Why printer cartridges have an expiration date and dry out

When you buy an ink cartridge for your printer, you can look at two data: on the one hand, or they come vacuum packed, or they come with the pipette sealed To preserve the ink. On the other hand, they have Date of Expiry, like food. Do you know why this is so?

The expiration of ink cartridges

Inkjet printers are in the state liquid, and as such it is prone to dry over time. This is why the cartridges have an expiration date, and this date will also be reduced at the time when we remove the cartridges from their packaging or install them in the printer. This happens because Once the seal is removed, air will come into contact with the ink, accelerating the drying process.

It must be taken into account, therefore, that the expiration date It is an estimate of the manufacturer what will take the ink to dry if we do not remove the seal, because as we have explained once removed the seal, the process is accelerated and this date is reduced. For this reason, it is advisable to maintain the injection printers from time to time, including printing from time to time so that the ink does not solidify right in the outlet pipette.

Is there something wrong with using the printer with expired cartridges?

If you have properly maintained the printer and the cartridges have been stored in a cool, dry place, without much temperature variation, are likely to continue working properly even after its expiration date.

Of course, when using expired ink cartridges in the printer we run the risk of “ink sticks” coming out of dry ink clogging the printheads, leaving the printer unusable in the event that the printheads are installed in it (in some manufacturers such as HP, the printhead is incorporated in the cartridge and in that case nothing would be damaged from the printer). For this reason it is also advisable to do Head Cleaning between maintenance tasks for the printer.

If you have an ink printer and do not use it frequently, you should be aware of the fact that the ink in the cartridges could dry out if you are not careful, so you should be careful to perform maintenance tasks on time, and you should also keep in mind counts the expiration date of the cartridges, especially when buying them because usually only last two years from the date of manufacture.