In 2002 approximately 2 million remanufactured cartridges were saving more than 3 million gallons of oil. Half gallon of oil is conserved for every laser cartridge that is returned for remanufacturing. Save energy to remanufacture cartridges saves energy. It takes less energy to remanufacture a cartridge than to produce a new remanufacturing companies for all types of products each year save so much energy equivalent to that produced by five nuclear power plants. The average weight of a toner cartridge is 3.5 to 4 pounds which means that the total weight of cartridges that are discarded every year is equivalent to 67,612 Ford Explorers.
Reduce waste Most cartridges have more than three pounds of plastic. Unfortunately the plastic is not recyclable in landfills will take more than 100 years to biodegrade. Many consumers are familiar with the number of systems used to indicate the level of recycling of plastics, ranging from the most recyclable 1 to 7 the most difficult to recycle. Most of the laser toner is rated at 7 because they contain mixtures of plastic resins, it is estimated that only 5 to 10 percent of plastics are recycled in this category. Moreover, the toner waste are rarely completely separated from plastics, toner, contaminating the plastic and making the likelihood that the cartridges are recycled is very small. The best choice is the largest remanufacturing way to prevent products that can be reused will waste deposits. Although recycling has a number of laser cartridges benefits, remanufacturing is a superior choice, both economically and environmentally.
The remanufactured cartridges are particularly difficult to recycle because they are composed of different types of plastics and must be completely dismantled and sorted. In addition the cartridges are dirty with toner powder and contain parts that are not plastic. The remanufacturing allows the cartridges are cleaned, inspected and reloaded, reusing most of its original parts. For every cartridge that is remanufactured prevents more than a pound of plastic will end up in the sources of waste.