In all aspects of our home and office life, we often need to get rid of confidential information.
When you are buying a shredder there are so many options its hard to know what to buy.
What is crosscut? How much can I shred at once? Can I put staples through it? All these questions can be hard to answer.
So, to save some time, we have put together a quick guide to help you find what you need and how to get the best performance from your shredder once you have it.
What size of shredder should you get?
Considering how many people will use it is the first step in buying a shredder. If its just you in your home office, you won’t need a shredder with a huge capacity but if you are in an office sharing it with many other people you will need a larger one or you will be emptying the bin constantly.
Shredder waste bin capacity is measure in litres, so having a rough idea how much gets shredded in a day will help you to work out how many litres is best for you. If you think a standard office bin under your desk is something like 13-15 litres and a kitchen swing bin is somewhere around 50 litres. This gives you an idea of the physical size if the bin.
What security level do you need?
Shredders have different ways they cut your paper, this isn’t to make confetti, it’s for security reasons. The smaller the paper is shredded the harder it is to read the information that was on the paper. Therefore determining this factor is important before buying a shredder.
It’s levelled from P1 – P7 based on the size of the strips or particles the shredder cuts to.
P1 being for general documents with very little sensitive information that are cut into larger strips (ideal for your hamster or Guinea Pig (remove any staples though)! P7 is for highly top-secret information cut so small it’s no bigger than half a centimetre square (James Bond would use this level).
Consider the information you will be shredding, and how secure you needs it to be.
What special features do I need?
Lots of shredders have different features that make them different from the rest. Knowing the way, you will use your shredder will help you to work out what features will benefit you the most when buying a shredder. Here is a quick overview on the different features you can find.
Anti-Jam technology – This is helpful if you shed large quantities of paper at one time. Saving you time and effort when you are shredding.
Noise-controlled – Shredders have the capacity to be noisy and distracting. If you don’t want to be disturbed look into a shredder with this feature.
Shedding more than paper – Consider buying a shredder that can cut up credit cards, CD’s, and other plastics! Don’t forget though, they will contaminate the paper if you are recycling it.
Safety Sensors – Keeping you safe when using a shredder is important. Buying a shredder with safety sensors or warning sounds keep the shredder running correctly and more importantly keep you and your fingers safe.
Auto Feed – these shredders have a tray where you can insert a large pile of paper press start and the shredder will automatically shred all the paper for you. Ideal for large offices that shred lots of paper in one go. These work ideally if the papers are all the same size (A4 generally).
Being Environmentally Friendly
Having an inefficient shredder can mean a large percentage of the power used will be when you aren’t shredding, but when it is in standby mode. Looking for shredders that have a low power consumption will save you money and reduce the effect on the planet!
Lastly, Maintenance
Maintaining your shredder will mean extending its life. This can be done manually, or some shredders have an inbuilt auto oil feature, so you don’t even have to think about it.
Making sure the blades are well lubricated mean you get the best quality shredding, and you don’t get slowed down by the shredder jamming
If you don’t want to get an automatic oil shredder, you can get shredder oil or a pack of shredder oil sheets to ensure your shredder is performing at its best.