There are quite a few things we think about when buying toner, from price to brand to where we buy it, but safety might not be on that list.
In fact, safety is probably pretty low on the list of concerns when thinking about office supplies and equipment in general.
That’s alright because making copies isn’t the most dangerous thing we do all day. During normal operation, printing with and using toner is very safe, but there are some things to keep in mind when handling and using toner and printers.
First of all, let’s get this out of the way: printing is safe.
There should be, under normal circumstances, no real reason to worry about being near office equipment.
Now that we’ve said that, printers can and do emit carbon monoxide (CO). The cooling and air circulation functions inside the machines expel warm air from the moving parts, and in doing so push out the CO gases that the printer can create during operation.
This doesn’t mean that they are giant gas-making machines, though, as printers won’t get hot enough to produce a ton of CO under normal operation. When machines get really hot and are kept in rooms where the ventilation is poor, gases can build up and cause problems for anyone that is in the space with them for extended periods of time.
Even when operating normally, however, certain parts of printers do get very warm.
It’s actually a requirement of toner that it is heated by a laser to melt the powders inside the cartridges to print. Other moving parts inside, especially rollers and other pieces that move paper through the printer can get very hot, which can cause burns if touched too soon after printing. Most of us will never come in contact with these parts, but printers do jam and have other issues occasionally, so we do have to reach inside to help things keep moving when these things happen.
Toner Contact
Toner cartridges themselves are also considered to be safe in general, but when broken they can release harmful toxins that are used to create the powder inside. A chemical called carbon black is used when creating the powder inside toner, which is known to be a carcinogen. As with the printers themselves, toner is pretty benign, and most people will never come in contact with the harmful stuff inside, but there can be some danger if the cartridge is damaged or broken during shipping or normal use.
When printers heat the powder inside toner cartridges with a laser to print on a page, this doesn’t release that powder out into the air, so there is no increased risk of breathing it in when printing normally.
What Can You Do To Stay Safe?
All of that sounds pretty scary, right? Probably not, but taking some precautions when handling and using toner, printers, and other office equipment is still a good idea.
Everyone is always fighting over the office temperature and who is hot or cold, but the movement of air through the space is important to helping us breathe. When people are packed into a space with little air movement and lots of fluorescent lights, printers, computers, and someone microwaving fish in the kitchen, the quality of the air being breathed in degrades quickly and significantly. Being sure to have a properly maintained HVAC system will greatly help cut down on these issues and move any harmful things in the air out of the space.
Office design also plays a role in this area. It can be tempting and very convenient to place printers at “hub” locations, where many employees have quick access to them. If at all possible, locating office equipment a short distance away from employees’ desks will help cut down on any risk (even small) of them breathing in or coming in contact with any harmful chemicals or gases if an issue came up.
Next, any printer issues more complicated than a simple paper jam should be handled by a trained professional. Printers are pretty safe and the risks of getting hurt are low, but fiddling around inside a complicated machine greatly increases your chances of encountering a problem.
Last, and this is a big one: make sure the toner you’re buying is authentic and not repackaged. This will help cut down on damaged toner out of the box and reduce the risk of coming into contact with toner powder and any of the potentially harmful agents that come along with it.
Make sure you’re storing the toner in an area that is both dry and well ventilated without too many temperature extremes. Since toner is activated by a heating element (laser) inside the printer, you won’t want them to heat up before the printing actually takes place.
To be clear: under normal operation, printers and toners are very safe.
There should be no reason to have a fear of being hurt when making copies at the office. Taking simple precautions by checking toner for damage and not trying a DIY printer repair will go a long way toward making sure you stay safe when operating the office equipment. Even with all the caution in the world, people can have accidents, and it may not always be obvious when a problem happens.
Of course, if someone comes experiences an issue, especially one that causes discomfort or pain, consulting medical professionals and sending that person to the doctor will always be the best policy.
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