How to Protect Your Thermal Transfer Printer’s Printhead?

Thermal Transfer Printing is a popular printing method in most industries; It is used to transfer ink from a ribbon onto a substrate. The printhead is a very important and valuable component in your Thermal Transfer Printer. By using a high-quality Thermal Transfer Ribbon, and using it in the right way, will last longer your printhead and the print quality will be better.

There are three causes for the wear and tear on printheads:
1-Too much heat
2-The printhead contact with a rough substrate directly
3-Pollution

When a printhead is not performing correctly, white lines and dots will come out on the print. The quality of the print will deteriorate and the scannability of barcodes becomes problematic.

To protect your Thermal Transfer Printhead, make sure to:
1-Use a ribbon with the highest possible print sensitivity, and pick the lowest heat settings to ensure the optimal performance of the ribbon.
2-Make sure that the ribbon is wider than the substrate it’s printed on, ensuring that the substrate has no direct contact with the printhead.
3-Use an anti-static ribbon, which won’t attract dust and pollute the printhead.

All Startec Brand YD Thermal Transfer Ribbons have an anti-static back-coat, preventing the build-up of dust,  which can effectively protect the printhead.

If you need advice determining how you can optimize printhead life and avoid pollution by using the right ribbon, we are here to help!