There are several steps you can take to get your ink and toner to last longer and deliver more pages, regardless of what brand and model printer you have.

Pull It Out

A trick that confounds many users is simply pulling the cartridge from the machine. These printers are incredibly smart from a technological standpoint. They sense the toner's level and indicate the low point with precise sensors. However, this low point is subjective. There's often still more ink or toner left in the cartridge.

Bypass the electronic brain within the machine by pulling the cartridge out. This printer ink trick tells the PCB or printed circuit board that the toner component is missing. The built-in assumption is that a returned cartridge will be full.

Follow these steps to get more toner out of your cartridge:

Reset the printer by following the manufacturer's instructions.

Slide the same cartridge into the machine as if you're adding new printer ink

Activate the printer mode.

This simple procedure can get the printer going again.

Shake it Up

When you replace a toner cartridge, it should feel light. For many people, however, the cartridge still feels relatively heavy. There's still toner inside the container! Although it's an old-fashioned trick, shaking a toner cartridge can work wonders.

The jostling frees up the toner that might be trapped along the container's walls. It falls to the container's base where it can be sensed by the printer. The low-ink light might recognize the "new" cartridge, which allows the printer to work once again. Depending on the printer's manufacturer, you may need to deactivate the low-ink mode so that the machine works without fail on the next run.

Cover the Sensor

Some printer ink and toner cartridges have sensors along their housings. It might look like a tiny hole on an otherwise solid design. This sensor tells the printer that there's no more ink or toner. In turn, the printer won't operate until this sensor deactivates.

One simple trick involves electrical tape. Use a small piece of tape to cover this cartridge sensor. Activate the printer, and see if it recognizes the toner level. Some printers respond to this strategy so trying it will be the only way to find out if it's successful.

Print with Attention to Detail

Want your ink and toner to last longer? Don’t print junk! Seriously, think twice before hitting the print button and save yourself some ink and toner.

Follow these guidelines to save ink and toner:

Proofreading and correcting projects before they're printed

Considering email copies instead of printing hard copies

In today's technological world, hard copies may not be necessary. Be sure about your print job before sending it to the machine.