Brother HL-L2460DW faint or light print

Cause 1 of 5The toner cartridge is at the end of its life. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168

First checkIf the machine shows Replace Toner, install a new toner cartridge.

Causes and checks

The toner cartridge is at the end of its life. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168
1. If the machine shows Replace Toner, install a new toner cartridge.
The room is humid or hot. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168
1. Check the machine's environment. Humidity and high temperatures can cause this fault.
Toner Save mode is turned on. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168
1. If the whole page is too light, turn off Toner Save mode in the machine's menu settings or the printer driver.
The drum unit or corona wire is dirty. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168
1. Clean the drum unit. See Clean the drum unit with the Drum Dot Check Sheet.
2. Clean the corona wire on the drum unit. See Clean the corona wire.
The toner cartridge or drum unit is worn out. Source: Troubleshooting: Improve the Print Quality, p. 168
1. Replace the toner cartridge with a new toner cartridge. See Replace the toner cartridge.
2. If the print stays faint, replace the drum unit with a new drum unit. See Replace the drum unit.

Service

If the checks above do not clear it, contact Brother Customer Service: 1-877-BROTHER (1-877-276-8437), brother-usa.com/support. USA (phone and www.brother-usa.com/support); Canada (www.brother.ca/support). Source: Appendix: Brother Help and Customer Support, p. 249

Other HL-L2460DW problems

Printer does not print anything4 causes in the manual. First: the machine is in Power Off mode.
Printer stopped printing or does not print the jobThe print job in the machine's memory may be incomplete.
Headers or footers show on screen but do not printThe page has an unprintable area at the top and bottom.
Printer prints garbled or unexpected text2 causes in the manual. First: the print job in the machine's memory may be incomplete.
First pages print correctly, then pages have missing text2 causes in the manual. First: the application settings do not suit the machine.
Cannot switch between 1-sided and 2-sided printingThe 2-sided option in the Windows printer driver is set to the wrong value.
Printer does not print on both sides of the paperThe paper size or weight in the printer driver does not allow automatic 2-sided printing.
Print speed is too slow3 causes in the manual. First: the resolution in the printer driver is high.
Printer does not feed paper4 causes in the manual. First: the paper in the tray is curled or crooked.
Printer does not feed paper from the manual feed slot2 causes in the manual. First: the sheet is not pushed far enough into the manual feed slot.
Printer does not feed envelopesEnvelopes are not loaded one at a time, or the application is set to another size.
Print position is misaligned with preprinted formsThe print start position does not match the preprinted objects.
Gray background on printed pages2 causes in the manual. First: high temperature and high humidity increase background shading.
Ghosting images on the page5 causes in the manual. First: low humidity and low temperatures can cause ghosting.
Toner specks on the page4 causes in the manual. First: the drum unit is dirty.
Hollow print with white holes in black areas3 causes in the manual. First: the paper is too thick for the current media setting.
Page prints all black2 causes in the manual. First: the corona wire inside the drum unit needs cleaning.
White lines across the page3 causes in the manual. First: the media type setting does not match the paper.
Lines across the pageThe drum unit is dirty or damaged.
White lines, bands or ribbing across the page3 causes in the manual. First: high humidity and high temperatures can cause this fault.
White or black spots at 3.7 in. (94 mm) intervals2 causes in the manual. First: the drum unit has foreign material, such as glue from a label, stuck on the drum.
Black toner marks across the page3 causes in the manual. First: glue from label sheets for laser printers stuck to the drum surface.
Black lines or toner stains down the page3 causes in the manual. First: the corona wire is dirty or its green tab is not at the Home position.
White lines down the page2 causes in the manual. First: foreign material such as torn paper, sticky notes or dust is inside the machine or around the toner cartridge and drum unit.
Printed image is skewed3 causes in the manual. First: the paper or print media is loaded incorrectly or the guides do not fit.
Curled or wavy pages3 causes in the manual. First: the paper curls in high temperature and high humidity.
Wrinkles or creases on the pageThe paper is loaded incorrectly or is the wrong type.
Toner rubs off the page (poor fixing)2 causes in the manual. First: the green levers inside the back cover are not in the up position.
Envelopes print creased2 causes in the manual. First: the green levers inside the back cover are up during envelope printing.
Cannot complete wireless (Wi-Fi) setup4 causes in the manual. First: the security settings (SSID or Network Key) are not correct.
Cannot complete Wi-Fi Direct setup5 causes in the manual. First: the SSID or password is not correct.
Cannot print over the network6 causes in the manual. First: the machine disconnected from the wireless network.
Check that the network devices are working4 causes in the manual. First: the machine, router or hub is not on or not set up.
Wi-Fi light blinksThe wireless connection is down or the machine is still connecting to an access point.
Printer is not in the AirPrint printer listThe machine is off, on another network or out of range.
Cannot print with AirPrintThe machine is off or on a different network.
iPhone or iPad prints only the first page of a documentThe iOS version is out of date.
Printer will not turn onA power surge or lightning triggered the machine's internal safety mechanisms.
Brother software cannot be installed2 causes in the manual. First: security software blocks the installation program on Windows.

Sources

Online User's Guide, HL-L2400D / HL-L2405W / HL-L2420DW / HL-L2460DW / HL-L2460DWXL / HL-L2865DW. Brother Industries, Ltd. Document cv_hll2460dw_use, revision PDF created 2023-11-28, 256 pages, en-US. support.brother.com (PDF). Listed on the manufacturer's support page. Retrieved 13 November 2026.

Page numbers are the numbers printed in the manual. Where this page and the manual differ, follow the manual.

Applies to: HL-L2460DW (variant HL-L2460DWXL). United States and Canada.
Source: Online User's Guide, HL-L2400D / HL-L2405W / HL-L2420DW / HL-L2460DW / HL-L2460DWXL / HL-L2865DW, cv_hll2460dw_use revision PDF created 2023-11-28
Last verified: 13 November 2026
Handbook: Brother HL-L2460DW laser printer in Printers; all Brother handbooks