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When To Change Your Laser Printer Drum

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Many home or small businesses owners and large organizations have turned to laser printers for their reliability, print speed, print quality, and the number of pages they can churn out each month. Part of the process in successful printing is the laser drum (where the toner is housed) and below are a few things that may indicate a new drum is necessary.

  • "Firing" blanks - This is one of the easiest ways to tell if your printer drum needs to be changed. If your printer will only spit out blank sheets with no ink on them, then most likely you need to get a new drum. Because the drums last such a long time, you may or may not be able to predict when the toner will run out. Some HP printers will give you a message that tells you how many more sheets it can handle, so you can use that as an indication as well.
  • Fuzzy printing - This is another easy way to tell if the drum is running out of toner. If what is being printed does not appear as crisp and clear as usual, then you will almost definitely need a new toner cartridge.
  • Sound effects - Laser printers can be very quiet while printing, depending on the model. If you hear something out of the ordinary while printing, you should check the drum to see if it worn out. You can refer to your user's manual for the correct way to remove your drum to inspect it.