Nearly everybody is looking for ways to save money during their everyday activities and needs. One such way that many people are considering saving a little is through utilizing remanufactured ink in their printers. There is much debate over whether remanufactured ink is worth the savings. Understanding the facts will help you to decide if choosing manufactured ink is right for your printing and money saving needs.
What is Remanufactured Ink?
Remanufactured ink cartridges are also commonly known as cartridge refills. These cartridges are essentially recycled ink cartridges that have already been used and are processed so that they can be used again. Each empty printer cartridge goes through the same process after it is turned into a collection store or center.
- Empty cartridges are carefully cleaned to remove any remaining ink and residue. This ensures that there is no cross-contamination or performance effect from old and new ink mixing.
- Once clean, the ink cartridge is refilled with professional ink via an injector inserted through the distribution holes in the cartridge.
- The refilled cartridges are then repacked in materials that indicate that they are remanufactured, including what type of cartridge and ink have been used.
- Finally the refilled cartridges are distributed to retailers or sold through remanufactured ink sellers to be sold to consumers at prices lower than those associated with original ink cartridges.
Benefits of Remanufactured Ink
There are some distinct advantages to using remanufactured ink over original cartridges for your inkjet printer.
- Remanufactured ink cartridges cost less than original cartridges. This is because the casing is being reused, which lowers the cost of production, and you are not paying for the name of the original manufacturer.
- Recycling the cartridge itself represents an environmentally friendly alternative than using new plastic cases for each ink cartridge you use.
- Sometimes the ink cartridges purchased through remanufacturers are filled to maximum capacity, rather than a slightly lower volume through the original manufacturer. This can represent more pages printed, and increased savings.
Disadvantages of Remanufactured Ink
Critics argue that there are several detractors to using remanufactured ink cartridges, as well.
- The quality of these ink cartridges is not uniform. Some remanufacturers are better than others, and choosing a poorly remanufactured cartridge can cause damage to your production and your printer.
- The price can often depend on the number of cartridges that have been returned for remanufacturing. If not many have been turned in recently, the price will increase.
- Sometimes these ink cartridges are not refilled well which can result in low ink levels or some of the ink coming out. This can mean that you will have to purchase another cartridge sooner than you anticipated which equals higher costs in the end.
Is it Worth it?
Whether or not you choose to use remanufactured ink cartridges is a decision you must make after carefully weighing all of the aspects of such products. To some, the environmental impact of using recycled materials as opposed to furthering the congestion of landfills is important enough that they are willing to possibly sacrifice some production. To others, however, the number of pages that are printed is much more important than any other aspect and will determine what type of cartridge to use.
