Epson Printer: Leave It On Or Turn It Off?

[Alan Smithee]

I know the conventional wisdom with Epson Printers is to turn them off when
not in use, but, it seems when I go into a routine of turning off the
printer my ink counters start nose-diving. When I leave the printer on it
seems like my ink counters stay up a lot longer. Am I just imagining things?
Epson R300 printer. Thx. p.s. Is there a utility which will automatically
powers off an Epson printer? Similar to a screen saver? Or does the printer
have enough smarts to park the print head? Thx again. Merry Christmas Happy
New Year.

 

[measekite]

EVERY TIME YOU TURN THEM OFF AND ON THEY GO THROUGH A LONGER CLEANING
CYCLE USING INK. I KNOW A R300 USER THAT HAD ONE FOR OVER A YEAR AND
NEVER TURNED IT OFF.

 

[Safetymom123]

Turn it off until you are ready to use it. It will run a smaller cycle than
if you leave it waiting all day and then go to print. It does not park the
heads until you turn the printer off.

 

[measekite]

That is not what Epson Tech Suppt told me. My friend leaves his R300 on
all of the time. Maybe different models work differently with Epson.

 

[Bob Headrick]

Turn it off until you are ready to use it. It will run a smaller cycle than
if you leave it waiting all day and then go to print. It does not park the
heads until you turn the printer off.

I believe the printheads are parked a short time after the end of a print job.
If not they would quickly dry out.

- Bob Headrick

 

[SamSez]

I know the conventional wisdom with Epson Printers is to turn them off
when not in use, but, it seems when I go into a routine of turning off
the printer my ink counters start nose-diving. When I leave the
printer on it seems like my ink counters stay up a lot longer. Am I
just imagining things? Epson R300 printer. Thx. p.s. Is there a
utility which will automatically powers off an Epson printer? Similar
to a screen saver? Or does the printer have enough smarts to park the
print head? Thx again. Merry Christmas Happy New Year.

I thought the 'conventional wisdom' was the exact opposite. I suggest you
leave it on all the time. I even have mine on a UPS so power line hits
won't cycle it. The heads are always parked when it's not printing.

 

[Safetymom123]

They are not completely parked until you turn the power button off. That is
why you should use the power button and not just turn off with a surge
strip.

Test it for yourself. Notice how much longer the cycle is when you have
left the printer on all day before printing than it is by turning it on and
printing.

 

[Bill KB3GUN]

They are not completely parked until you turn the power button off. That
is why you should use the power button and not just turn off with a surge
strip.

Test it for yourself. Notice how much longer the cycle is when you have
left the printer on all day before printing than it is by turning it on
and printing.

I leave my R200 on all the time (24/7) and have never had a problem with it.
1st page printing starts within 10 seconds of hitting the print button. Some
days I print alot, sometimes it's weeks between prints. I haven't had any
ink-jams since I got it 2 years ago and I've replaced cartriges about 8
times since then.

-Smitty

 

[measekite]

I leave my R200 on all the time (24/7) and have never had a problem with it.
1st page printing starts within 10 seconds of hitting the print button. Some
days I print alot, sometimes it's weeks between prints. I haven't had any
ink-jams since I got it 2 years ago and I've replaced cartriges about 8
times since then.

-Smitty

Are you using Epson carts

 

[Rob]

I thought the 'conventional wisdom' was the exact opposite. I suggest you
leave it on all the time. I even have mine on a UPS so power line hits
won't cycle it. The heads are always parked when it's not printing.

Thats correct, I have both the R210 and R1800, The R1800 is never off as
it will cycle and clean when its switched on - using ink -

I just make sure that its used on a regular basis to ensure that the
heads don't clog. I was having problems with heads clogging when I only
used it infrequently - and it went through the cycles - needing constant
cleaning.


BTW the R1800 uses genuine ink - this at present is to ensure the
archival properties when selling prints - if any problems the onus is
back to Epson for them to explain.

 

[Arthur Entlich]

Some Epson printers will do a cleaning cycle whether left on or shut
off, after a certain period of time, as determined in firmware.

Some newer models seem to allow for a bit more "user determination".


Art