Many business owners are now turning to “Compatible” or “Re manufactured” Toner Cartridges in an effort to save money. The modern compatible toners are guaranteed to be equal or to exceed the quality of the Genuine OEM Toners. There are so many companies online nowadays offering very cheap toner cartridges (all made in China). Be WARNED many are poor quality and some companies are still using the old "Drill and Fill" method which basically means a small hole is drilled in the side of the toner cartridge and then the toner is refilled (generally with a poor quality toner) and then sealed, boxed and resold.
If a toner appears to be too cheap then generally it is safe to assume that it is a low grade Chinese product which may work fine however generally they can cause all kinds of problems. This is one of the reasons compatible and re manufactured products have (In the past) been frowned upon by many!
Compatible Toners what exactly are they?
Most ink cartridge and toner products these days labelled "Compatible" are really whats known as "Re manufactured". The term Compatible is used simply to distinguish the product from a Genuine OEM product. A re manufactured Toner is simply a Genuine Toner which has been fully reconditioned. Now the degree of reconditioning which takes place is the most crucial aspect determining the quality of the final product. It's similar to having a Motor overhauled. Some companies will replace only rings and bearings while a more reputable company will re-bore, replace pistons,rings,oil pump etc... So hopefully now you will start to understand why it is important as to who you purchase your "Compatible Toner Cartridges" from.
In the beginning of refill cartridges there were not many options. Toner and internal replacement parts were not readily available, so the quality was not as high as one would like. In recent years all that has changed. One of the most important components that should be replaced in a toner is the drum and the drum blade. These were designed to only last the life of the toner powder being used from the cartridge. If you were to reuse the original drum it would cause many print defects such as light print, marks and several other image defects. The drum blade would also create streaking and line type image defects. Think of the drum blade as a windshield wiper. When it wears out certain areas are not being cleaned and it makes it hard to see through the window! In the same way certain areas are not being wiped off and you then have lines on the printed pages.
We now have access to not only drums and blades but many other components that wear out and need to be replaced inside the toner cartridge. When selecting a company that refills or sells compatible toner cartridges, I would make sure that they do in fact replace the drum and drum blade, or it will not last and you will have wasted your time and money on something that was supposed to save you money in the first place.
Why Purchase Compatible Toner Cartridges?
Let me be very clear here. Unless you are buying compatible toner cartridges from a reputable reseller and the toner has been made in an ISO 9001 facility by a well known "Professional" company and you receive a proper Guarantee then and only then would I advise you to use a compatible toner. Compatible Toners represent big cost savings and if they have been re manufactured by a reputable company then they will ALWAYS equal and in many cases exceed the yield of the Genuine product.
Other factors to consider are:
1. Cost - generally a compatible toner will sell for 50 - 150% Cheaper than the Genuine OEM Toner.
2. Yield - quite often a generic or re manufactured toner cartridge will contain more toner powder than the equivalent OEM brand name toner. This means the toner will print a lot more pages than the brand name equivalent.
3. Environmental - Why throw a used toner straight to Landfill when it can be fully reconditioned and re-used again? The average toner can be re-used up to 4 times which in turn can save up to 35 pounds of raw materials. This in turn reduces the amount of landfill needed to dump the old toner shells which would take hundreds of years to decompose.
Will Generic Toners damage my printer?
This is the question the consumer always wants to know and rightly so. In 10 years of selling non genuine toners I am yet to have a customer acuse me of damaging their printer. I am not saying that it cant happen because it can happen if a cheap, low grade generic toner is used.
Cheap, low grade generic toners have a common habit of leaking toner onto the drum and pinch rollers. This is one of the main reasons that re manufactured toners have such a bad reputation. I have experienced this myself and it is very annoying when a print comes out with a grayish background or a vertical line on every page.
Once the toner has leaked out into the printer then it can be a a nightmare to clean it all out and to get the drum nice and clean. If you simply re-install the offending toner then it will very quickly do the same thing again.
Examples of poor quality Generic Toners
Worn Wiper or Cleaning Blade
The image to the left is a typical print example from a poorly re manufactured generic toner. The Drum wiper or cleaning blade has not been replaced and the resulting printout is unacceptable.
The only way to remedy this is to replace the whole toner with a new one or if the printer uses a separate drum unit then clean it thoroughly and then replace the toner.
This is perhaps the most common of all issues that occur with a generic or re manufactured toner. Quality generic toners will always have a new wiper blade fitted. Remember that this is why you are paying slightly higher prices for a "quality" toner cartridge as compared to the cheaper advertised units. Many people opt out to save a few dollars and end up paying the price with a low grade toner cartridge which leaks toner throughout the printer due to an old wiper blade being used.
Leaking Toner Powder
Another very common problem with low quality generic toners is leaking toner powder. This is a huge issue and can cause major problems with your printer if not fixed.
Once the toner leaks onto the drum unit and then onto pinch rollers etc then your printer will need some major repairs.
Often leaking toner shows up as in the image to the left or else in vertical lines on one side or even all over the page.
Cleaning can be done with compressed air once the toner has been removed. Often the drum will need a thorough cleaning to make sure the toner is completely removed.
Damaged Fuser Unit
The fuser unit of the toner is what melts the toner powder into the fiber of the paper. This is achieved by a combination of pressure and very high temperatures.
The modern fuser uses a ceramic glass element which heats up very fast. Temperature is controlled by a thermostat which prevents overheating.
Often in a cheaper quality generic toner the fuser is already half worn out and after a short period of time it may malfunction.
Fusers can often become marked or damaged such as in the image to the left. This is an extreme case however often they do break down and print quality deteriorates rapidly. If you examine the fuser and it shows any imperfections at all then replace the toner immediately.
Common problems with poorly made toners
Vertical lines on page - scratched or damaged Drum Unit. Check the Drum Unit for scratches. They should line up perfectly with the vertical lines appearing on the printed pages. Try cleaning the drum unit first and if the scratches remain then you have no choice but to replace the drum unit.
Grey background on page - the wiper blade on the toner is not removing the excess toner powder correctly. This means that excess toner is left on the drum and then transferred to the paper and baked on by the fuser unit. The only remedy is to replace the toner cartridge.
Variable print density across page - Usually caused by low toner. Remove the toner and gently shake from side to side to evenly distribute the powder. If this happens again replace the toner.
Grey or Light Prints - the photo receptor may be wearing out. The photo receptor when worn holds less charge. This results in less toner being transferred from the developer to the paper, which results in grey prints. If your printer has a "print density control" then try adjusting this until the image becomes darker.
Toner can be rubbed off - If the toner can be removed from the paper by rubbing it this indicates that it has not been properly fused. There is probably a fault in the fuser which is preventing it from getting hot enough. Sometimes it is just a matter of running a blank piece of paper through the printer before you print to get the fuser warmed up. If the problem persists then you