The Product Review Center

There is a different type of shredder for each type of customer. These shredders differ when it comes to volume, design and storage receptacle sizes. Thats why buying a shredder can be a confusing endeavor. It doesn’t have to be this way. Lets ignore the marketing jargon and get right to the point.

Some features you should keep in mind are:

Width of paper – All shredders do not accommodate different widths of paper. Know your needs. For a home office, a shredder which only slices 8 1/2 x 11 size paper will work for you. However, this machine is going to be used by medium to large office then you would be better served to consider shredders which can accommodate all the paper widths. Dont buy one that fits only 1-2 sizes or else you will spend the majority of your time folding sheets to fit the shredder’s slot.

Fact: Learning how to buy paper shredders online is easier than you think.

Volume – Think about the potential volume. Are you going to shred several dozen sheets a day or just a few every other day? The common personal shredders are recommended for about 125-175 sheets/day. But, thats for a brand new piece of equipment. For shredders that will be used by more people, they are going to see more volume.

Capacity – These machines come with a maximum capacity or a maximum number of sheets that they can simultaneously shred. Feeding 1-2 sheets of paper will take long periods of time in a shredder with limited capacity. Make sure your shredder can deal with several sheets at a time to stay efficient and be effective. Think about the capacity and volume needs before you walk into a store.

Fact: The electric paper shredder is gaining in popularity these days.

Cutting Patterns – This refers to the way in which the paper is cut when it is passed through the machine. The common direction is vertically across the direction you put the sheets in. In some shredders like the cross-cut variety, the paper is cut horizontally and vertically in a single pass.

While you feed the paper there are two sets of blades that cut the paper into small rectangles. Since they shred the paper a little better it is much harder to piece together the shredded pieces of paper these cost a little more while requiring more maintenance.

Tip: A lot of people choose the ativa paper shredder.