You’ve spent a good amount of money on your inkjet, or laser, printer. You definitely want to be able to keep it printing as best it can for as long as possible. Here are 11 tips that will help you do that.

1. Clean your printer: Clean the outside by wiping it with a soft, slightly damp cloth from time to time. This will keep dust from accumulating on your printer and keep it looking pretty. More importantly, CLEAN THE INSIDE. It is very easy and will have the biggest impact on your printer’s performance. Whenever you open your printer look around for paper dust and debris. If you see any, use a can of compressed air to blow the dust and debris out. Better yet, set a monthly task reminder to do this.

2. Don’t use bent, torn, or used paper: I am all for recycling paper. The stuff that has already been through the printer once but still has a blank side. Unfortunately this is not what is best for your printer. This type of paper is more likely to cause paper jams. A paper jam increases the risk of other problems within your printer. Paper is meant to move smoothly through your printer. A jam, or how you remove the jammed paper, can cause other problems. These problems are usually costly ones too. We now use our blank sides for taking notes, or letting the kids draw on.

3. Use quality paper: In an attempt to save some money, many of us purchase medium to low grade paper. Not good! You should always use 20-24 pound paper. Your printer manufacturer may also publish a minimum paper standard (the lowest pound paper you should use). Check the manufacturers web site to find out what this is. You can also check the box your printer came in (specs are usually printed on the box) or in the user manual that came with your printer. Using the wrong kind of paper can cause paper jams, which as we said above, leads to added expenses.

4. Don’t fan the paper before loading: Guilty! Or at lease I used to be. Fanning the ream of paper before loading it will not reduce paper jams. It actually can cause static electricity to build up between the pages, which will cause more paper jams. Just put the paper in the paper tray and let the printer worry about seperating.

5. Store your paper in a low humidity environment: High humidity can cause pieces of paper to stick together. When paper sticks together, you get paper jams. Always store your paper in a low humidity environment. You should also operate your printer in a low humidity environment.

6. Use high quality labels: Whenever you use your printer to print labels, make sure you use a high quality label. When you use a laser printer to print labels you should definitely use high quality labels. The heat from the laser printer will cause cheap labels to peel from the sheet and stick to your laser printer roller. It is a tough task to peel the label from the roller and then make sure there isn’t any label adhesive left. Major, major headache! It can cost a few hundred dollars to replace damaged parts in a laser printer.

7. Use the straightest paper path for labels: This means that use the paper tray that will allow for the fewest bends. If you can do a straight feed then that is the way to go. This will reduce the chance of labels peeling from their sheet. We all know the damage labels can do to a printer (see #6).

8. Replace old and worn rollers: The rollers are what move your paper through the printer. As they get older then become smoother and won’t pull the paper as well. This increases your chance for a paper jam. You can buy roller kits, which provide new rollers. You can also purchase kits that will allow you to ‘rough up’ your rollers. If you want to save a few dollars you can rough up your rollers yourself. Just use a small file and rub it against the rollers. When you do this, be sure you rough the roller surface evenly. Uneven rollers will cause problems too.

9. Close the manual feed tray when it is not in use: Leaving an unused tray open will allow excess dust in to the printer. Worse, you could accidentally bump something up against the open tray and break it. At that point the tray will be permanently open, and you will have created an additional step when it comes time to print. You might need to continually tell your printer which tray to print from. Printers often sense an open tray as the default paper source.

10. Be careful when you replace printer parts: Printer manufacturers are using more and thinner plastic. This makes printers more prone to damage if they are not handled with more care. Any time you open your printer, be it to replace an empty cartridge or to replace parts, do so with great care. Never use excessive force. When a plastic component breaks it most likely means that you are going to purchasing a new printer.

11. Purchase a service manual: NOT a service warranty or plan, but a manual. You can get these from the manufacturer, and they will tell you how to take care of your printer. They will also tell you how to repair your printer should anything break. Most even come with a pretty good set of diagrams. If you plan on doing any type of self-diagnosing and fixing of your printer while you own it, you are going to need a service manual.

Do you have any printer care tips that we have not mentioned here? If so, take a second to comment and let us know.