[Hidden-tech] Local Printer Repair

[Jonathan Dill]

David Shakun wrote:
> Any recommendations for area businesses that perform printer (inkjet, 
> laser) repair?
An inkjet printer is essentially a sales vehicle for ink cartridges.  If 
you put environmental concerns aside, I would expect it to almost never 
be cost-effective to repair an inkjet printer unless it is a really 
high-end unit, or you can find someone who repairs a lot of inkjet 
printers so can do it at a lower cost.  I wonder if any manufacturers 
out there are taking back old printers and trying to recycle them or 
anything, that would definitely be a good thing and I'd like to hear 
about it.  Beware of Dell inkjets though, they are cheap plastic junk 
and poorly supported in my opinion.

If the printer is out of warranty, it looks like something is clogged 
up, and you won't cry if it ends up trashing your printer, you might be 
able to do something with swabs and high purity isopropyl alcohol 
(97-99%).  I used to do that myself when inkjets were more expensive.  
The best swabs are foam-tipped, the ones I got were sold for cleaning 
the heads in magnetic tape drives.  Cotton swabs can leave fibers that 
will leave streaks on printouts.

Jonathan