Cartridge recycling program isn't green or cost-effective

A Sacramento, California newspaper investigated an HP recycling initiative that was implemented in California state offices.

On paper, the recycling program was touted as a bold step toward California's green, climate-friendly future.

A mountain of plastic and metal would be diverted from landfills. Greenhouse gas emissions would tumble. And one of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's climate change goals – trimming power use in state buildings by 20 percent – would nudge closer to reality as agencies snapped up new, more efficient office printers.

That is what state and Hewlett-Packard officials said last year when they joined forces to ship used HP printer ink cartridges from state offices to Virginia to be ground up and recycled into auto parts, serving trays, clothes hangers and other products.

But a Bee investigation, based on more than 100 pages of e-mails and other records, has found that 17 months after it was created, the program has delivered few if any of its promised climate benefits.

Read more.

A printer without cartridges?

Epson has introduced a new printer -- the EC-01 -- that works without cartridges. This article gives a brief description of the printer.

Basically, the printer is designed to print approximately 8,500 pages before it needs to be replaced. Epson states that the printer can then be returned to them in exchange for a partial credit toward a new EC-01 printer. The company is trying to market this as an eco-friendly alternative to printers that use consumables like cartridges.

I suppose the biggest question is what happens to these printers once they are used and returned to Epson? Does Epson refurbish them and re-sell them as new? Do they salvage some parts and dispose of the rest? Are they built in such a way that the "ink" is just refilled within the printer? And do consumers want to but a "new" printer that is actually refurbished?

Another issue will be how the exchange process works. Does anyone actually like the idea of having to pack up their printer to return to the manufacturer because it is now out of ink? How long is the turn-around time between shipping off the old printer and getting your "new" one?

What do you think about this type of printer? Would you consider buying one? Why or why not?

Congratulations to Dr. Cathy and Advanced Health of Naperville!

Ink Station congratulates Dr. Cathy Subber on her 10th Anniversary treating patients in Naperville. Advanced Health of Naperville is celebrating this milestone with a ribbon-cutting at 4pm on August 25th, featuring Mayor Pradel and the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce.

Visit Dr. Cathy's new website for Advanced Health of Naperville!

Beware of toner scams

This morning at the store, I received an interesting phone call.

The young woman on the other end gave me her spiel, which was to offer me a quote on my inkjet and toner cartridges. "I can probably save you a lot of money next time you need to replace your cartridges."

"Well, that's my business," I told her. "I sell ink and toner, so I would probably be a really bad customer for you." She promptly hung up.

I googled the company's name, and found that they have a long history of scamming businesses. Basically, they call and offer you a free cartridge to try out for 2 weeks. They tell you if you are not happy, you can return it at no charge. Seems like a win-win, right?

Well, they will send you your free cartridge, but then tell you that you have actually agreed to purchase several more cartridges at full price (which, according to some victims cost 3 and 4 times as much as an OEM cartridge at any office supply store). Sometimes the number of cartridges you agreed to purchase will change a couple of times within a single phone call.

The company will then proceed to send out a new order at least once a month, whether you placed an order or not (and usually it seems an order is never placed). They will now begin hounding you to pay invoices for overpriced product that you never even ordered!

Be aware of these tactics. Don't give out your printer models or serial numbers unless you know who you are talking to. My advice is to purchase from a local company with an actual brick and mortar presence.

Problem with HP 90s series cartridges

There seems to be an issue with HP 90 series cartridges, most notably the #93, 95, and 97 cartridges, and to a lesser extent the HP 60 series cartridges.

These cartridges, both original OEM and refilled cartridges, will give an electrical error telling the user that either the cartridge cannot be recognized or that the wrong cartridge is installed. Generally the cartridge will work initially until an error appears.

I use a Deskjet 6940 at the store, and have been using up some introductory HP 97 (OEM) cartridges in it. But periodically, the color cartridge light will flash, telling me that the cartridge cannot be recognized. I will turn the printer off and then on again, and the black cartridge light will flash. I will once again turn the printer off and then on again, and the printer will function fine for a while until the whole cycle repeats itself.

I just wanted to let our customers know that there does seem to be an issue with these cartridges, but the problem is showing up in original HP cartridges just as often as it is in our refilled HP cartridges. We do test the electrical systems prior to refilling and after refilling to be sure we are packaging a working cartridge. The problem seems to indicate that there is an issue with the printer (maybe certain printers?) reading the circuits of the cartridge consistently.

I would love to hear from you if you have seen this problem and have any more information or insights regarding it.

Refilled Lexmark #3, limited supplies!

Ink Station now has refilled Lexmark #3 cartridges available, although the supply is limited. These black ink cartridges are used in the X2480, X2580, X3480, X3580, X4580, Z1380 and Z1480 printers that were sold exclusively at Circuit City stores.

For a short while after the last of the existing Circuit City stores closed, these cartridges, as well as the color #2 cartridge (and the #4 and #5 cartridges for another series of printers), were not available in stores anywhere, and were mostly on back-order through Lexmark's website. Ink Station was able to begin carrying these OEM cartridges shortly after the Circuit City closing.

Ink Station also carries a limited supply of the Lexmark #2 tri-color cartridge. Call or e-mail for price and availability for any of the above-referenced cartridges.

Summer Toner Sale!

Now through the end of August, get an extra 40% off the already reduced prices on select remanufactured toner cartridges! Summer is the perfect time to stock up on your printer supplies; it is also a great time to be set up on our
customized online ordering system. Ordering supplies is as easy as 1-2-3! Call or e-mail us for more information!

www.ink-station.com

Canon to raise inkjet prices July 1

We have just been informed that Canon is increasing the prices tomorrow on many of its inkjet cartridges. The increases range from 3.85% to 17.8%. I do not yet have the official, new MSRP. The price increase appears to affect the PG-35/40/50 and CL-36/41/51/52 series, the BCI-3/6/15 series, and the PGI-5/ CLI-8 series.

Call us for pricing on our remanufactured Canon cartridges.

More value in HP 02 cartridges

Ink Station offers a large selection of cartridges with higher ink volume than the original, new cartridge from the manufacturer.

One of the series of cartridges that features more ink is the HP 02 series. HP sells these cartridges for $19.99 for the black and $10.99 for each of the five colors: cyan, magenta, yellow, photo cyan and photo magenta. Our Ink Station refilled 02 cartridges are $11.99 for the black and $7.99 for the color. That gives you a total savings of $23.00 for a set of 6!

But the value doesn't end there. Ink Station gives you more ink per cartridge! Compare ink levels:

Cartridge	HP Ink Level	Ink Station Ink Level
02 Black	10 ml	36 ml
02 Cyan	4 ml	10 ml
02 Magenta	3.5 ml	10 ml
02 Yellow	6 ml	10 ml
02 Light Cyan	5.5 ml	10 ml
02 Light Magenta	5.5 ml	10 ml

Spend less, print more!

Lexmark cartridges, formerly Circuit City exclusives, now available

Several models of Lexmark printers sold exclusively at Circuit City also used inkjet cartridges that were exclusive to Circuit City as well.

The Lexmark #2 Color (18C0190), #3 Black (18C1530), #4 Black (18C1974) and #5 Color (18C1960), formerly available only at Circuit City, are NOW AVAILABLE AT INK STATION!

Call us for pricing and availability at 630.428.1240, or visit our store in Naperville, Illinois.
We also now have available limited remanufactured Lexmark #2 cartridges. The #3, #4 and #5 cartridges cannot be refilled. If you are interested in getting refillable Lexmark cartridges, ask us about the #3A, #4A and #5A cartridges. Empty cartridges for the A versions are in short supply, so we are currently unable to keep these in stock, but we can refill the A versions using our detailed cleaning and filling process.

http://www.ink-station.com/

Ink Station on Twitter!

Follow Ink Station on Twitter - @inkstation - we will soon tweet exclusive specials and helpful information!

Welcome to Ink Station's new blog!

Ink Station is excited to introduce our brand new blog. Here we hope to share new product releases, technology upgrades, information related to ink, toner, printing and anything else that seems relevant!

Stay tuned!