Maintaining your fax machine is easier than you think. Keeping your office equipment maintained will help your organization keep costs down by extending the time between repairs and eventual replacement.

Fax machines use a scanner assembly to create an image of the document you want to send. Over time the scanner glass component will accumulate ink from the documents that are being scanned and this will cause the facsimile on the receiving end to have spots and other marks that were not a part of the original document. When printing a document your fax machine utilizes a print head, which through general use, will gain spots that will affect the quality of the prints of the documents you receive. Cleaning the scanner glass and print head is an easy process that will both save your organization money and improve the quality of the documents you send and receive.

Cleaning your fax machine really is an easy process. First, unplug the telephone line, then the power cord. Then wipe any dirt off of the exterior of the unit using a slightly damp cloth. Next, to clean the scanner, moisten a piece of lint-free cloth with Isopropyl alcohol and use it to remove any dirt from the glass cover of the scanner. Next, to clean the print head, moisten another lint-free cloth with Windex then wipe the edge of the print head until the dirt is removed. Finally, reconnect the power cord, then the telephone line cord. The simple maintenance of your fax machine is now complete.

At some point in your fax machines life the quality of the documents that are transmitted will begin to degrade. Unless there has been physical damage to the scanner glass or print head a simple cleaning will restore much of the quality that has been lost.