Laser printer low-toner warning "valid?"

[230RN]

New to laser printers.  I'm now getting low toner warnings, and I've overidden them by shaking up the toner cartridge.

But I was wondering what symptoms occur when the thing really starts to run completely out of toner.  Faint printing?  The printer really stops?  Are there any dangers to the printer itself when it runs really "dry?"

Is my being a royal-class cheapskate counter-productive?

Terry

[Marnoot]

Worst case is you'll start getting spotty, white-streaky, or faint pages. If you're happy with the output, I'd just keep milking the existing toner cartridge until you're not.

[lee n. field]

New to laser printers.  I'm now getting low toner warnings, and I've overidden them by shaking up the toner cartridge.

But I was wondering what symptoms occur when the thing really starts to run completely out of toner.  Faint printing?  The printer really stops?  Are there any dangers to the printer itself when it runs really "dry?"

Is my being a royal-class cheapskate counter-productive?

Terry

faint printing, usually.   You probably got a "starter cartridge" with the new printer.  Yes, shaking the toner cartridge will freshen it for a little while.   

[230RN]

I've already gone through the starter cartridge, doing the shaking bit, but since I had a large printing job, I put in a new midsized cartridge.  That's the one that's in it now, with the low warnings.  But I now have another 150 page job to print, so that's why I'm asking how far I should take it with the present one without messing up the job --or screwing up the printer.

With the information from here, I guess I don't have to worry about printer damage, so I can print and observe the output and re-start the job with a new cartridge when it's needed for sure.

That was the main thing, about damaging the printer itself.

Thanks !

Terry

[Firethorn]

That was the main thing, about damaging the printer itself.

1.  You're not going to harm the printer running it out of toner
2.  The main thing is that you'll eventually start getting fainter prints or white streaks.  White streaks can be fixed, briefly, by shaking the toner cartridge.
3.  I've put several reams through my current printer with it estimating my remaining toner at 0%.  I wouldn't worry about it as long as you're willing to restart the job if necessary.

[GigaBuist]

We go hundreds of pages beyond the low toner warning frequently.  When the print starts to look bad then you need to change it.

[230RN]

All very comforting.  I'll run this job, and re-print the remainder after or if it screws up.  My plan was to return the two (starter and present cartridge) for the return credit.  I still have a new, sealed one on standby from when I bought the printer.

I'm gonna go for the high-capacity one (2600 pages?) next time I buy.  (Still beats the HP inkjet costs, even if I have to print color stuff at Walgreen's.)

Terry

[Firethorn]

One thought I have is that laser printers are near universally rated for far higher duty cycles than standard inkjets. 

The low toner warning is intended for when you're printing 500 or more pages/day, and in a business environment where it might take 5 days or so to get another toner cartridge.

So yeah, you probably have a thousand or more pages left between the two cartridges.