Solved Do laser printers have the same ink issues as inkjet printers?

[BomberAF]

I currently have an inkjet printer and although I am happy with the quality of the printing one thing really annoys me about it.

I very hardly ever use my printer so the ink always drys and needs a deep clean before it will work again. This means that I can use my printers 4 times before I need to buy new cartridges for my printer and as we all know ink is very expensive.

What I was therefore wondering was do laser printers suffer from the same problem of the ink drying out if you don't use them regularly enough or does the ink always stay clear on them.

All your thoughts and opinions as always appreciated.

Regards

AF

 

[mickey megabyte]

laser printers don't use ink - they use toner, which is already a dry powder, so it can't dry out any more - if anything, it could get damp, and clump together, but i've never experienced this.

trouble is that laser printers are more expensive than inkjets.

 

[mlevy]

Short answer: NO

Long answer: The toner in a laser printer is a powder that is placed on the paper using an electrostatic charge, it is then bonded to the paper using the heat from the fuser assembly.

 

[DocBrown]

I have several Black & white Laser printers at work, since not needing color all the time.

I get 17k pages out of 1 laser cartridge.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

No.

I went through the same situation as you did on inkjets.

I changed to a $70 Brother black and white laser 4 years ago with no regrets.

I am still on the original toner and print maybe once a month.

Stats I have seen say shelf life on laser toner is at least 5 years and probably longer.

Get off the inkjet train.

 

[Sardonicus]

I have an HP LaserJet 1020 monochrome printer. I have to shake the cartridge about once or twice a year, when it seems the ink is low. I've had it for almost 2 years and haven't spent any money on a new cartridge yet. For the money you'll spend on an inkjet, it's almost worth it to get a laserjet printer for just the monochrome printing.

 

[pparks1]

I've used laser printers at home for nearly 10 years now. I'm now on my second physical printer. I went through 3 toners on the first printer....which my wife used when she was self employed.

My newer Laser printer is a Samsung ML-2510 and I'm still on the starter cartridge. Which is only about 1/4 full when brand new...but I only paid like $40 for the device at Office Max. My printer is well over 1 year old at this point. The lower toner light is on...but I haven't run out yet.

I only use inkjets for printing color photos...and I do this rarely.

 

[Frank1]

I agree with everything said about laser printers. But if want to keep your ink cartridges from getting clogged, you can print just a little bit--maybe only a word or two--every couple of days. I think this would keep them from getting clogged.

 

[whs]

There is one problem with laser printers that most people are not aware of - the powder it uses can be highly toxic (some makes more than others). It is not recommended to keep laser printers in rooms where you live.

 

[linnemeyerhere]

I still use my HP LaserJet 4, it was only 1,400usd in the late '80's. Can't kill the thing !

 

[Frank1]

There is one problem with laser printers that most people are not aware of - the powder it uses can be highly toxic (some makes more than others). It is not recommended to keep laser printers in rooms where you live.

If that's the case (and I'm not saying it's not because I don't know) then neither should you have a copy machine since they also use toner. And then should they, also, not be in offices where one works?
I am not disputing what you say, I am just asking since I've never heard it before.

 

[TVeblen]

Be very frightened:
Are Laser Printers A Health Hazard? - The Early Show - CBS News

Fuggetaboutit:
Is Your Laser Printer Emitting Toxic Toner Dust? - Gearlog

The debate goes on.

 

[whs]

There is one problem with laser printers that most people are not aware of - the powder it uses can be highly toxic (some makes more than others). It is not recommended to keep laser printers in rooms where you live.

If that's the case (and I'm not saying it's not because I don't know) then neither should you have a copy machine since they also use toner. And then should they, also, not be in offices where one works?
I am not disputing what you say, I am just asking since I've never heard it before.

In all the offices I ever worked, the copiers were always in a seperate room - just for this reason. Read this and you will get an idea (there are many other articles on the web)

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/08/03/earlyshow/saturday/main3133253.shtml

 

[Zepher]

I would only get an inkjet if I was needing to print pictures since Laser can't compare with an inkjet.
I don't do a lot of printing but for some odd reason we have 7 printers.
2 color lasers, 1 mono laser, 1 wide format inkjet, 2 multifunction inkjets, and 1 dye sub.

the multifunction inkets I have were only bought since they were such a good deal, Epson Workforce 610 with full high capacity carts for only $30 due to ad error at Office Max. On sale for $80 and had a $50 instant credit (credit wasn't supposed to be offered for this unit) for a trade in, so I grabbed a 22 year old 24pin Panasonic and an HP Wide format printer and bought 2 of the 610's.

this is my 11 year old baby,

We used to transport that huge HP 4500DN to Golf Tournaments back in the day for printing 8x10 photos of the Golf Players.
Inkjets were too slow for us, printing upto 240 8x10's in 2 hours wasn't feasible with an inkjet.

We eventually went with a Dell color laser since it was smaller and faster, but it didn't print as good as the HP, but was still acceptable.

here is my brother packaging a print at one of our tournaments,

We use a laptop now so we don't have to transport that PC setup.

 

[mlevy]

zepher, ever have to have the carousel drive assembly replaced? we used to have several of those 4500's where I work, we replaced at least 3 in 6 months before we just started replacing the units. That part is a PITA to replace, whole unit comes apart to replace it...

 

[profdlp]

Everyone seems to agree that inkjets do a better job for color printing. My 51-year-old eyes think my color laser does fine. I've probably saved enough in ink to pay for the thing - and a set of replacement cartridges. I have the Brother 4040CN, which appears to have been replaced, and only paid $200 for it.

Only thing I'd say is that when the time comes, the toner cartridges are not cheap. From the sound of things, that will be a long time from now for you, BomberAF.

Newegg.com - Computer Hardware,Printers & Scanners,Printer - Laser Printers,Color

 

[xarden]

Interesting read.
I have a Brother DCP-something at home.
Its an ink-hog, even with 'economy' setting. It wont let you print monochrome if any of the colours are low, and cartridges cost about $20 for a refill/replace. We'd get about 5-6 pages before some type of problem occurs, usually with cartridges.

 

[Zepher]

zepher, ever have to have the carousel drive assembly replaced? we used to have several of those 4500's where I work, we replaced at least 3 in 6 months before we just started replacing the units. That part is a PITA to replace, whole unit comes apart to replace it...

Not yet. this printer was used only for Golf Tournaments from 1999-til 2005, around 6 events per year.
It only has 4500 pages through it.
It was an expensive printer too, $2500 is what they paid for it. I had them upgrade to the Dell 3000, and they let me buy the 4500 and 3 full spare carts for $100, so that is why I have it now.
I am thinking about selling it since I hardly use it and it takes so long to warm up and calibrate, I'd estimate 15 minutes.

The toner Carts for this thing are $130/color, so about $500 for 4 full carts.

 

[mjf]

I have a Lexmark B&W laser printer (cost~$150, generic replacement toner $80)1500 pages I think.
Canon Pixma injet (cost ~$60, 2 cartridges ~$60) Not many prints before cartidges run low.

The Lexmark is my main printer and is very economical. Occasionally give the toner cartridge a jiggle.
The Canon I use infrequently because the cartridges are expensive. I never had problems of ink drying out and jets clogging. I only use it for colour printing and scanning.

Thanks WHS I never knew about the laser printer health issues. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

 

[whs]

Thanks WHS I never knew about the laser printer health issues. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

And it was your countrymen that first identified the problem - LOL. News sometimes has to travel a few times around the globe before it comes back to us.