Recycling toner cartridges is not only good for the environment; it’s fairly simple to do. Many outlets that sell toner will not only take your spent cartridge off your hands, but will also offer you a price break on a new cartridge for trading in the old one. The old cartridge is then refilled and sold at a discount.

Toner cartridges are made of intricate parts that wear with use, so the number of times a particular type of cartridge can be refilled is limited. When recycling toner cartridges, the retailer will likely ask if the cartridge has previously been refilled.

For those with a modicum of skill and interest, kits are available that allow you to refill your own toner cartridges. This makes recycling toner cartridges very convenient and inexpensive. Toner refill kits differ, depending on the type of cartridge. Most kits come with basic instructions, and toner is usually packaged in a plastic bottle.

When refilling a toner cartridge, you may need to melt a small “fill hole” into the cartridge casing. A soldering iron can be used for this purpose. Drills are to be avoided, as they force bits of ground plastic into the toner chamber. Toner is poured through the fill hole, which is taped closed afterwards.

When recycling toner cartridges, if the cartridge has been refilled more than a few times, it might be wise to add only a portion of toner rather than filling the entire chamber. If the cartridge goes bad, you will have lost less toner.

Laser printer cartridges come with a built-in drum in most cases. Over time, the drum will wear, leaving marks on the blank areas of the page. The general rule is that a drum-style cartridge can only be refilled once or twice. If you are recycling toner cartridges by refilling your own, you can use the drum as long as it performs well, which might extend well beyond two refills.

Toner can be very messy if handled incorrectly, ruining clothes, carpets, or furniture. It is also harmful to inhale, and many types of toner are considered hazardous. If filling your own toner cartridges, take proper precautions and store refill kits out of the reach of children and pets.

Recycling Ink & Toner Cartridges Helps the Environment

Each year, millions of empty toner and inkJet cartridgesare thrown into the trash, ending up in our planet's landfills or incinerators. Recycling these empty cartridges is easy, profitable and environmentally beneficial. It helps reduce solid waste, conserves raw materials and the energy needed to produce a new product. Most cartridges can be recycled up to six times - they are refurbished, refilled and then resold to consumers at a lower price than brand name cartridges. Recycled cartridges produce the same quality and output as new cartridges. This article discusses the many options that you have to dispose of your empty ink and laser toner cartridges.

At Toner Parts, we care about the environment. That is why we've instated a recycling program that takes your used or empty printer cartridges and disposes of them properly. We want to do our best to help prevent further harm to our environment through educating our customers about the necessity of recycling printer inkJet and laser toner cartridges.

Although, currently the U.S. recycles 28% of its waste - a rate that has almost doubled in the past 15 years, only 5% of empty printer cartridges are being recycled. This is terrible news for future generations as 95% of printer cartridges are discarded and end up in landfills.

Printer cartridge users such as schools and businesses are adding millions of tons of waste each year to our overflowing landfills.

What you can do to help

You can make a difference in the wellbeing of the environment and the preservation of future generations by simply recycling your empty inkJet and laser toner cartridges. We enclose a prepaid recycle pouch with all Toner Parts orders containing eligible cartridges.

Simply return the empty cartridges to us and we will ensure that they are reconditioned for future use or disposed of in a proper manner.

Note: This is a voluntary program. We do not issue credit or refunds for empty cartridges returned to us using the prepaid recycle pouch.