Published data on cost of inkjet printing

[Roy Sletcher]

From time to time the subject arises in these forums about the cost of inkjet printing.

It is hard to get accurate data that can be verified unless you spend a lot of money and time compiling the raw data.

The following link at Red River Paper website now gives current ink usage costs for the main consumer Epson and Canon printers. Their methodology is listed for those who, like me, tend to pick nits out of the data.

http://www.redrivercatalog.com/cost-of-inkjet-printing.html

Without getting too far into the details it tells me that users refilling the Canon Pro 100, after two complete sets of PC refills have been processed, have saved more than enough in ink costs to pay for a new printhead should one be needed.

After that is is all gravy! Maybe that was the oblique reference from one of Websnails recent references to his culinary skills in making gravy. " ;-) just sayin."

Your mileage may vary

Roy Sletcher
- still printing after all these years.

 

[fotofreek]

Roy - thanks for the link re: ink costs. The Red River methodology was pragmatic and close enough for me. How nice it is to easily reduce our ink costs by 90% or more with a bit of time and patience. A decade of refilling has more than paid for the printers I've used.

 

[stratman]

Thanks for the enjoyable read, Roy. It gave me a warm fuzzy to see the savings.

 

[palombian]

I can print maximum 15 A3+ (13x19) or equivalent on high quality with a set of cartridges (10x14ml) on the 9500.
With I.S. ink this costs me 21 EUR.
This is 1,4 EUR or about 1,90 USD per print WITH 3th PARTY INK COSTING 1/5 OF THE ORIGINAL (internet discount price).
No problem for me, but stop distributing these Red River numbers.

 

[fotofreek]

Is that

I can print maximum 15 A3+ (13x19) or equivalent on high quality with a set of cartridges (10x14ml) on the 9500.
With I.S. ink this costs me 21 EUR.
This is 1,4 EUR or about 1,90 USD per print WITH 3th PARTY INK COSTING 1/5 OF THE ORIGINAL (internet discount price).
No problem for me, but stop distributing these Red River numbers.

Is that the cost of the ink AND paper? Red River is a reputable paper vendor, and i expect that their evaluation, while quite pragmatic, is probably pretty close for the cost of OEM inks. Their disclaimer is that costs would vary based on coverage and quality of the print settings.

 

[palombian]

Is that

Is that the cost of the ink AND paper? Red River is a reputable paper vendor, and i expect that their evaluation, while quite pragmatic, is probably pretty close for the cost of OEM inks. Their disclaimer is that costs would vary based on coverage and quality of the print settings.

Only ink.
Taken into account I do not make all prints in 1 run (as in the test), but let's say over a week.
My paper costs between 0,50 and 2 EUR per A3+.
Most paper vendors advise to print with the highest quality settings, but it is maybe possible to consume less ink with a lower quality.
The way the printer applies ink (nbr of passes) depends also on the paper type.
Reducing the quality risks cartridge ink delivery problems especially with 3th party ink, so I don't think this is the way to go.

 

[turbguy]

With refilling with decent quality inks, the PAPER becomes the Lion's Share of per print costs (ignoring initial investment in the printer).

In reality, the MOST expensive print is....THE FIRST ONE YOU PRINT!

It's all downhill from there, and the slope is steeper using refilling. It asymptotically approaches the cost of the paper...

 

[fotofreek]

Reducing the quality risks cartridge ink delivery problems especially with 3th party ink, so I don't think this is the way to go.

I've been refilling OEM carts with IS inks for over 10 years. With good technique, proper care of the carts, and testing ink flow as carts have been refilled several times, I really haven't had ink delivery problems to speak of. A simple "drip" test and/or blowing gently on a refilled cart's air vent to be sure some ink drips out easily will assure you that ink delivery won't be a problem. If the cart doesn't actively drip, purging, drying, and refilling gets that cart back in good shape. Some of the OEM carts I've been refilling for up to ten years (with occasional purging) are still in use!

 

[palombian]

My ink feeding/banding problem with PGI-9 cartridges on some printers was indeed a problem with the ink, not with my cartridge care

Above experiences are with pigment ink.
In general the price difference with OEM is less than for dye inks.
But as already said this vanishes against the setup costs (resetters, profiling, ...) and the paper (I start to understand compatible inks need more expensive paper ) .