Printing - Tips to Save Money

Using your printer is a way of life for many of us. We need to be able to make copies of Web site information or printing various documents for work or school. However, all that printing can be costly when you factor in ink or toner, paper and energy. Here are some tips on saving money while you print:

1. Avoid Empty Pages from Your Printer
When printing Web pages, take the time to preview them before hitting the print button. Doing so can help you avoid generating empty pages through your printer. Many of the new printers on the market have software that helps you cut down on your paper use. A free printer software package available called Green Print will analyze the Web pages you want to print and skips over those pages with little or no content on them.

2. Use Less Pages When Printing
By making some changes on the particular document you want to print you can end up using less paper. For example, you could reduce the documents margins, use a smaller font size, or eliminate any double spacing in the document. Another way to use less paper is to print on both sides of it. Many of the newer all in one printer's have a setting for double-sided printing.

3. Use Less Ink or Toner in Your Printer
Almost all printers have in their software setup more than one quality setting. Many users are printing at the highest quality. If you are not printing photos, which should be done on the highest quality setting for the printer, you should consider lowering the quality setting to draft mode. This setting will use much less ink or toner than a higher quality setting. Be careful when using an off brand ink or toner product for your printer. Many times the print quality and the fade-resistance are not worth the savings.

4. Conserve Printer Power
This might seem like a no-brainer, but many people just forget to power down their printer. Many of the newer printer models out there now come with a conserve power setting in their software so that during long periods of inactivity the printer will shut itself down.

5. Look for Energy Efficiency Printers
It is always a good idea with a printer as well as many household products, to look for the Energy Star label. The qualifications for getting this label have been recently toughened up by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A printer must use very little power when not printing to be awarded the label.

6. Printer Cartridge Recycling
You can save money and reduce waste by joining the many programs recycling ink and toner cartridges. Many printer sites offer free shipping for your old cartridges so that they can be sent back for recycling. You will find many office supply stores will offer in-store credit when returning empty cartridges back to them as well. Seek out those who are offering the best deal and take advantage of saving more money on your printing.