Paper Shredder Styles

A Shredder In Every (Converted) Garage (Office)

Paper shredders come in wide and varied styles. There are mini paper shredders that can be used by a traveling executive. Retailing for less than thirty dollars, the Fellowes paper shredder will fit in a briefcase.

Dahle offers a high security paper shredder that can handle as much as sixteen sheets of paper at a time and is rated to a level of security suitable for use by agencies such as the NSA and CIA.

Aurora paper shredders run the gamut from low priced personal paper shredders to economical heavy duty paper shredders that can handle the needs of three people shredding documents, with staples, up to 100 times per day. Most of these can also chop up and render useless data CDs, DVDs, and credit cards.

A timeless favorite is the Royal paper shredder that incorporates elements of Italian and Swedish industrial design. Showcasing the best of architectural design, this sleek shredder appears as if it could occupy a spot in a museum display.

Shredder Construction

A shredder usually incorporates a number of blades within an enclosure that sits atop a wastebasket. The configuration of the actual shredder is as follows...

• Strip-Cut: 
• Home, office, and mini paper shredders usually use this method, which consists of rotating knives to cut narrow strips that run the length of the original document. Use caution when using these machines, as strips are the easiest of the bunch to reconstruct.
• Crosscut: 
• These commercial paper shredders use contra-rotating drums to cut parallelogram-shaped shreds.
• Disintegrators and Granulators: 
• These Heavy duty paper shredders churn the paper cutting it repeatedly until the pieces fall through a fine mesh screen.
• Hammermills and Pulverizers: 
• Industrial paper shredders take the paper down to a dust-like particulate.

Standards For Shredders

The German Institute of Standards (DIN) has developed standards for the security level of shredding. These standards are as follows.

Home Shredders

• Level 1 = 12 mm strips
• Level 2 = 6mm strips

Office Shredders

• Level 3 = 2mm strips (Confidential)
• Level 4 = 2x15mm particles (Commercially Sensitive)

Security Shredders

• Level 5 = .8x12mm particles (Classified)
• Level 6 = .8x4mm particles (Top Secret)

Most shredders incorporate the DIN standard in their list of specs and can aid in the shredder selection process. Do keep in mind, though, that the higher on the food chain you go, the more expensive the shredder becomes, with top models fetching as much as $6000.00 dollars.