Answer
Nov 21, 2012 - 12:00 AM
A Waste Toner Cartridge collects unused toner from your printer.
Put simply, not all toner is used in your machine. When printing, the toner is pulled from the cartridge and adheres to a roller, known as an imaging drum. This drum is charged to attract the toner, which is how they come together. The drum continues circulating until it meets the paper that has a stronger charge, pulling the toner from the drum and bonding it with the fibers of the paper.
However, the extra laser toner particles continue turning with the imaging drum. If the waste cartridge wasn’t present, the toner powder would eventually just fall freely into the machine, creating a mess and sometimes compromising the quality of future prints. The waste toner cartridge catches that extra toner that has technically been used but not applied to the paper. Some printers do not use this cartridge as some printer models are designed to have larger cartridges that are two-fold, with a section that holds the toner powder and a compartment to catch the excess toner.
Models that require a waste toner cartridge/bottle will have a sensor that informs the printer when the bottle is full. Some units have an error message show up on an LCD screen while others use an LED light system that may require users to refer to the manual to figure out what the issue actually is.
Hint: When removing the full waste toner cartridge, do so carefully and slowly, trying to avoid getting any toner on clothes or skin.
The waste toner bottle is an essential part of many laser printers, but most users will not have to worry about the maintenance it requires. A waste toner bottle will most likely only need to be replaced once during the life of the printer, if at all.
