When you recycle your toner cartridge, you preserve the environment while lessening the toll of printing costs on your pocketbook as well.

Reusing, Recycling, and Using Self-Refill Kits

These days, throwing your toner cartridge in the trash is not just a waste; it’s like throwing money away while unnecessarily filling landfills at the same time.

The best alternative to throwing your toner cartridges out is to recharge them with new toner.

Manufacturers can also replace the drums and other important parts of the cartridge.

Some retail shops accept trade-ins for spent toner cartridges, when you purchase a new one from them. These cartridges are then refilled so that they can be sold at discounted prices. Self-refill kits are also available.

Depending on the type of toner cartridge you use, there are many different refill kits available. These kits make recycling toner cartridges simple and cheap.

Most refill kits come with instructions, and the toner is contained inside a plastic bottle. You won’t need any special tools other than a smoldering iron.

How to Recycle Your Own Toner Cartridge

Here are four basic steps you can take to recycle your own toner cartridge:

  1. Remove the toner cartridge from the printer.
  2. Using the soldering iron, carefully burn a small hole into the cartridge casing, without damaging the casing. Do not employ a drill to create the hole, as it can cause miniscule pieces of plastic to fall inside the cartridge’s chamber.
  3. Pour the toner in through the fill-hole. Note that manufacturers recommend not filling the chamber completely, especially if a cartridge has been used multiple times.
  4. Seal the hole with tape once you’ve poured the appropriate amount of toner into the cartridge.
  5. Take care when handling the toner, as it can damage clothing, furniture, the carpet, etc. Further, many toners are hazardous; take necessary precautions by wearing gloves, and keep the toner out of reach of children.

Due to their non-biodegradable nature, most toner cartridges end up in landfills.  But if you recycle your toner cartridges, or buy re-manufactured ones, you can help eliminate waste and save on landfill space.  And that saves on disposal costs as well. Purchasing re-manufactured toner cartridges, on the other hand, allows you to avoid messes. These are available from your local office supply, and at specialty stores.

Additionally, some retailers, upon delivering your newly purchased re-manufactured cartridges, will pick up your old toner cartridges. Over the last few years, toner cartridge re-manufacturers have improved their technology to the extent that their quality can meet the manufacturer’s OEM standards. And what’s more, most re-manufactured cartridges provide good quality prints, coupled with a low occurrence of malfunction and leakage.