Best Home Paper Shredder for You

How to Find the Best Home Paper Shredder for You

With the ever-increasing threat of identity theft many people decide to look for a home paper shredder to give them comfort that their confidential information is properly destroyed. There are so many types and brands of shredders available on the market today that finding the best home paper shredder for you can seem like an overwhelming task. Here are a few things to remember in your search...

Manual versus Automatic Paper Shredders

Manual shredders are very affordable and easy to use. They simply sit on your desk and shred any papers that you feed into the throat of the machine. Generally, you have to crank a handle that moves the paper through the blades that shred it, but if you start to shred larger volumes of paper this can begin to feel like a lot of effort.

Most of the manual shredders are only able to shred paper, but some are able to shred CDs or credit cards, and you may want to consider one of these manual paper shredders as an option if you are shopping on a budget

Automatic paper shredders are designed to do all the work, and the best home paper shredders on the market today are automatic. A sensor is built into the machine that tells it to start shredding when the paper is introduced, and to stop shredding once the paper has passed through the throat.

There are lights and alerts that inform you of a paper jam, and the best shredders come with a reverse switch that will help you back the paper up and clear any blockages that are causing the paper jam.

Shredder Capacity

Be sure to find a shredder that is able to handle the volume of shredding that you require, as each shredder has different capacities. The best home paper shredder can handle as many as 1000 sheets of paper per day, while other quality shredders may only handle 400 or 500.

If you are going to be shredding more than 1000 pages you may want to consider an office shredder for use in your home. However, the shredder for the average household is usually required to shred between 400 and 600 sheets per day.

Security Levels

Security is another important consideration, and you should evaluate how small you need the paper shredded. If you are trying to shred very sensitive documents, you may want to consider a shredder that can shred paper into quarter inch strips.

Whilst many review sites suggest that the best home paper shredder should shred the paper into eighth-of-an-inch strips this may be excessive unless you have documents that have to be destroyed at all costs.

Speed of operation

The higher the horsepower of the motor that powers the shredder, the faster your paper will shred and the less likely the shredder will be to jam up. It is definitely worthwhile looking for a paper shredder that has a high horsepower motor.

Waste Basket

Another key aspect to consider is the wastebasket that comes with the shredder. It is standard for shredders to have the bin or bag integrated but you should read reviews from existing users of the shredder to find out how easy it is to empty this and replace the shredder bag.

If you are looking for in-depth reviews of the best home paper shredders just visit our Best Shredder Reviews website. We also show you where you can purchase home paper shredders for up to 50% off...