How To Recycle Xerox Printer Cartridges?

With the millions of users of Xerox printers, we can also expect millions of empty Xerox printer cartridges that are disposed worldwide. How and where will these tons of cartridges will disposed is up to the consumers. It is not uncommon to see people and business establishments throwing away empty Xerox cartridges in trash cans. It is also not uncommon to meet people who are ignorant on the proper way of disposing spent cartridges. Throwing away empty cartridges is an irresponsible act against the environment which is already damaged due to our irresponsible activities.

When thrown to the outside environment, say landfills, printer cartridges release toxic compounds that can pollute soil, water, and air. Imagine the amount of toxic substances released in the environment if million tons of Xerox print cartridges are dumped in landfills. You need to know that cartridges are not like plants and animals that can be decomposed by natural means. Majority of the parts of a cartridge are non-biodegradable or cannot be decomposed by microorganisms. In fact, there are materials in the cartridge that are made up of sturdy polymers that take hundreds or even thousands of years to disintegrate.

With the growing public demand for corporate social responsibility, many printer cartridge manufacturers like Xerox are developing recycling programs to reduce the volume of cartridges dumped in landfills or elsewhere. They also continuously improve their manufacturing process to reduce waste up to zero. Moreover, environmentally friendly materials are being used to minimize the amount of toxic substances released in the environment.

Xerox, one of the leaders and movers of the printer supply industry, has been collecting empty toner cartridges for years now. It has a worldwide program called Xerox Green World Alliance which is boasting 145 million pounds of waste out of landfills since its launch several years ago. A great bulk of these million pounds of waste is empty cartridges. Xerox collects these cartridges from customers and recycles them. They use the various parts of the recycled cartridges to make brand new ones for sale. Some of these parts can actually be recycled more than twice depending on their conditions.

Returning genuine Xerox print cartridges for recycling is easy and free. Whatever the number of cartridges you are willing to return, Xerox will gladly accept them. All you need to do is visit the official site of Xerox and look for the page about Green World Alliance Program. In this page, you can request an eco box with ready to use shipping label. Put your empty cartridges in the box, seal it properly, and hand it over to UPS which will handle the shipping of your eco box. That's it my friend, you are done.

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Card laminators and Card Printers

For most business owners and managers there is no mystery at all in relation to which office gadget to buy: a card printer or a card laminators. They are totally sure of their requirements and expectations; know how much money they can invest in this new technology advancement and are determined to buy what they consider will help them solve their card printing needs. In many other cases, business owners and managers are still doubtful about which device to buy and would really appreciate if somebody provided them with some kind of comparative analysis between the two of them. This article is just written for them. Go on reading and understand what the difference is between a card laminators and a card printer and what their advantages if any are.

As regards the quality of the finished ID card is concerned, there is no doubt at all that if you are really looking for highly professional and neat ID badges you should consider buying a card printer. It works with plastic or PVC cards that do not need to be laminated. On the other hand, a card laminators may leave bubbles if it is not well used and all cards will have a plastic border around them.

If you need to produce a lot of ID cards over a limited period of time, your best alternative is buying a card printer. Some of these devices can be really powerful and they can deliver over 200 identifications in only one printing session. On the other hand, if your printing needs are not so demanding you can consider purchasing a card laminators. If you opt for a cold one, you will be able to produce lots of ID badges in a quite fast manner as you will not have to leave the device to cool down.

Card printers have an additional advantage. Once the information is introduced into the card software system and all the blank cards are loaded, the printer can do everything by itself with little or no supervision at all. Card laminators require more manual effort as cards have to be introduced individually in the laminating pouch.

But if you are interested in versatility, you should definitely consider buying a card laminators. It will allow you to laminate not only identification badges but also any other document or paper you may need or want to have protected from the daily tear and wear such as a memo, a fire exit plan, a price list and so on.

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Customized self-adhesive labels

Custom self-adhesive labels can be found everywhere in our lives; they are found as price stickers, product labels, food labels, you name it. With a custom self-adhesive label, you find an indispensable commercial resource to promote and advertise your business image.

There are different types of self-adhesive labels. The difference lies in the adhesives and different backing liners that range from permanent to low tack. You choose the best type of self-adhesive label to customize it. You can raise brand awareness of your business with a customized self-adhesive label that has your logo or name on it.

The permanent sticker is the most difficult to remove; there will be some adhesive residue remaining when you try to remove this label. The removable labels are only for temporary use and can be removed easily without tearing or leaving glue or any material behind. Low-tack self-adhesive labels adhere to a flat surface with static cling.

When choosing the custom self-adhesive label for your business, you have to take the environment into consideration. The paper labels are not advised for outdoor use as they deteriorate with moisture and UV light exposure. The custom self-adhesive label comes in an infinite choice of colors and materials in either matt or gloss paper finish.

Labels are usually ordered from a color printing shop; however, the custom self-adhesive label has to be ordered from screen printers or from specialist digital label printers. This is because you can supply your own artwork or your brand image here to make your custom self-adhesive label. When creating your custom self-adhesive label, it is important that you mention to the printer where you intend to use the label. Mention whether it is to be used in interior or exterior conditions, permanent or temporary or inside or outside of glass.

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Deck Sealer

When choosing and applying a deck sealer, consider the following:

1. You have choice. You can select just about anything when it comes to deck sealer, you can select a penetrating clear or tinted sealer or a solid color stain. This is totally up to you, and it is pretty much a preference matter.

2. Buy a clear or semi-transparent stain if you want the grain of the wood to show through. This is a beautiful option if you have a deck made from a beautiful wood. If however you use a composite wood, or the graining pattern is bad, or warped, then a clear or semi-transparent stain is not a good idea.

3. You should buy a solid stain if you want the finish to look like paint. Just don't use paint as often this is not enough to protect your deck from the elements.

4. Consider water. Latex or not, you want to make sure the stain or sealer you chose for your deck is labeled "Water Repellent", this is important because you do not want your wood deck to absorb water.

5. Know what the product is good for and not good for, for example, do not use clear finishes such as polyurethane or varnishes as they will degrade under the sun's UV rays, and require more maintenance.

6. Be sure to apply your stain or sealer generously, remember wood absorbs, and often is very porous, so assume nothing. When using a roller for the large flat deck board areas, roll on the sealer or stain, and spread it quickly as it absorbs quickly and you want full and even coverage.

7. Deck dealer should not just be applied to the deck floor, there are other parts of the deck as well such as the railing and balusters. It does not matter how nice the deck floor looks if the railings look worn, older, and weathered. So, for railings, balusters and in between deck boards a roller won't work so use a brush and be thorough. You do not want your deck to look aged simply because you were lazy and missed some spots.

8. Deck sealer dries quickly and you can use your deck again within a few hours, but for best results really give it time to dry thoroughly. Also, do not apply it if there has been rain in the past couple of days, you want to be sure the deck is thoroughly dry before application, so plan accordingly.

9. Sealers won't stick to grease, so pretreat any grease stains caused by drips from grill by scrubbing with a solution of soap and hot water. Even precleaning does not ensure removal of grease from grills, so be thorough here as well, or your sealer may not bond well to the wood. Clean your deck well to get the best adhesion.

10. With whatever deck sealer you choose, be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions, it is their product and they know best, so for best results follow directions.
 
Your deck will look better and last longer if you follow these ten easy suggestions to get the best product and best application possible.

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Tanking slurry To Avoid the Problem of Ground Salts

Cellar Tanking is a term used to describe the waterproofing of a cellar, it is often applied as part of a cellar conversion project or may be installed on its own to create a dry storage space.

By definition, cellar tanking systems are bonded to the walls and floor of an otherwise wet cellar, with the aim of holding back water or dampness, to produce a 'waterproof tank'.

Ground water contains dissolved salts, particularly Nitrates, Chlorides and sometimes Sulphates. They can affect cement based tanking systems in two different ways:

• Sulphate Attack of Cement 
• Growth of Salt Crystals (Chlorides and Nitrates)

1. Sulphate Attack

This is a reaction between the Sulphate and the Calcium Hydroxide and Calcium Silicate hydrate in the cement paste, it results in cracking, expansion and loss of bond between the cement paste and the aggregate with ultimate failure of the tanking system. 

Sources of Sulphate include:

•  Seawater (so be wary in coastal areas) 
•   Oxidation of Sulphide in adjacent clay 
•   Bacterial action producing Sulphur dioxide, which dissolves in water and then oxidises to produce Sulphuric acid.

2. Growth of Salt Crystals.

These can grow within or behind the render of the tanking system itself causing the render to crumble or delaminate. Why do salt crystals grow and what do they look like? The answer to this is simply that ground water contains dissolved salts and as the water evaporates the salt gets left behind, just like it does on a kettle element. So any 'breathable' render will allow salt crystals to be deposited at the point of evaporation, which may be within or behind the render. They are normally white in color but sometimes have a yellowy tint. If water is evaporating from the surface of the wall they will appear as wispy filaments that often get mistaken for mold.

In order to avoid the risk Sulfate attack the ground water should be tested for Sulfates, and if found to be present, a tanking system should be selected which is non-cement based. If cement based tanking material must be used, for whatever reason, then a salt inhibitor based on Zinc hexafluorosilicate (also known as Zinc hexafluoride - ZnSiF6) can be used, it is available under various brand names and is easily obtained from most specialist material suppliers. This should be applied to the masonry before the cellar Tanking slurry or render. Particular attention should be paid to the health and safety data which will normally be supplied with the the product.

In order to avoid damage by the growth of salt crystals a tanking system can be selected, which is non-breathable, a bonded sheet membrane would fit this category but be aware of limited ability to hold back water pressure. A non-bonded plastic or foil lined cavity drainage membrane is the best, as these allow water pressure to dissipate - see my other article on 'cavity drainage membranes'.

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