Is Refilling Printer Ink Cartridges worth it? - By: Kathryn Dawson

Many people balk at the high prices of printer cartridges and are often looking for ways around the problem. One such idea is refilling your current (empty) cartridge by using a refill kit that are available online for purchase. Sounds simple enough but what is actually involved, and is it really worth it? The aim of the practice is to save you money but does this actually happen? This article explores the idea of DIY refills and whether it is worth the time or money involved.

The first thing you need to do is purchase the ink itself to be used in the refill. You cannot simply head down to your local stationers and buy a bottle of regular ink and pour it in! Instead you must purchase a specialist kit that are available in online stores on the web. The type of kit you need will depend on the type of printer you have and the cartridge it uses. In the same way you buy a new cartridge you need to select the brand of printer you use to locate the right type of refill kit for your needs. Computer shops on the high street don't usually stock cartridge refills so you will likely to have to buy online. This does mean there are going to be shipping costs involved which provide an additional cost to be aware of.

Actually refilling the cartridge at home can be done yourself. There are different instructions and procedures on how to do this depending again on the brand of printer you are using. Each model has a different type of cartridge and refilling is therefore different for each one. There should be instructions that come with the kit, but if not you can search online for instructions. Now comes the time of actually refilling the cartridge. The problem you will encounter is the mess. This is an extremely messy process and anything that comes into contact with the ink will stain. Your skin will be stained for approximately one week, your clothes, workstation or the table top where you are doing it will possibly be stained forever. Wear gloves, old clothes and carry out the task on rags on the garage floor or somewhere where it doesn't matter if some ink gets spilled.

At this point you have paid for the refill kit, paid for the shipping, undergone the very messy process of actually refilling the cartridge and what are you left with? A cartridge that is full yes, but that prints in a much lower quality than you are used to. Printer refills just aren't up to the same high standard of a new, regular cartridge. If you are printing pages that aren't too important or just for personal use only then this really doesn't matter too much. If you are printing important documents or using it for work then you may want to think again. Another problem that many people have is that the ink runs out too quickly. Sometimes after just a few pages the ink is noticeably faded on the page. This means you have to undertake the whole process again and again losing a lot of clothes in the process.

When you add up the cost of the exercise, it is usually not worth the hassle of refilling your own printer ink cartridges. If you print very infrequently and print only pages for your own personal use then it may be worth it, but this is rarely the case with anyone who owns a printer. Most people find that it is more cost effective to purchase new cartridges and simply try and keep your printing to a minimum in order to save money. Whether it is canon ink cartridges you need or specific canon pixma mp560 ink cartridges, it is much better to buy new every time.

About the Author

Kathryn Dawson writes articles for Cartridge Shop, an established online store supplying high quality printer ink cartridges at unbeatable low prices. Cartridge Shop has a complete inventory of canon ink cartridges, including canon pixma mp560 ink cartridges.

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