FYI: HOW TO GET FREE & LOW COST SHIPPING SUPPLIES

[Jim Rojas]

HOW TO GET FREE & LOW COST SHIPPING SUPPLIES

Boxes, Padded Envelopes, Bubble Wrap, Peanuts, Air Bags, Stryofoam:
You can get most of these items for free if you ask a local clerk at
many gift shops, dollar stores, women's clothing stores, etc. Use your
imagination here.

Don't start hoarding. If you know someone else that also needs supplies,
share your resources freely. Limit yourself on what you need for a
month. Keep all your supplies in sealed bags. We don't want pests to
start a new home there. Use 55+ gallon clear lawn bags to keep your
supplies dry and pest free, if you have to store them in a shed or garage.

Packing Tape:
Dollar stores & flea markets usually carry 55-110 yard rolls for $1 or
so a roll. Don't get pressured into buying those convenience rolls with
the plastic dispenser built in.

Ask the clerk if they offer a discount if you buy a case. I buy the
larger 1500 yard industrial rolls for $10 each on eBay. Each roll lasts
us about 2 weeks. Store the rolls inside in a dry dark place. Many types
of cheap tape will turn yellow and become brittle if exposed to sunlight
for long periods of time.

Brown Wrapping Paper:
Home improvement centers carry large 3+ foot wide rolls of flooring
paper that painters & contractors use during construction. A large roll
goes a very long way for about $10 a roll.

Shipping Labels:
We don't use them anymore. We just use plain paper and seal them with
the clear packing tape. A ream of plain paper costs $2.50 just about
anywhere. Some like to use the clear mailing pouches, but if you are
getting those free, it violates their terms of usage.

Shipping Scales:
Avoid using a bathroom scale of any kind. They are not very accurate.
You can get a 400lb digital shipping scale for about $50 new on ebay. We
use the Accuteck 440lb unit.

Postage:
We use stamps.com exclusively for all our local and international
shipping needs. Check and see if your country has a similar online service.

Printer Ink & Toner:
We switch back from HP & Epson inkjets to the Lexmark E342N Black &
White laser printers for all our shipping labels. We got tired of
inkjets getting clogged every week due to the amount of printing we do.
We average 400+ pages per day. We refill our own toner cartridges for
under $20 each, which includes 185 grams of high quality toner and a
reset chip.

So with the money we saved, we purchased 3 more Lexmark E342N ($64 each
on ebay), and 3 more High Yield (6000+ pages) cartridges ($35 each),
toner refill kit with reset chip ($20 each). Each month we purchase a an
empty OEM toner cartridge just for the drum. An average drum can be
reused 6-10 times before it just wears out. The toner tank can be reused
until it starts to leak toner, which is about 15-20 refills, depending
on the brand. Try to go OEM whenever you can, even if you get them
empty. It has been almost 2 years, we have yet to throw away a toner
cartridge for leaks, and we already refilled on our first toner
cartridge 9 times now.

We now have all smaller, energy efficient laser printers in the office
and shipping dept, and the overall savings is just astounding. We
guesstimate that we are saving about $6500 a year in consumables, and
lower energy costs.

Jim Rojas
Technical Manuals Online!
http://www.tech-man.com
8002 Cornwall Lane
Tampa, FL 33615-4604
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