Maintenance supplies
When it comes to maintaining a color label printer, supplies maintenance is essential. On this page you will find the necessary information to keep your label printer running at its best. Whether you are a professional who uses a color label printer on a daily basis or an enthusiastic hobbyist who occasionally prints labels, our maintenance supplies will help you maximize the life and reliability of your printer.
Expiration date and ink life
Don't worry about the date on your cartridge
When you open a pack of ham or any other food product, you naturally pay attention to the expiration date. But with a cartridge, it works a little differently. The date you see on a cartridge is usually the manufacturer’s production date or expiration date.
After that date, the manufacturer no longer guarantees the quality, but that doesn’t mean the cartridge is no longer usable. On the contrary, most cartridges continue to function perfectly even after this date has passed. Moreover, in most cases the warranty is based on the date of sale, not the date of manufacture. And you get that warranty from the seller, not the manufacturer.
Bottom line: see an expired date on your cartridge? Don’t panic. As a customer, you don’t have to worry about that at all.
Shelf life of ink cartridges
This has to do with how the cartridges are stored
Ink cartridges contain liquid ink. The ink dries very quickly when it comes into contact with air. This is the intention when printing, of course. The cartridges are designed so that no air can get to the ink. Only when printing will the ink come out of the cartridge. But nothing is 100% sealed of course, you can’t store a cartridge for centuries either. If the cartridges are left idle for a long time or stored in the wrong conditions, the ink may start to solidify or even dry up.
Therefore, we recommend storing inkjet cartridges in a cool and dry environment. Make sure you do not remove the cartridges from their airtight packaging until you use them effectively. In addition, how you place the cartridges in the cabinet or rack is important. Each cartridge has a specific top and bottom. Only when properly stored will they continue to work properly. Therefore, be sure to read the manufacturer’s instructions or contact our supplies service if in doubt.
Once your cartridge is in the printer, it can dry out. Fortunately, current generations of printers take care themselves to keep the ink from drying out. They do this by occasionally starting a “cleaning program. Of course, this can only be done when cartridges are installed in the printer and the printer is connected to AC power. So make sure that you do not disconnect your printer from power to ensure the longevity of your cartridges.
Shelf life of toner cartridges
For toner cartridges, the date listed is usually the production date. Toner is not a liquid ink, but a dry powder. Through an electric charge, this powder is transferred to the paper, after which the powder is baked in the oven and thus adheres to the paper.
Thus, the powder in a toner cartridge cannot dry out like ink, which gives toner printers an added advantage in storage. However, the toner powder can clump via contact with water. So moisture in the air can also cause those in the long run.
So store your toner in a cool and dry place, just like inkjet cartridges, and open the airtight container only when you are actually going to use the toner.
Shelf life of labels
Tasco’s roll labels are always packed airtight to maintain their adhesive strength. Despite this precaution, we recommend not taking more than a year’s supply of rolls. Of course, this does not mean that the labels will no longer stick after a year, but their resistance will decrease.
After we print our labels, we will talk about the concept of longevity. The label will have undergone some “wear and tear” due to outside influences. You may see discoloration if the label is exposed to the sun for a long time, or bleeding ink if it is exposed to the rain for too long. It all depends on the printing technology, material and machine used.