Is it economical or just plain messy?
I've done it, but I'm not completely sold on it. It is economical. However, ink stained fingers and leaks in the printer have kind of turned me against doing it. I also have found that the printer ink cartridges from the manufacturer seem to last longer.
I usually keep one black and one colored ink cartridge on hand as spares. Storing them in an upright position also helps them to go farther.
The fine print on the paperwork for an old printer I had said that using refilled cartridges could void my warranty. Of course, that was several years ago and things could have changed by now.
There's always the option of donating the old printer ink cartridges to a charity for their recycling and/or charitable efforts.
What's your preference? Do you refill printer ink cartridges or buy new?
CW
CreativeWoman posted on May 07, 2007
| views: 163
Comments
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MissMimi said on May 07, 2007....
Never tried refilling them, but this reminded me that the printer is out of ink. thanks, CW! -
silverwhisper said on May 07, 2007....
i don't refill them, mainly b/c i always think that somehow they're going to get damaged.
ed -
secretlife said on May 07, 2007....
i bought one of those kits from CVS to refill the printer before this one. i made a huge ...make that HUGE mess and swore never again. it's just that those cartridges are so damn expensive!!! the one's for my HP combined cost almost as much as the printer did! -
dailyachesandpains said on May 07, 2007....
My Husband would buy them refilled by a company for half the price, however, we found ourselves sending them back constantly. We ended up going back to the expensive cartridges.Daily -
botoni said on May 07, 2007....
I ve not refilled myself but I have gone to the refill shops. My experiences havent been very good with that because the cartirdges get so easily damage. At least for my printer they do so I m back to the expensive replacements. -
Zayda said on May 07, 2007....
I don't refill mine either. I do take my old ones back to Staples where you get X amount off your purchase of new printer cartridges for every used one you bring in. I usually always have two to take back for every one I purchase. I'm not sure how I manage that, truthfully. -
lioneljay said on May 07, 2007....
It seems to me that HP and Canon and others have taken the Gillette route to business success: give away the razors to sell the blades. Printer cartridges are incredibly profitable so the manufacturers virtually give away their printers in order to sell the cartridges.
The thing is, refilling cartridges is a pain in the patoot (you know, that spot that makes the indentation in your couch when you sit down). I've tried it, with reasonable success, but it's a finicky process and I'm not often in the mood to go to that much trouble when it's time to refill the printer. I've seen that the local Walgreens sells refilled cartridges. I haven't looked into it at all but I wonder if their pricing would make it a decent compromise between making HP shareholders wealthier than they deserve and doing it myself. -
CreativeWoman said on May 07, 2007....
Mimi,
I will consider that my good deed for the day. :-)
ed,
There comes a point when a printer cartridge has been refilled too many times. I unfortunately learned that the hard way. I either damaged it or it wore out. What a mess in the printer!
secret,
The first time I tried to refill a printer cartridge I went around for a week with magenta and green fingers. It sounds like we have the same type of printers.
Daily,
I'm sure I would have gone back to them too. Trying to save money on printer cartridges becomes very difficult sometimes.
botoni,
My refill experience has never been good either.
Zayda,
That's a good promotion to take advantage of. :-)
lionel,
"Patoot," I like that. :-D
You make a good point about the price of printers vs. the price of printer cartridges. It's a very sensible conclusion.
CW
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flytimes said on May 07, 2007....
Hi Creative, I have 3 printers which Ive been given, all free courtesy of a website called www.gumtree.com where people offer things to you free! even computers which Ive also got from there:) Ive checked if theres was one in the usa, as im assuming thats where your from? when you mentined the word "grocery" shopping in your "Is shopping fun" blog, anyway the reason why they give them away is because the ink was fading slightly on the paper, beggers cant be choosers! lol and the other reason was that the printers were so cheap and the cartridges so expensive, it was more viable to get a new one. I also have 2 friends who keep there spare ink cartridges in the fridge. Its only been 2 hours since you posted this question so I am I being a bit optimistic to say, i hope youve managed to sort it;)? F T -
CreativeWoman said on May 07, 2007....
fly,
Yes, I'm from the US. :-)
I will buy my next round of printer ink cartridges. Refilling is just too messy. I will pinch pennies elsewhere.
That website sounds interesting. I'll have to check it out.
CW
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flytimes said on May 07, 2007....
Ooops i totaly forgot to add there was "NOT" one in the usa:( Im sure they must have something over there, "Ones rubbish is another ones treasure:) F.T -
CreativeWoman said on May 07, 2007....
fly,
No problem. :-) I'm glad you have it to take advantage of.
CW
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sweet_cookie01 said on May 07, 2007....
Hi CW...here at home we always refill our ink cartridges... but we ask a professional to do it for us. But if we are going to replace them with something new, mom does it for us.... -
CreativeWoman said on May 08, 2007....
sweet,
Do the refills last as long for you?
CW
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sweet_cookie01 said on May 08, 2007....
no.... especially when the kids prints out their researches for school... -
louthomas said on May 08, 2007....
(1) Take your old cartridges (HP, IBM) to your nearest Staples store. They'll give you a certificate good for $3.00 on anything in the store.
(2) Buy the Staples brand cartridges. They're good; I trust no other.
Sorry to sound like a commercial, but this works for me: it's Easy.
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skald said on May 08, 2007....
I buy new ones. -
CreativeWoman said on May 08, 2007....
sweet,
I can understand that.
lou,
Aren't they the store with the Easy button? :-) Zayda also recommended Staples. I wish I had one in my area.
skald,
I have been buying new ones too.
CW
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louthomas said on May 09, 2007....
Right, Staples does the Easy button thing. They also have a very strong on-line presence: http://www.staples.com . I recommend them highly.
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