Tips For Saving on Printer Ink

If you use your printer a little or a lot, ink is still expensive. I use my regular printer a lot, mostly black but it still "uses" color inks.

1. Over the years, I have found it is best to check the cost of ink refills BEFORE you buy a printer. You may have to buy a little more expensive printer to get individual ink cartridges but these usually save money over the "all-in-one" color and black refills. Sometimes this type of ink refill can cost as much as the original printer cost!
   

2. New printers usually come with "ink" so you may feel this is a good deal - but the ink in new computers usually is not a full refill - just a small portion of ink so you can get started using your printer. This supply will run out quickly. It is best to buy some refills when you buy your printer.
   

3. I have been told that a good computer tech will usually tell their customers that it is best to use your printer several times a week even if you do not need to as this will keep the ink from drying out and keep your printer working properly. I have never tested this as I use my printer almost every day. If you decide to do this I would suggest keeping a single sheet of paper just for this purpose and only type a couple of lines.
   

4. The most ink saving tip that I have found is to hit OK on my printer when the screen comes up and tell me my ink is out. I always have the message on my PC screen that my ink is low and shows me the colors. I have printed so many more pages after hitting ok that I lose count! Sometimes I print for weeks (every day) before this message comes up again. I have hit OK several times before I have to replace any ink cartridge.
   

Please keep in mind that I print only in black (but I still have to have color ink in my printer) and most of my friends tell me they have to buy a lot more ink than I do. I keep a record of ink purchases on my calendar (each color and black) so I know just how old each color is. My printer was not very expensive and it is 6 years old but it does have 5 ink cartridges (2 size black and 3 colors) which is a BIG savings. I have not always had good luck with "off brand" ink cartridges so I pay more and stay with the original brand.

Some people may like the laser printer but I have no experience with these.