How to Install Brother Toner Cartridges and Why a New Toner Cartridge Is Smaller Than the Original?

Andrew Yeung | May 11, 2018

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Learning how to install Brother toner cartridges takes only a few steps and can be mastered in a few attempts. Knowing how to do it will make a big difference especially when you start to notice that the ink on your cartridges is starting to go dry or if you’ve recently bought a new laser printer. By doing it yourself, you’ll be saving you or your business a lot of time and money.

How to install brother toner cartridges

Step 1 - Turn off and unplug your printer

Make sure you have a lot of scrap paper nearby. They’ll come in handy when the toner leaks. Now, make sure that the printer is completely turned off and unplugged from any outlets and devices.

Step 2 - Separate the drum and cartridge

Open the front cover of the printer then tug on the drum and cartridge unit from both ends. Pull them apart carefully to avoid for the toner to leak. If it does, wipe the stains with the scrap paper that you have nearby. Don’t touch the electrode to avoid damaging it with static electricity.

Once you have the drum and toner cartridge pulled apart, press the green lever down to separate them. Set them on scraps of paper and away from anything that can damage electronics such as magnets and highly electric devices.

Though most printers come with a warranty, damaging your electronics during part replacement usually does not cover most of the parts that are affected so you’d have to buy your own replacements in these cases.

Step 3 - Replace the drum or cartridge

If you want to replace your drum, place the toner with the new drum. Most drums have a duty cycle of 12,000-page yield at 5% which means that they’re going to be replaced less often.

For new toner cartridges, you will hear an audible snap when you connect the empty toner cartridge to your current drum. Brother toner cartridges are easy to install and have an average duty cycle of 2,600-page yield at 5%. Third-party cartridges are usually smaller due to the difference in manufacturing styles.

The cartridges that ship with the printer are expected to have a longer duty cycle than replacements. This is an industry standard that has been set and is expected of most laser printers. Though the difference in original toner cartridges and remanufactured toner cartridges are minimal, they can still be noticeable upon closer inspection.

Step 4 - Secure the drum and cartridge

After you replace either the drum and toner, make sure you secure them properly. Once they’re secured, lock them together by clicking them in place as the green lever that you pushed earlier pops back up automatically to indicate a successful replacement.

Step 5 - Try the drum or cartridge

When you’ve locked all of the parts of your printer, plug it into your device and turn it on. You should be able to check if the new laser toner is detected. Other printer units also display the laser toner cartridge or drum status through a LED indicator.

Try our other troubleshooting tips for any error during or after the installation.

Why New Toners Are Smaller

When replacing a toner, things can get a bit tricky. Some may think that the toner cartridge they purchased is smaller than what they need. In fact, most end up pulling out the toner cartridge with the drum unit, making the assembly look bigger. So, when one tries to put back the toner cartridge, many end up scratching their head because the toner doesn’t fit.

Here’s what you need to do. When you pull out the toner cartridge with the drum unit, remove the toner. Then, put the new toner cartridge into the drum unit, and reinstall the whole thing into the printer.