The below is a list of the most common printer issues and how to troubleshoot them. As printer types may vary, you may not see your issue on this list. If you are unable to resolve your issue, please:
- Contact your printer manufacturer
- Print the PDF version of the postage from your desktop printer
- Contact us for more help. Please try to explain the issue in great detail and provide images whenever possible.
Chit Chats postage is optimized for printing on 4" X 6" labels from thermal label printers but can also be printed on a sheet of 8" x 11" format. You can select your preferred label size for downloads in your Chit Chats account by navigating to ‘Settings’ > ‘Postage Labels'. See a list of printers compatible with the Chit Chats platform.
Printer Communication Issues
Printer Installation
If you are having trouble while getting started with printing your postage and the "Print Postage" button is greyed out, you may need to finish completing your printer installation and setup.
Postage not printing
If your printer is already connected and installed, but you are still experiencing issues with getting your postage to print, please try the following.
- Turn the printer off and on again.
- Open the printer log to view the current print jobs. Delete any stalled jobs that may be preventing others from printing.
- Check our Printer Setup page for your printer. If you’re using an incognito browser or if you have recently cleared your cache and cookies, your settings may have been erased.
QZ Tray can't locate my printer
If your printer does not appear in Step 2 of our Printer Setup guide, your printer may not be connected properly. Double-check the installation instructions, make sure that all cables are connected and ensure that the proper drivers are installed.
Alternatively, it may be that the QZ Tray application is not running. Check for a green QZ Tray icon on your taskbar. If the icon is any other colour, click the icon and hit ‘Reload’. This should restart the program and your printer should now appear in Step 2.
If you do not see the QZ Tray icon, the application may be closed. Open the QZ Tray by searching your device’s programs and applications. Sometimes during set up the application will prompt you to give access to QZ Tray. Make sure to click ‘Always allow’ to save your settings.
If after trying the above steps you were unable to successfully connect your printer to QZ tray, we recommend printing without QZ tray using our Chit Chats Printer App.
Dymo Printers
If you are using a Dymo printer and still cannot locate your printer, visit the Dymo Support Site to download and install the latest Dymo Label Software for your operating system. Return to the printer setup page and refresh the page. Your printer should now be available in the list of printers in Step 2.
Physical Printer Issues
Labels are too small
Our postage is optimized for 4 x 6" labels and must be printed large enough to properly display the standard UPC & EAN barcodes. If your postage is printing too small you may need to adjust your printer settings.
To adjust your printer settings:
- Access the printer settings from your computer by finding the printer in your ‘Devices and Printers’ folder.
- Right-click on your printer to go to the printer preferences.
- Check that the correct label size is selected and that the printer is set to print the correct number of labels to a page.
- If using a thermal printer, your settings should be 4 x 6" and one label to a page.
- You may also need to check that the image is set to 'Fit to page' or that the size is set to 100%.
Labels are printing with white space
If the postage labels you download are printing with additional white space, or are pixelated you may need to update your label size settings in your Chit Chats account.
1. Navigate to 'Settings' in your Chit Chats account
2. Select 'Postage Labels'
3. Select your preferred label size of A6 (4 x 6 in)
These changes will now be applied to all pending postage. If you need to change the size of the label again, you can update your settings as many times as needed.
Labels are printing offset or extra labels
When thermal labels are not fed through the printer at the correct interval, your postage may be printed across two different labels or print an extra blank page. To fix this, hold the "feed label" button until you see the green light flash twice. The printer will recalibrate and adjust the label position on its own. If your printer does not have a similar feed label function, we suggest looking for a tutorial on how to recalibrate your specific model.
You can also follow these steps in order recalibrate your printer:
- Go to Device and printers in Control Panel
- Right Click on the Printer in question
- Click on Printing Preferences
- Click on Page Setup Tab
- Click on the stock settings.
- Make sure this is set to 4 x 6.
- Once that is set right, click on the printer again and go to Printer Properties
- Go to the Tools Tab
- Click on Action
- Reset to Factory Defaults.
This will recalibrate the printer and should print no extra page.
If this does not resolve the issue, check that the label spool is correctly positioned and that the labels are wrapped tightly. Also, ensure that you have installed the latest driver for your printer.
Misaligned Labels
If the labels are being fed through the printer correctly but part of the postage label is being cut off, this may be caused by your printer settings. Postage from our platform is optimized for thermal printers that print on 4 x 6” labels. If your printer uses a different label size, this may impact the label quality and may cause your labels to become offset.
To adjust your printer settings:
- Access the printer settings from your computer by finding the printer in your ‘Devices and Printers’ folder.
- Right-click on your printer to go to the printer preferences.
- Check to make sure the correct label size is selected and that the printer is set to print one label to a page.
Label Quality
If your labels are fuzzy, faded or streaked when printing, you may need to do one of two things:
- Adjust your printing preferences or,
- Clean the printhead of your printer
To adjust your printing preferences, please see the above section on misaligned labels. You may want to run a test print or reset your settings to solve the issue.
Check with the manufacturer for the best way to clean the printhead of your printer.
Printer Jams
For some printer jams you may be able to use the printer’s feed button to advance the labels. However, sometimes the label adhesive can become attached to a part of the printer. You may need to open your printer to manually release the jam.
Other Issues
Not printing but green light is flashing
This may mean that the printer is ready and connected but requires the labels to be advanced. Press the feed label button. Your labels should be printed immediately.
Irregular Postage Types
Some postage types are not optimized for all printers and you may need to update your settings to print postage. For example, although we've optimized the Chit Chats platform to print lettermail postage to fit 4 x 6" labels, this postage type was originally intended to be printed directly on a #10 envelope from a desktop printer. To do this, please download the postage as a PDF and when ready to print, adjust your printer settings to the following:
