<p>OK, I tried to take a break from christmas shopping to tackle some of the overflowing papers piled up to be shred.
No go, machine is dead. Not an expensive one and its maybe 4 years old so…</p>
<p>Should i buy a new one? Not willing to spend the 100-300 for a good one, especially right before holidays.
There an amazon branded one for $30 with good reviews.
What about bringing docs to staples and paying per pound? Anyone use that method?
Our town runs a free shredit event in summer but i cant wait that long.</p>
<p>We have an inexpensive one from Staples at home. It works fine for home use. You do have to feed only a few sheets at a time. What I don’t love is that you have to open all the credit card offers and shred by the page. If you just try to stick the whole envelope in it gets stuck.for home use it is adequate. We got it at Staples and it is Staples branded. Cyber Monday might be a good day to get a good deal.
We have a more expensive one at our office. It is quicker and can handle more volume but when we have a huge amount someone takes it to a local place. They have two prices. The higher price is if you want them to shred while you watch. Cheaper if you are wiling to leave it and let them shred when they have more time. </p>
<p>Mom60, thanks for that info. I wouldnt really want to leave my old IRA/bank statements for the Staples employee to shred “later”. I’d probably have to pay the higher amount. Its an option.</p>
<p>Bought a shredder from Office Depot that allows you to put stacks of paper, unopened envelopes or CCs in it without jamming. It does overheat after you feed it several hundred pages and then needs to cool down before it restarts itself. We like the ability to sheet feed of put in stacks of paper into it for shredding. It was under $100 but can no longer remember exact price. We did buy it on sale and they matched their online price in the store. </p>
<p>Before you get rid of it or give up on it, try oiling it. I had an old shredder that stopped working. I bought a new one and then, on a whim, oiled the old one. It worked fine after that. </p>
<p>Did the $1 a pound at Office Depot, stood there and watched it shred. Took all of 5 minutes. Paid $5. Done. Now I tear everything in half, and place it in a box. Quarterly I pay to have it shredded. Done. I have a small $40 shredder at home as well, which I use, on the spot, for very delicate information. </p>
<p>The best one I’ve had is the cheapest from Staples. Cost around $20 (with all the sale coupons) and I even bought the extended warranty (for about $5) that we haven’t needed yet. Going on 2 years and we shred maybe 25-30 papers a day. For the “oilers” I’ve tried squirting 3-in-1 oil (sewing machine oil will do) on a sheet of paper and then ran it through the shredder. Works like a charm. Doesn’t have to be done too often.</p>
<p>I gave up on shredders several years ago. I now keep a box in the basement and throw the papers in it. I take them either to our town or our credit union’s shredding day. The town charges $4 a box and the credit union is free. You can always find a company that specializes in shredding. I can’t say that I worry too much at the credit union. </p>