Miami/Ft. Lauderdale Copier Rentals: Care & Maintenance Tips

       

Do You Care for Your Copier like You do Your Car?

Maybe you're one of those people who runs your car without a break, a tune up or an oil change. Maybe a quick stop to refill gas and an occasional freebie car wash are all you think your car needs. That will work great for you for a year or two. A brand new car doesn't need much preventative or ongoing maintenance. But after that initial "new car" smell wears off, so will the ability of the car to run endlessly without care. It's then that your lack of preventative care will finally catch up with you. And not only will your mistake be hard on your wallet, it's likely to cost you a lot of time in the shop as well.

What do Cars and Copiers have in Common?

Just like your car, a copier needs regular maintenance to keep it running smoothly and effectively. And unfortunately, much like a car, many people don't bother with routine maintenance and simple repairs until their copier unexpectedly gives out on them. While most people refill their toner regularly to keep clear print coming, that's like simply piling up the gas in the car. Over time a car needs more than gas. It needs oil changes, new brake pads, and tire rotations. And that's all just to ensure that nothing goes wrong. Once there is a broken piece or an accident, often due to poor maintenance, much more work may be required. The same is true for copiers. And at that point, not only will you end up with a significant repair bill, more importantly you may have to endure multiple days of business without this integral office work horse. Copiers, like cars, are there for you, easily overlooked and overworked. Overlooked, that is, until the moment when they break down, rendering an entire office effectively crippled.

So what kind of Maintenance and Repairs do Copiers Need?

Just like you need gas to keep your car running, you will also need toner to keep your copier printing off pages. Keeping a toner full is no big deal with a copier, the lack of ink on the printed page soon informs us when the toner is low. A second, less well known "consumables" cost is the developer. Developer is the name for magnetic powder that is used to fuse with the toner to create great quality printing. While most of us know to replace our toner cartridges when the ink quality starts looking bad, far fewer realize that developer eventually needs replacing as well. That's likely a situation when we'll be calling on an expensive technician to come in and "service" your copier. But it's when you get into the "parts" category that your headache can really turn into a migraine, and your repair bills and the downtime for your copier can get much higher than you anticipated. As we all know, just understanding how to use a copier can be a major effort. Trying to figure out what's wrong with an injured copier is a job for professionals, and their labor costs, along with the parts costs, can very quickly add up.

How Much are Labor Costs for Copier Repairs?

Unfortunately for copier owners, labor costs for copiers are significant. The average rate for a customer repair call is between $90 and $150, here in Miami /Ft. Lauderdale, FL. That adds up quickly especially considering the number of small things that can go wrong with these essential components of the business office.

What about Repairs and Maintenance if you lease a Copier?

Ah. We thought you'd never ask. One of the most significant benefits of leasing a copier in Miami rather than buying one is the repair and maintenance value. Under a copier lease with a reputable company, everything maintenance and repair-related is already covered in the lease agreement (double check your fine print just to be sure.) This means that whether you are experiencing a paper jam due to the new office administrator loading the wrong size paper, or your copier is giving you some kind of strange code that only it understands, a technician can be consulted by phone and can even show up on sight for free, if necessary. This means NO figuring out when to change your toner and NO valuable labor hours lost wrestling with that beast of a copier that keeps your business running. Your copier leasing company can even advise you on best placement for your copier to prevent the common problem of overheating. And since you're leasing, you don't have to worry about which copier uses the least ink and has the lowest life-cycle cost, since toner replacement is already covered under your lease agreement. That means quite a few less headaches for your business, and for you.

Why Should I Lease a Copier rather than Buy One?

Well, I thought I'd already convinced you to lease with all my reminders about the headaches copier repairs and maintenance are likely to cause you. But if that's not enough to sell you on a copier lease, keep the big picture in mind. When you buy a copier, you make a huge financial investment up front, taking a wad of money from your current savings from profits. Meanwhile, a new copier loses value the minute you "drive it off the lot". Add to that the financial hassle of unpredictable repair and maintenance bills to worry about. Then keep in mind the time and energy that one of your staff is going to need to troubleshoot any problems that arise, and your cost for your brand new copier just went up significantly. After a short period of easy use and a typically much longer period of struggles with a big unwieldy machine, you will be left with a dinosaur of a copier that is now worth very little and may not even work. You may even have to pay to get rid of it!

So Should I Lease a Copier?

Please, please, please, reread the above if you are STILL asking this question! The bottom line is, leasing a copier means a predictable monthly cost and predictably available free service and repairs. That means less labor lost, less time wasted and far, far fewer headaches. It's just that simple.