Commonly Performed Printer Maintenance_

To keep your top-of-the-market inkjet or laser printer working efficiently for as long as possible, it will be a good idea to perform a number of routine maintenance tasks.

What Will Happen if I Don’t Maintain My Printer?

Nothing will happen immediately if you forgo maintenance tasks when it comes to your printer. In time, however, the printer’s overall performance level will decrease, leading to shoddy prints and a decreased overall lifespan. This will lead you to purchase another printer when you could have used the current one for longer.

Commonly Performed Printer Maintenance Tasks

Here are some of the common printer maintenance tasks that you can perform to improve the performance and longevity of your printer. Be warned, the process to complete these maintenance procedures may differ depending on the make and model of your printer. These models vary in price according to type.

Run a Nozzle Check

If you want to make sure your printhead nozzles are operating correctly you should perform a nozzle check. Initiating this nozzle check will require a different process from printer to printer, but the end result should be the same. The printer will create a test page to test out the nozzle’s various functionalities. If you see solid lines, that means your nozzles are operating correctly. If you see broken lines or no lines at all, you may have a nozzle-related issue. You can typically clean the nozzle and then run the check again.

Clean Your Print Heads

Cleaning your print heads will be an important part of your regular printer maintenance routine. Most modern printers will automatically institute a print head cleaning process somewhere in the settings menu. If your printer does not allow for this option in the settings, there are many third-party software suites that can initiate the print head cleaning process. Modern printers can also automatically perform other maintenance tasks, such as aligning the print heads. Be sure to clean and align the print heads every few months for optimum efficiency.

Clean the Printer Itself

You should also manually clean both the exterior and interior of a printer. This cleaning process will differ depending on the type of printer you have, laser or inkjet, and the individual printer model. You can never go wrong, however, with a simple microfiber cloth. Many printers can also handle a bit of isopropyl alcohol. Make sure that the printer has been powered down before you open it up to clean the interior components.

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