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November 10 2011
What Do You Look for in a Paper Shredder?
Having difficulty choosing a paper shredder that can withstand your workloads? This article will give you guidance and information that you may use to decide what shredder works for your needs. Read on.
Types of shredders
How do you want a paper shredder to function? Are you buying a shredder for personal use of for commercial purposes? Buying the wrong type of shredder will not only waste your money but will also not be helpful with the document shredding that you need the most. These two types of shredders have completely different functions. Personal paper shredders can only shred 15 sheets at the most at a one time; while commercial-grade paper shredders have the capacity to shred volumes of sheets at a time. Personal shredders come in a small feature while the other is designed massively for bulks of paper shredding.
Features
Check out the features of the paper shredder that you have been eyeing. Shredders come in different features. Some advanced shredders have combined features in one unit; others only have at least one of them. Basic features that you must look for are auto-feeders, full-bin indicator, overheat indicator, and the touch sensor. Auto-feeder detects the presence of a paper in the machine. Once it senses the paper, the unit automatically begins its paper shredding task. Full-bin indicator helps the unit from breaking down and from paper jams. Once the unit is full, a LED indicator will let you know that the container needs to be emptied. Overheat indicator gives you warning that the machine is being overworked. Lastly, the touch sensor will automatically shut the motor off when there are things aside from paper that are too close to the opening.
The level of security
Since document shredding means talking about confidentiality, you must look for a cutting blade that will fit your requirements. Different cutting blades have different standard security levels. The two major types of cutting blades are strip-cut and cross-cut. These two are the widely used shredders, found in most big companies who wish paper shredding to be on the level of total privacy. Other cutting blades include particle-cut that creates tiny squares or circular shapes; hammermills that hammers the paper into a screen; then the grinders that grind sheets until it is able to pass through a screen. These cutting blades provide level of security that range from12 mm strips to 0.8 x 4 mm particles.
Safety features
If you are buying paper shredders for personal use, make sure that it has safety features especially if you have kids in the house. There are newly improved safety features for paper shredders. These include safety sensor, slim entry, safety lock, safety flop, and interlock switch. All these features will help you and your house members avoid wounds and damages on things that shouldn’t be shred.
Warranty
Shoppers always want to buy products with longer warranty. When choosing a paper shredder, make sure to purchase a brand that can handle your preferred workload and has a good length of warranty. Oftentimes, paper shredder manufacturers replace a new shredder when damaged. To get a full blast of warranty, you may ask for a built-in oiler for the rollers of the machine. This will automatically increase the warranty of the unit.
Tips for Buying the Right Type of Paper Shredders Online
Yes we have heard about the scams and fraud on online market and the possibility of being the next victim is increasing for every online shoppers. If you are in need of a paper shredder and you want to purchase it online, you can consider reading this article to better guide you for a safe transaction and to the right type of a shredder that you need.
Read about paper shredders and its features. When buying paper shredders, you must know crucial information about the unit. This will help you familiarize the item and when you scan online stores that sell paper shredders, you will easily determine what the best and worst types of shredders are being sold. It will also help you to not be cheated by sellers who lie about the description given on their web pages. Since you will be dealing with online merchants, there is a great possibility that you will be scammed. Having knowledge about the unit will save you from these crooked online sellers.
Ask the seller every bit of your queries about the item. Review the photos and description given on the paper shredder. Also, read information about the seller, his feedback and the number of items he had sold before. If you still have any questions, feel free to contact the seller. Every bona fide online store has a good communicable customer service who will dutifully answer your questions. You may request additional photos and information about the paper shredder. You can also ask for his complete contact information such as email address, mobile or cell phone number, and his complete name to easily communicate with the seller anytime you need clarifications. Below are a few basic questions that you need to ask when buying a paper shredder.
What types of cutting blades are used in the shredder?This is important to ask especially if you have very private files that’s needed be shredded in its smallest cuts. Paper Shredding is most effective when you have cutting blades that will fit to your needs. There are two major types of cutting blades for a paper shredder – the strip-cut and the cross-cut shredders. Strip-cut blades cuts paper into ribbon-like strips while cross-cut shredders cuts both lengthwise and widthwise sheets. The latter is designed for more confidential documents.
Are there any advanced shredder features included in the unit? Some advance shredders have combined features. Features include auto-feeder, CD/DVD/Floppy Disc slot, paper jam indicator, overheat indicator, and safety features such a touch sensor. Look for paper shredders that have at least one of these features.
Is the unit brand new or secondhand? There is nothing wrong when the seller sells secondhand paper shredders given that the unit can still operate perfectly. Document shredding with a shredder that has rusty mechanisms will only waste your money. Always ask the seller if there are any damages in the unit and if there are available parts that you can purchase to replace the damage.
Does the unit have a warranty? Warranties may vary according to the seller. If you are buying from a direct seller who specifically sells paper shredders, you might get a warranty. But if you are buying it secondhand, there is a great possibility that the seller can not give you any warranty. For those who would buy a brand new item, you can ask to add a built-in oiler to increase the warranty of your shredder, sometimes sellers would extend it to a lifetime guarantee.
Complete the transaction details with the seller. Get the delivery details such as the total price for the unit plus the shipping fee. Ask for the payment option that he uses. Some sellers allow payments through money transfers, bank deposits, and cash on delivery (COD); others only use PayPal as their method of payment. If in case you don’t have a PayPal account, you may ask the seller for other options that he is willing to use, or advice on how you can pay him through PayPal.
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