Practical Printing Paper Preparedness... What?

This email question comes from an anonymous source.

"I am printing a tabloid size poster, but having problems with the quality of the prints. I was using an HP large format color laser printer, but not able to get the total resolution that I required. So, I switched to an Epson large format inkjet printer, and now, the printed pages all come out smudged and smeared. What should I do?"

In diagnosing this problem there are two things to consider. The first; Is the printer malfunctioning? The color laser printer was fine, except for the lower resolution of 600 dpi on matte paper. The inkjet printer’s print heads could be malfunctioning and causing the smudges if they are in need of cleaning or replacement. The second consideration; Is the proper paper being used? Different paper is used in these two types of printers.

Because the print from the laser printer seemed to be fine except for the quality ( I asked), my first instinct is to blame the paper. It turned out, that I was right. The paper that this person used, was standard matte quality laser printer paper. We also cleaned the print heads several times to insure that they were not contributing to the problem.

The paper used for printing on a laser printer is very different than paper used for printing on an inkjet printer. The reason for this is the printing process itself. A laser printer uses a heat transfer process to bond the special powdered ink to the paper using a fuser (heating element). An inkjet printer uses a chemical bond to adhere the liquid ink to the paper and does not use any heat at all.

Using inkjet paper in a laser printer is very bad, as it may melt and ruin the fuser of the printer. Fusers can cost as much as $250 each. Other types of paper that should not be used in a laser printer, are copier paper, recycled paper, vellum, overhead projector transparencies, inkjet transparencies, brown paper bags, construction paper, acetate,and others.

Using laser paper in an inkjet printer is not as bad for the printer, but will not provide the proper results. The ink will not adhere properly to the page and will most likely smudge. This can also decrease the life of the print heads of the printer. You should not use acetate, or laser printer transparencies on an inkjet printer, because the ink will not be absorbed, or dry on the page. The excess ink can clog the print heads. You should not use papers with very high rag content (see this site), such as brown bag paper, or construction paper, as they will cause the print heads to wear out prematurely due to the fibers of the paper coming in contact with them.

The bottom line; Always use the correct paper for the type of printer you are using. Not doing so, can damage the printer and a damaged printer will cost more than changing the paper.