When it comes time to choose a printer, you search for something that will do everything you need at a price that’s affordable. You also want a unit that’s going to prove durable enough to last and in order to achieve that goal, you need to do your research, read the reviews, and above all, perform routine maintenance on your machine in order to keep it working at peak performance.
You’ve likely spent a considerable amount of time and money finding the right printer for your business, you don’t want it to succumb prematurely due to excess wear and tear all because you never cleaned the thing.
So how does one go about effectively maintaining Richmond VA printers? Believe it or not, the various actions you can take in order to keep your unit in tip-top shape don’t require a lot of effort. But the time you devote will be more than worth it to protect your investment and allow your business to continue running smoothly.
Safety First
Most of the time, you will need to open the printer in order to perform necessary maintenance on the critical parts of the unit. So before you delve into the inner workings of the machine, always be sure that the power is turned off and the cord unplugged. That way you lower the risk of suffering electric shock.
Once inside, you need to be careful about where you place your fingers, taking care to avoid hurting yourself. This will keep you from getting injured and damaging the printer in the bargain.
Clear Out the Dust
If there’s one thing that printers are good at collecting, it’s dust. When your printer accumulates that dust, along with various other detritus and even toner residue, it can all be the leading cause of paper jams and other malfunctions that end up marring your printed product.
So in order to prevent your printer from getting all choked up and having the quality of your documents and photos compromised you want eradicate these harmful impacts as quickly and often as possible. You can start by taking the hose on your vacuum cleaner and using it to suck up all of the particulate that is currently stuck in the printer.
Most manufacturers suggest a suction approach over the alternative of canned air that doesn’t remove the dust and detritus as much as blow it around and drive it deeper into the intricate parts inside. Once that part is finished, you can go for a deeper clean by using a soft cotton swab and some water to clean where the ink cartridges are housed.
Just be careful as to where you place that moistened swab as some portions of the printer should not be made wet. Be sure to read your owner’s manual to determine what parts must be kept from getting damp.
The Printer Heads
When you print anything from your printer, the documents that are produced come from the heads of the unit. If you notice white streaks across the pages that are being turned out of the printer each time, then you could be dealing with a problem.
Those white streaks are drop-outs where the ink doesn’t have unfettered access to the page. That’s due in large part to the heads being clogged and when that happens your printer will not work correctly.
Most modern printers have a feature where the unit cleans the heads itself. But if you would rather do the work yourself feel free to get in there with a cleaning solution and do the work delicately. Just read the owner’s manual first so you know what to clean and where to do it.
The Gentle Touch
When there’s a mechanical malfunction of any kind, we tend to react roughly. Since we’re so eager to resolve issues that emerge with our machines and appliances, we don’t always take the time to fix the problem properly. We do the job fast and that could lead to greater danger in the form of inflicting further damage.
So if your printer experiences any sort of issue, refer to the owner’s manual about how to go about fixing the problem, then do it slowly and carefully. The most common malfunction of printers is a paper jam. But, like everything else, there is a right way and wrong way to tackle the problem. Always know how to do the former before you get involved with fixing any issues.
If you rip the jammed document out of the machine you could risk damaging delicate equipment inside the unit. Always remove the document deliberately with both hands. No need to rush.