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Last year I gave away my old (1990s era) color inkjet printer. I found I wasn’t using it and a colleague needed a printer. Recently I decided that I now had a need to do some color printing, so I bought a HP Officejet Pro 800 Wireless, mainly because PC World lauded the low cost of its ink.
After getting it, I set it up and printed a few things. After finishing for the day, I shut down my PC and turned off everything. As I mentioned in a much earlier post, I make a point of plugging my electronics into surge protectors to protect them but also so I can shut them off completely. This has always worked well, at least until now.
I noticed that when I powered up my system, the printer would grind away, doing something. I then noticed that the ink levels kept dropping, although I was only printing a page or two now and then. Then I figured it out-the damn printer was going through some sort of cleaning cycle or something every time it was powered up. Presumably this involves spraying relatively large amounts of ink around, thus providing yet another way to sell even more expensive ink.
To fix this problem, I plugged the printer into its own surge protector and simply leave it on. When I need to turn it off, I am careful to use its own power button (which I dislike-since it is not a true switch I can never be quite sure if I am turning it off, putting it in standby, or just giving it a cheap thrill). Of course, when my power goes out (a common event in Florida) I can hear it burning through the ink when the power comes back on.
I’m tempted to just give this printer away and get a color laser printer. It will cost me more upfront, but at least it won’t be burning through its consumables just because the power flickers.
I never turn off any of my computers because turning them on and off {the constant heating and cooling} is what causes the circuits and hard drives to burn out. For example I had a compaq laptop that I turned on and off every day and the hard drive burned out and had to be replaced after which the laptop gave me a lot of trouble. On the other hand the Toshiba laptop that I bought to replace my Compaq never gave me any trouble what so ever because the only time I turned it off was when I took it with me while traveling. I had it over four years and last year sent it to my brother, who is still using it, when I replaced it with a more up to date Toshiba laptop.
Appeal to Authority:
“Here’s a topic that provokes debate. One side argues that turning the PC on and off stresses components. The other side says it’s a good thing; even the best programs and the OS can get cranky without occasional shutdowns.
There’s no definitive answer. Most authorities, however, lean toward the idea that shutting off does more good than harm–plus it saves power. Kevin Krewell, editor in chief of the Microprocessor Report, supports that side of the debate. “Processors typically have a ten-year life span,” he says, so a PC will be dead weight before switching it on and off could affect the CPU.”
http://pcworld.about.com/magazine/2208p107id116572.htm
Most printers go into a low power state when not being used, and so don’t need to be shut off.
True, but I prefer a no power state, given what the city charges for electricity. When something is off, it should be off. 🙂
You need to turn it off using the switch:
To save energy, turn your printer on only when you need it! And to keep the ink from drying out, turn the printer off manually. Don’t use the power strip! Using the manual on/off button activates a program and the printer will properly “park” the ink cartridges. In the park position the ink is protected from drying out quickly.
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-printer-ink-and-toner-last-longer/
Excellent advice.
I switched to a laser printer back in 2001 mainly because I got tired of the cost of ink as well as the drying problem. Of course, ink jets still do some things better than laser printers.