Printers, we all know through experience just how frustrating it can be when you hit print, and it doesnt come out right or at all. Printers are wonderful things when they are working, but when things don’t work it can be infuriating. You printer might need to be professionally repaired but you may be able to fix the problem yourself first. So here are my top 5 tips to help your printer keep in tip top condition to avoid printing problems.
Use your printer semi regular
Printers need to be used to keep them in check. With lack of use comes the lack of flow of ink in the printer heads and they dry up, causing blockages in nozzles which gives you those white stripes in the print, ruining the quality. Some times, whole colours can be missing from the print and it looks awful. By running a basic print through your printer, it gets the ink moving and prevents it from clogging in the print head nozzles.
Cover your printer with a dust cover
Dust is the enemy of a printer, it gets in everywhere, covers sensors, rollers and can also build up on the print head causing blockages. When dust gets on the rollers, It ends up on the printer paper and ink gets printed on top, so when the dust comes away, you’re left with lovely white spots of non printed paper. Covering your printer with a printer cover or even a large blanket will do, it’ll help keep the dust at bay.
Use quality inks
Printer companies spend a lot of time and money developing inks for their printer. Cheaper inks can cause havoc with printers, causing blockages in the printer head, tubes or filters which ruins a printer. Genuine inks are expensive but they are better than the cheaper alternatives and make the printer run better.
Keep the printer away from radiators and direct sun in the summer
Excessive heat dries out the printer head surface and causes ink clogs. To clear the clogs, it requires you run several cleaning cycles wasting loads of ink. In the more serious cases it can cause the print head to not be salvageable and require either the printer head to be replaced, or worse, the whole printer. Keeping the printer in a shaded cool area helps keep the surface of the printer head moist and ready to print perfectly.
Avoid using paper with excessive curl
Paper can start curling easily in humidity, so when it comes to loading it in the printer, it either causes paper jams, or is so curled the printer head strikes the paper surface on its way past each print pass. If the printer head strikes the surface of the paper when laying down the ink, it can damage the delicate surface of the print head, and require the print head to be replaced which can be expensive. Keep your paper in a dry area or under a flat heavy surface to prevent warping and curling.
