Paper shredders are getting cheaper over time as manufacturers are shelling out machines of all sizes that can handle varying loads and materials. While the new low costs and added features are great for consumers, there is still a large caveat. With these new machines, the trade off has typically come in quality and durability. However, there are a few simple maintenance tips you can follow to keep your paper shredder running smoothly.
Paper Shredder Maintenance
In general, paper shredders eat through all kinds of paper. Some can even handle credit cards, CDs, DVDs, paper clips, and staples. However, even with their purpose in mind, paper shredders, like printers, are notorious for failing time and time again.
Typical problems with paper shredders include:
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- Paper jams
- Overheating
- Dull blades
- Decreased power and function (shredding too slow)
These common paper shredder mishaps are inevitable with any machine, and even proper maintenance can bring them on. However, if you do have a machine and want to increase it’s longevity, here are a few guidelines to follow:
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- Properly lubricate your shredder’s blades based on your model’s specified needs. Make sure to use the proper oil that your shredder includes or the manufacturer recommends.
- Keep your paper shredder on a surge protector
- Keep any fussy wires and other heated electronics away from all components of the paper shredder. They are prone to overheating
- Thoroughly clean out your paper shredder bin with each use to avoid any paper jams
- Shred only what is specified in the paper shredder manual for your model
- Keep debris, dust, and other small particles clear of the blades to ensure that they run optimally
A Better Way to Shred at Your Location
Even with a digital shift in many offices, there’s still a lot of paper. And often that paper contains sensitive or proprietary information that you don’t want in the wrong hand. This makes document destruction a practice that every business in any industry should endorse.
In order to keep the risks of a data breach to a minimum, shredding in-house at your location is a great way to keep less people involved with the exchange of important documents while an employee in management can supervise the entire process.
Using a personal paper shredder to destroy hundreds to thousands of papers can not only take up valuable time, but can put the most durable paper shredder out of commission, even with proper maintenance.
You can avoid the hassle with maintaining a personal paper shredder and ensure that your papers are thoroughly destroyed and recycled by renting a paper shredder. Mobile shredding brings a secure truck equipped with an industrial shredder directly to your location to shred all your sensitive documents on-site. With this service, professionals never come into any physical or visual contact with your papers. Additionally, you can monitor the entire process to make sure the shredding was performed up to your standards.
This service includes a certificate of destruction which can come in handy if someone accuses your company of a data breach in the future.
Small Volume Shredding Needs
For businesses that don’t have a lot of shredding to do, whether your company has gone paperless or you simply don’t deal with very many sensitive data on paper, you can still get your shredding done without owning a paper shredder.
Drop off shredding services are located all around the country in nearly every city. Simply pack up any papers you may want shredded and drop them off at the nearest drop off shredding provider. They’ll take care of your document destruction for your and make sure the indecipherable remains are properly recycled.
Find the Best Shredding Service Option for Your Business
Shred Nations is your resource to finding high-quality, affordable, and secure shredding services that are the perfect fit for your home or business. From large to small volume shredding, Shred Nations can pair you with the shredder that meets all your pricing and security requirements.
To get free, no-obligation quotes in minutes, give us a call at (800) 747-3365 or fill out the form on the right.
