Printers: Should You Leave The Printer On All The Time, Or Turn It Off?

by Lynnette

power cords, printers, tech support and troubleshooting

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I’ve always wondered whether you should leave your printer ON 24/7, or keep it OFF the majority of the time and only turn it on during the times that you actually need it.

power saver mode on my wireless printer

Looks like I’ve finally found the answer!

The folks at PC World (the world’s BEST computer mag for experts and beginners alike) recommend that you keep your printer powered ON at all times — even when you have absolutely no intention of printing anything.

Want to know why?

So did I — here’s what I found out…

Reasons To Keep Your Printer ON

The reason to keep your printer ON all the time is because it keeps the print heads cleaner, and makes them less likely to gunk up and need replacing.

The print heads are typically the first thing to go bad on a printer — meaning the more you can do to preserve their life, the better.

If you tend to turn your printer ON each time you need to use it, then OFF again as soon as you’re done — stop!

Reasons You Shouldn’t Turn A Printer On And Off

You shouldn’t keep turning a printer on and off because it:

printer on
  • Negatively affects the inner workings of the print system — creating more opportunities for malfunction.
  • Increases the likelihood of having to clean (or replace) the print heads sooner rather than later
  • Wastes ink because each time you start up your printer, the print heads are forced to run through their complete cycle in preparation for printing.

It’s generally a good idea to leave your printer on, even when you have no intention of printing. Shut your printer on and off frequently, and you end up mucking up the print system–which you’ll have to clean, wasting ink in the process.

~ Source

Did you know you can replace the ink in your printer cartridges yourself? Here’s how.

More Helpful Info About Printers

In addition to the links I’ve included above, here are some other resources to help you get the most out of your printer: