Enabling Separate Back and Front Designs
When your printer model supports automatic duplex printing, you can take advantage of the support that BarTender provides for creating separate template designs for the front and back sides of the printed items. Use the Page Setup dialog to configure this feature.
Duplexing, or printing on two sides of the page, is a great way to reduce the amount of paper you use and lower your printing costs. But what if you don’t have a printer with a built in duplexing feature? The following steps will walk you through an easy way to print on both sides of the page using the settings in the print driver on your computer.
1. To avoid page ordering issues, make certain to load enough blank paper into the paper tray to complete your print job.
2. Open the document you wish to print
3. Click File, and then click Print.
4. Select your printer from the drop down menu.
5. Click Printer Properties, Preferences, or Printer Setup, depending on what displays, to open the Document Properties or Printing Preferences window.
6. Determine if you want the pages to read as a booklet or a tablet. This will determine the orientation of the printers pages.
1. Booklet binding (flip on long edge)
2. Tablet binding (flip on short edge)
7. Use one of the following methods to open and select duplex printing settings. Menu names vary by printer model.
• If a Layout, Features, or Finishing tab is available, click it, and then select a page flip option under Print on Both Sides Manually.
• If a Printing Shortcut tab is available, click it, select the Two-sided (Duplex) Printing shortcut, and then select a page flip option from the Print on Both Sides Manually or Two-sided (Duplex) Printing menu.
• If a Basic tab is available, click it, and then select a page flip option under Double-Sided Printing (Manual).
8. Click OK, and then click Print.
• If the printer automatically pulls the pages back in and prints the other side, your printer supports automatic duplexing and the print job completes.
• If the printer does not automatically pull the pages back in, continue with these steps to reload the pages to print the other side.
9. Remove the printed pages from the output tray, and then reload them into the paper tray.
NOTE: Some print drivers display instructions on the computer on how to reload the paper. Use the steps if they display.
• For most front-loading printers, load the stack printed side facing up (Inkjets) or printed side facing down (LaserJets) with the bottom edge into the printer or the top edge into the printer.
• For most rear-loading printers, flip the pages over so that the printed side is facing down, and then load the bottom short edge into the printer.
Office supplies can get very expensive depending on the size of your business and the consumption of workers. Brand name printer ink can cost upwards of hundreds of dollars alone, depending on your printer model. Not to mention that the cost of a ream of paper has been on a steady price increase since 2017. With a 5% price increase in 2019 alone due to the rising cost of manufacturing pulp, the closing of major paper mills, and international trade-deals playing a significant part.
Duplex Printing, also known as double-sided printing, is a term used for printing on both sides of the paper. This is achieved either automatically if your printer supports duplex printing, or even manually if you decide to flip the pages and print both sides.
Why is it important? Not only is it sustainable for the environment to consume fewer trees, but it cuts your cost in half when duplex printing.
Everyone from small businesses to government entities is doing their part when it comes to maintaining a greener environment and saving on printer ink. According to the Department of the Navy’s Chief Information Officer: All U.S Navy unclassified printers were officially set to duplex mode within the default settings since the year 2013. While the estimated cost of savings equates to less than a penny per page, this leads to around 500,000 trees saved within a year alone.
Can My Printer Model Print Double Sided?
Most modern Brother printers, such as the Brother MFC-9340CDW, have automatic duplex printing ability, but not all printers are guaranteed to do so. Varying from model to model, there are some simple ways to determine if your printer can achieve this.
- HP Printer models that specifically duplex print have a “D” in their model name. The “D” stands for duplex and signifies whether or not it has a duplex unit installed. For example, the HP LaserJet Pro 400 M401dw or HP OfficeJet D135 both are capable of automatic double sided printing.
- You can also print a configuration report directly from your printer, which will inform you whether your printer model is capable of automatic duplex printing.
Most printers can run a configuration report directly from the printer control panel menu. This can be achieved by touching or swiping the display to the Setup menu. From the Setup menu, select Reports and then Configuration Report. Make sure to have paper installed in your printer before running the report. This will give you a comprehensive list of product information, including Product Name, Serial Number, and Duplexer Version. If Duplexer Version is displaying a “0”, it signifies that your printer is not able to automatically print on both sides.
- If all else fails, contact your original equipment manufacturer with your printer model and serial number. They will be able to tell from that information if your printer is capable of duplex printing.
How to Set Up Automatic Duplex Print?
If your printer is capable of duplex printing, setting up the process can be quick and done with ease by following these steps. While using a Windows Operating System, you can enable this process directly from your computer.
- Navigate to the Control Panel, then select View Devices and Printer. This will bring you to a page that displays your connected printers and fax machines.
- Select the printer model that you want to enable Duplex Printing on.
- Right-click on your desired printer and select Printer Properties.
- This should open a menu with printer settings, navigate to the Advanced tab located at the top of the page.
- On the bottom of that menu, select Printing Defaults
- Under the Additional Features tab, you should see a Duplex Printing box to click on.
- Save your settings
Note: Printing Defaults will change your default settings every time you use the printer. Once changed, you will need to manually input whenever you want to print single pages.
How to Set Up Manual Duplex Printing?
Even if your printer does not support automatic duplex printing, there is still an option for you to achieve the same results. Although it may require a few additional steps, double-sided printing can be achieved by setting your print options to Print Odd Pages Only and then manually inserting the printed pages back in the printer.
As stated before, every printer works differently, so there is not a One-Size-Fits-All option. However, specific programs such as Microsoft Word do allow for these manual options to be set.
- Select the File tap. It will open a bar menu with a list of menus on the left side of your screen
- Navigate down and select Print
- Within the Print Bar Settings Menu, there is a small blue tab that says Page Set Up, select it
- Navigate to the Paper Tab and within that menu, select Print Options on the bottom of the page
- Select the Advanced tab and scroll down into you see the Print navigation bar
- Within this menu, you can select Print on front of sheet for duplex printing or Print on back of sheet for duplex printing.
Once again, the manual version of the process will change the default settings of Microsoft Word to always print both sides. It is essential that you know how to reverse this process if you need to print on one side only.
Need a Duplex Printer with affordable ink?
If you’re in the market for a printer with duplex printing capabilities, there are high-quality, affordable options out there for you. Most newer models of Brother and HP printers support duplex printing. One of the most dependable printer models on the market today is the Brother MFC-9340CDW.
If you’re looking for an Epson printer, there is always the reliable Epson WorkForce WF3520 with its fast and straightforward installation process.
Finally, the HP OfficeJet D135 is a sizable competitor at an affordable price. Its sleek and rather small design packs a punch when it comes to print quality. But what is the best printer for home use that uses cheap ink?
Printer ink is an inevitable cost when it comes to running any type of printer. While duplex printing will cut your cost in half when it comes to maintaining your paper supply, unfortunately, your ink usage will remain the same. Name-brand ink and toner cartridges can cost a fortune, but luckily there’s an alternative to purchasing full-priced ink cartridges.
With over 20 years of experience, there’s no wonder that 1ink.com provides high quality, budget-friendly printer ink for the average consumer. Our remanufactured and compatible ink cartridges work just as good as the competitor but at a fraction of the cost. We offer High-Yield ink and toner cartridges as our standard because we believe you should get more for your money.
What allows a printer to print on both sides of the paper?
If you see Print on Both Sides, then your printer supports duplex printing automatically.
Why won't my printer print on both sides automatically?
Enter Control Panel > Devices and Printers. Right click the printer icon, then click Printer Properties. Click the Device Settings tab. Set the Automatic Two-Sided Duplex Accessory as installed and click OK to save the change.
