Is something wrong with always leaving the printer on or is it better to turn it off?

Leaving aside obsolete matrix printers, in this article we are going to differentiate the two most common printer types: To be and of inkjet (inkjet). We must also bear in mind that virtually all of the printers on the market have standby systems, that is, even if we leave them on, electricity consumption is not going to be a problem since they enter an energy-saving mode whose consumption is laughable.

That said, let's go there.

The health of printheads

All inkjet printers have semiconductor printheads. These heads are usually the first piece that breaks down of a printer, but fortunately many manufacturers incorporate them in the print cartridges themselves, so every time we are changing these, we will also change the heads. In any case, keep the printer on, if this is inkjet, serves to keep heads clean for longer.

Regular cleaning and maintenance on a printer is essential to ensure that you continue printing with good quality for a long time. The difference between leaving the printer on or off is usually negligible in terms of energy, but to have more "healthy" printheads and more efficient ink consumption, the manufacturers recommendation is to leave the printer on.

In this regard, laser printers are not affected since they do not have liquid ink, but the toners simply contain powdered ink.

Further, turning the printer on and off constantly decreases its life since every time we turn it on, a self-check process is carried out that moves its internal components, generating wear.

Ink consumption

During maintenance cycles (head cleaning, etc.), the printer uses ink, sometimes up to 20% of the contents of the cartridges, and given the cost they have, it is not something we want to happen. Using ink to clean the printheads is important for the printer to last longer, but sometimes these maintenance cycles may occur more frequently than necessary.

The frequency depends on each manufacturer, but turning on the printer always activates the self-check process that we mentioned before, and for this reason (minimize ink consumption) it is recommended that the printer be kept on, because this way we will reduce the amount of maintenance cycles.

In summary and although it seems counterproductive, the manufacturers themselves we recommend not to turn off the printer although we will be a while without using it. However, it is good to do it from time to time for these maintenance and self-diagnosis cycles to happen (which are for something).

Some experts say that, even if we do not use the printer, it is good to print a diagnostic sheet at least once a month to spin the rollers and, in the case of inkjet printers, make it circulate through the ducts .