Save money and cut paper use in half – is it duplex?

You can save a lot of money, and paper, by using duplex or double-sided printing, printing on both sides of the sheet. Since single-sided (simplex) printing only uses one side of the paper, you can see how you can quickly and easily save up to 50% on paper costs.

In addition to saving many trees, it will handle, move and store only half the paper. This will save file space and make it a lot easier if you ever have to move all those printed documents, and less expensive for documents you need to mail. Just … Duplex.

Many printers, especially the heavier work units found in larger offices, have built-in duplex printing capabilities. Simpler printers used at home or in small offices may not have duplex printing available out of the box. However, it is easy to print a multi-page document on both sides of the sheet. Different computers and different programs will have different ways to achieve manual two-sided duplexing for printers without this feature, but even simple and inexpensive inkjet printers can do it.

The essence of duplex printing with printers that do not have the built-in function is to print the even pages first, then flip the printed sheets, reinsert them into the paper supply, and print the odd pages. Caution here: You MUST print the even pages first and then the odd pages or it won’t work. Experiment with a simple two-page document to learn how to turn the paper, and once you’ve got it, you’ll start to see the savings right away.

The print dialog screen is the place to set up duplex printing. First of all, the printer dialog screen coming from the printer may have a Manual Duplex click box. You may have to click the Properties selection to access this dialog. If so, select it and follow the instructions. If your printer driver does not have this feature, find a place to check Manual Duplex, and then follow the instructions. Or there may be a drop-down box or menu to select Print Even Pages and Print Odd Pages. To print your document on both sides, select File> Print, then select Print Even Pages and click Print. After the even pages have printed, turn the paper over and put it back in the paper supply. File> Print again, but this time, select Print Odd Pages – and Print and you will have a document printed correctly on both sides of the page – and you will have cut your paper usage in half.

The important thing is to be your own “Energy and Resource Patrol” and always look for ways to save resources, energy and money. It is good for the earth and good for your wallet.