 | Darren Martin is president and owner of Cartridge World. Darren and his wife Terri Martin purchased the franchise rights to Cartridge World in Wichita in 2004. They currently own and operate two stores in Wichita. 21st and Rock in Tallgrass Plaza and now at 21st and Maize in New Market Square. Cartridge World is now the world leader in inkjet and cartridge refilling and one of the world's fastest growing franchises. The head office is based in Adelaide, South Australia. There are over 917 franchised Cartridge World retail stores worldwide. Darren completed extensive cartridge refilling franchise training in Australia. Darren can be reached by phone (316) 721.2229 or by email at cartridgeworld@cox.net |
Office Supplies
2005-08-01 15:40:00
Printer cartridges are big expense!
: It is difficult to believe what we are spending on cartridges and toner for our printers. It seems like the cartridges are more expensive than the printer was. What can one do to lessen this burden.
ANSWER: You are correct... printer cartridges can be a big part of the 'office supplies' budget. There are however a couple of things you can do. First and most obvious... be sure everything you're printing needs to be printed. Quite often we find that employees print all kinds of things, particularly in color, when they did not have to be printed at all, or did not have to be printed in color. This will significantly stretch the life of your cartridges. Another way to control this expense is refill or used refilled cartridges instead of buying new ones.QUESTION: Is there a downside to using a refilled cartridge?ANSWER: No, but there are many benefits to gain by using a refilled cartridge. Not only are you saving money, but also helping the environment while still maintaining a high quality product. QUESTION: How much money will I save by refilling?ANSWER: The savings will change depending on which printer you own. As a rule of thumb, you can expect refills to be about 50% of the cost of a new cartridge. QUESTION: Are the inks used in refilling as good as the original inks?ANSWER: Only high performance inks are used for refilling. They have exactly the same chemical and physical properties as the original inks. The inks are specially formulated for your printer, and there is different ink for almost every cartridge. Additional efforts are taken to use inks that have cleaning agents that prevent the print heads clogging, and to match the original colors. QUESTION: How much time does it take to refill an inkjet cartridge?ANSWER: All cartridges are slightly different, but typically it takes between 5 and 10 minutes. All cartridges are fully tested and the print heads ultrasonically cleaned. If for any reason the cartridge does not work properly, there is no charge. QUESTION: Is there any reduction in the print quality?ANSWER: There should be no change in quality using inks specially formulated for use in your printer. QUESTION: When is the best time to refill old cartridges?ANSWER: You have to refill your cartridges before ink in your cartridge completely runs out. Once the cartridge is empty, the ink starts to dry and may clog the nozzle. For some color cartridges you need to refill before air locks take place.QUESTION: How many times I can refill?ANSWER: It depends on the cartridge condition. You can refill until your cartridges wear out. In general, you can refill 3 to 8 times with the same cartridge.QUESTION: Does refilling void the OEM's warranty on the printer?ANSWER: No, it is your right to choose your own supply sources. It is illegal for a printer manufacturer to require you to use any particular brand of supplies. To enforce a policy such as this is in direct violation of law. An OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) can not void your warranty unless they can conclusively prove that other brands of supplies will damage the machine. The OEM can recommend a specific printer supplier. However, they cannot enforce you to use that particular product only. QUESTION: Does the refilling of inkjet cartridges harm the printing ability of my printer in any way?ANSWER: If the ink does not meet OEM specification, the printer head on your cartridge may be clogged or destroyed by the ink as well as you would not get the same printing result as with original. There are many manufacturers who can make ink that meet the same specifications by OEM manufacturers. They only select ink indigents that meet the standard requirements that are outlined by OEM to maintain high standards of our inkjet cartridges. Most of the inks are formulated and tested under strict laboratory conditions to ensure the highest output quality at all times as compared with other OEM products. QUESTION: Can all the printer cartridges be refilled?ANSWER: The majority of ink cartridges can be refilled. However, some of the ink cartridges can not be refilled or can be refilled until some stage only. In this case, what you need to is to check on the ink printer supply websites that your particular refill ink cartridge is listed as refillable. QUESTION: How useful is a refilling kit in refilling cartridges?ANSWER: Refilling ink cartridge is very easy to do using an ink cartridge refill kit. The kit contains all you need to refill cartridges. It has compatible ink, a squeeze bottle or ink syringe and instructions manual. If you do not want ink sticking your fingers use rubber gloves and refill over the sink or put some old newspapers down so you do not make a mess. You need to refill the cartridge slowly and be careful not to overfill. The success rate in filling at home is about 1 in 20. You must make sure that you have the correct ink with the correct instructions.One last point... you may not be aware that some 'new' cartridges you purchase are sometimes recycled. Check the packaging and read their statement. Here are examples from 2 OEMs:OEM 1 cartridges: "Made in Japan from the highest quality new and recycled materials." OEM 2 cartridges: "OEM 2 has implemented a cartridge recycling program.
