Frequently Asked Questions

My printer's toner warning just came on — how do I make sure TK1172 is the part it wants?

Pull the old cartridge out and read its label, or open the supplies screen on the printer's panel; either one states the part number the machine was built around. If it reads TK1172, this single black cartridge at $27.66 is your replacement — no need to match by the machine's shape or guess from a photo.

What does 7,200 pages mean for a small office that prints a few dozen pages a day?

The figure comes from standard test pages at typical office text coverage. At a few dozen pages a day, one cartridge like this carries a small office through many months of invoices, letters and reports. Dense full-page documents use toner faster, light memos slower, but the rating gives you a realistic planning number either way.

Can I fit it myself, or does this need a service visit?

You can do it in about two minutes with no tools. Slide the spent unit out, rock this TK1172 gently from side to side so the toner inside settles evenly, push it home until it clicks, and shut the cover. The printer is ready to work again straight away.

The first few pages came out faint. Has the cartridge failed?

Almost certainly not — toner settles while a cartridge waits in storage or travels in a truck. Take the unit back out, rock it slowly a handful of times, and print a short run of ordinary pages; the density usually evens out quickly. If it still looks washed out after that, reach us Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM CST, and we will work through it with you.

What is actually in the box when this listing arrives?

Exactly one compatible TK1172 black toner cartridge, sealed and ready to drop in. There is no drum and nothing else bundled — this is a single replacement for one printer that has run dry, nothing more and nothing less.

How fast will it reach me, and what happens if it lets me down?

Your order ships from whichever of our warehouses — IL, PA, GA or CA — sits closest to you, which keeps the trip short; full timing details and the returns procedure are on our shipping and returns page. Every cartridge is backed by a 1-year warranty, and returns are free for that same full year, so a disappointing unit never becomes your expense.

How can I forecast when this cartridge will need replacing?

Start from your own pace. The TK1172 is rated at 7,200 pages, and a small office printing a few dozen pages a day is looking at many months from one unit. Note the date — or the printer's counter reading — when you fit it, check against the same figure a month later, and your real monthly draw turns the next order into a planned purchase rather than a reaction to the warning light.

What should I check when the box arrives?

That the delivery holds exactly one sealed TK1172 cartridge — no drum or extra parts are bundled with this listing, so nothing is missing if the box contains the single unit. Read the code on the cartridge against the part number your M2040dn or M2540dw asked for before the old unit comes out; a mismatch is easiest to resolve while the seal is still unbroken.

Which of our documents will burn through the rating fastest?

The rating is built on standard test pages, so anything far denser pulls it down: full-page documents, dark forms and graphics-heavy handouts all lay down much more toner per sheet than an ordinary letter or invoice. If your month is mostly light memos, expect to land near the 7,200-page figure; if dense documents dominate, plan on the warning arriving earlier and keep the fitting date noted so the pattern becomes visible.

What should I do with the old cartridge once the TK1172 is in?

Keep it until the new cartridge has printed cleanly for its first few days — if output disappoints, the old unit is useful evidence of what changed. After that, the spent cartridge goes to a toner-recycling collection or an office e-waste point rather than general trash. It costs nothing to hold it briefly, and it closes the loop on the swap tidily.

About This Cartridge

This listing covers one compatible Kyocera-Mita TK1172 black toner cartridge for the M2040dn, and it also serves the M2540dw. It is written for the small office whose only printer has just flagged low toner: one unit, rated at 7,200 pages, priced at $27.66, installed by hand in a couple of minutes, and covered by a 1-year warranty with 1-year free returns.