Most consumer and small business laser printers use a toner cartridge that combines the photoreceptor (otherwise named photoconductor unit) with the supply toner and waste toner bottle and the various wiper blades. When the supply toner runs out, replacing the cartridge also automatically replaces the photoreceptor, waste toner bottle, and blades.
Some small consumer printers use a separate toner bottle that can be replaced several times separately from the photoreceptor, allowing for a much lower cost of operation. High-volume business laser printers separate all components into individual modules.
After printing about fifty thousand pages, typical maintenance is to vacuum the mechanism, and clean or replace the paper handling rollers. The rollers have a thick rubber coating, which eventually suffers wear and becomes covered with slippery paper dust. They can usually be cleaned with a damp lint-free rag and there are chemical solutions that can help restore the traction of the rubber.
After one hundred thousand pages, it is common for the fuser assembly to either wear out or need cleaning. The fuser heating rollers are often coated with an oil that prevents toner from sticking to the rollers. A small amount of the oil coating is absorbed by each piece of paper passing through the fuser, eventually requiring the oil supply to be replenished or the pressure roller assembly to be completely replaced. It is common for the fuser assembly to be left unmentioned until the toner starts sticking to the rollers, which creates a repeating ragged line on every printed page due to the rollers not being smooth anymore.
Color laser printers are typically more expensive and higher maintenance than monochrome laser printers since they contain more imaging components. Color laser printers intended for high volume use may require supplies that monochrome printers do not use, while the least expensive consumer color laser printers are expected to wear out and fail four times faster during color printing, compared to monochrome printing.
Due to current market incentives, the least expensive consumer color laser printers often cost less than the total value of the replacement parts inside the printer. The photoreceptor assembly for example may last 100,000 pages but may cost as much to replace as buying a new printer with new toner cartridges included.
Many modern color laser printers mark printouts by a nearly invisible dot raster, for the purpose of identification. The dots are yellow and about 0.1 mm in size, with a raster of about 1 mm. This is purportedly the result of a deal between the US government and printer manufacturers to help track counterfeiters.
The dots encode data such as printing date, time, and printer serial number in binary-coded decimal on every sheet of paper printed, which allows pieces of paper to be traced by the manufacturer to identify the place of purchase, and sometimes the buyer. Some are concerned that this is a threat to the privacy and anonymity of those who print.
Safety hazards and precautions
Shock hazards
Although modern printers include many safety interlocks and protection circuits, it is possible for a high voltage or a residual voltage to be present on the various rollers, wires, and metal contacts inside a laser printer. Care should be taken to avoid unnecessary contact with these parts to reduce the potential for electical shock.
Toner clean-up
Toner particles are designed to have electrostatic properties and can develop static-electric charges when they rub against other particles, objects, or the interiors of transport systems and vacuum hoses. Because of this and its small particle size, toner should not be vacuumed with a conventional home vacuum cleaner. Static discharge from charged toner particles can ignite dust in the vacuum cleaner bag or create a small explosion if sufficient toner is airborne. This may damage the vacuum cleaner or start a fire. In addition, toner particles are so fine that they are poorly filtered by conventional household vacuum cleaner filter bags and blow through the motor or back into the room.
Toner particles melt (or fuse) when warmed. Small toner spills can be wiped up with a cold, damp cloth.
If toner spills into the laser printer, a special type of vacuum cleaner with an electrically conductive hose and a high efficiency (HEPA) filter may be needed for effective cleaning. These are called ESD-safe (Electrostatic Discharge-safe) or toner vacuums. Similar HEPA-filter equipped vacuums should be used for clean-up of larger toner spills.
Toner is easily cleaned from most water-washable clothing. As toner is a wax or plastic powder with a low melting temperature, it must be kept cold during the cleaning process. Washing a toner stained garment in cold water is often successful. Even warm water is likely to result in permanent staining. The washing machine should be filled with cold water before adding the garment. Washing through two cycles improves the chances of success. The first may use hand wash dish detergent, with the second cycle using regular laundry detergent. Residual toner floating in the rinse water of the first cycle will remain in the garment and may cause a permanent graying. A