Todd Nesnick
How can you extend the life of your Epson Printer Cartridges – Toner City? Using printer cartridges can be expensive and, if you’re not careful, it can also be wasteful. Printer ink dries out after about three years, meaning you have to throw away the cartridge even if there’s still plenty of ink left in it.
How long your printer cartridges last will depend on a variety of factors, including your printing habits and the quality of the cartridges you’re using. Regardless of how much you plan to print, following these three tips can extend the life of your printer cartridges and save you money over time.
Step 1: Keep your printer and cartridges clean
Proper printer maintenance is essential for extending your cartridges life span. You’ll want to keep a can of compressed air handy, as this will help blow away any dust from inside your printer. Next, it’s important that you’re turning off your printer when you’re not using it so that ink does not dry up in the print head and clog channels. Finally, regularly running a nozzle check on your print head with any software provided with your printer will ensure there are no clogs in any parts of the cartridge.
Keeping your printer and cartridges clean is vital for preserving its life span. Clogged print heads, not printing when it should, poor quality prints and paper jams are all signs that your printer needs a good cleaning. A simple way to do that is using compressed air on all parts of your cartridge, including around its electrical contacts. Also be sure you’re turning off your printer between uses as leaving ink sitting in a print head can lead to clogs down line. Running an ink check through any software provided with your printer will also help keep things running smoothly, alerting you if there are any problems or needed maintenance.
Step 2: Use up leftover ink when printing black & white documents
1. Use up leftover ink when printing black & white documents – Printing text in black and white is a great way to use up that leftover ink you might have on your printer cartridge. It will save you money and make your ink last a little bit longer than if you printed everything out in color.
2. For web printing, print it black and white – If you plan on doing web printing, try printing it in black and white instead of color. This is an excellent option if you’re doing something like a poster or business card design where text isn’t vital.
Step 3: Buy a third-party ink cartridge
Third party ink cartridges are one way to cut costs on printing. However, third party ink can actually cost you more money in the long run if you buy inferior quality ink. Before purchasing a cartridge, read reviews about the printer company and compare prices between remanufactured cartridges and new cartridges. Third party cartridges are also not guaranteed to work with all printers so check for compatibility before ordering anything. The biggest danger in purchasing third-party ink is running out of ink before being able to buy a new cartridge from your printer’s manufacturer because they likely won’t produce a cartridge for an outdated model without an investment on their part.