How to Replace an Empty Ink Cartridge in the HP Deskjet 2541 All-in-One series Printer – an Illustrated Tutorial in 16 Steps

Make sure you purchase the right ink cartridges for your specific printer and printer region or have your old ones refilled. Cartridges are not compatible between different brands, and often not within the same brand. HP often designs its inkjet hardware to use country-specific consumables. When you unbox a new HP inkjet printer and set it up, you install a set of ink tanks that ship with the printer. As you turn on the device and get ready to use it, an initialization sequence localizes it to the country associated with the ink cartridges you installed. HP recommends that you use original HP ink cartridges.

XL (Extra Large) cartridges cost more but do provide better value in the long run. They will be able to print at least double the pages of a regular cartridge. Our advice is that if you print often, go with XL. However, ink can dry up. So if you are not a frequent printer, go with the regular cartridges.

Ink level warnings and indicators provide estimates for planning purposes only. When you receive a low-ink warning message, consider having a replacement cartridge available to avoid possible printing delays. You do not have to replace the cartridges until the print quality is unacceptable. Use the single-cartridge mode to operate the HP All-in-One with only one print cartridge. The single-cartridge mode is initiated when a print cartridge is removed from the print cartridge carriage. During single-cartridge mode, the product can copy documents, copy photos, and print jobs from the computer.

Which ink cartridges do I need for my HP Deskjet 2541 All-in-One series Printer?

For your US HP Deskjet 2541 All-in-One series Printer you need
HP 61 OR HP 61XL cartridges. Check the price of HP 61 cartridges at Amazon.com .
For your European or UK HP Deskjet 2541 All-in-One series Printer you need HP 301 or HP 301XL cartridges.

Try Amazon's ink selector tool to find compatible ink cartridges for your printer.

Replace the ink cartridges

1. Press the Power button to turn on the printer, if it is not already turned on.

2. Load plain white paper into the input tray.

Remove cartridge
3. Open the cartridge access door. The carriage moves to the center of the printer. Wait until the printer is idle and silent before continuing.
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4. Lightly press down on the cartridge to release it, and then pull the cartridge out of its slot.
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Insert the new cartridge
5. Remove the new cartridge from its packaging.
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6. Pull the coloured tab to remove the plastic tape.
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Do NOT:
– Remove the copper electrical strip.
– Touch the copper-colored contacts or the ink nozzles.
– Replace the protective tape on the contacts.
do not touch contacts

7. Hold the cartridge by its sides with the nozzles toward the printer, and then insert the cartridge into its slot. Make sure that the icon on the cartridge matches the icon on the slot. The tri-color cartridge goes in the slot on the left, and the black cartridge goes in the slot on the right.
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8. Push the cartridge forward until it snaps into place.
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9. Repeat these steps to replace the other cartridge, if necessary.
10. Close the cartridge access door.
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11. Follow any prompts on the screen.

12. The printer prints an alignment page automatically (only when a new cartridge has been installed). Wait about 30 seconds for the alignment page to print and align the cartridges.
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Align the cartridges
13. Lift the scanner lid.
14. Place the alignment page with the print side down on the right-front corner of the scanner glass.
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15. Close the scanner lid.
16. Press the Start Copy Black button or the Start Copy Color button on the front panel of the printer. The printer aligns the cartridges.