there some sort of a cure, or am I better getting the recycling fee for this? It wouldn’t be a disaster; I already got away with refilling it with toner once, instead of buying a whole cartridge. But what’s the problem? If anything, I should have rubbed off sticky skin oil, I would have thought.

2

I assume you’re talking about the photoconductor drum. You may have permanently damaged it. I’ve seen pages recommending gentle cleaning with a microfibre cloth and isopropyl alcohol - but if you go down that route, you do so at your own risk. Do make sure the alcohol has all evaporated before you try using it.

3

This is the developer drum rather than the fuser roller, right? Be careful about touching it: they used to be carcinogenic (up to HP Laserjet 4) - I don’t know about newer ones. Also, the drums are photosensitive and decay in light. But these things are cheap and disposable so chuck it and buy a new one.

4

Thanks for the answers. I don’t know the name. It’s the only exposed roller, and is bright green, if that means anything.

5

That’s the imaging drum. It’s probably scratched and ruined, but try cleaning it with a mcirofiber cloth. How much more damage can you do?

6

And prolonged exposure to intense light (like sunlight) isn’t a good idea. I’ve cleaned cartridge drums with rubbing alcohol and a VERY soft cloth (Webril Wipes, intended to clean offset printing plates). Anything the slightest bit abrasive isn’t advised.

I don’t know about the disposable drums, but some of the larger drums in copiers had a micro-coating over the chemical layer to prevent damage to the chemical, but there’s nothing you could do to fix the coating layer if it got damaged.

I’d say if you can’t fix it in 10 minutes, chuck it. Carts are cheap and a new one is almost like buying a new printer as it replaces most of the important insides. Just vacuum or brush out the cart cavity the best you can to avoid contaminating a new cart.

7

The alcohol and micro fiber cloth actually worked! Thanks to everyone for the help. The only problem was rotating the roller; I had to take the cartridge apart to get at more of it.