Unless you live under a rock, you know that you should be shredding personal documents before they get recycled.  Tearing a piece of paper into quarters or eighths isn’t going to deter someone who wants to steal your information.  So if you don’t have a shredder, to quote the toy story character, Woody, “Get one!” (Okay, he was talking about a moving buddy so no one got left behind…but it’s still about personal safety.)

I have a nice shredder that can chew up 10 sheets at a time.  I bought it at an estate sale so I don’t know how well it had been cared for.  I brought it home, plugged it in and used it for over two years without doing anything to it.

Upon clearing out some files, I had a good stack of paper I needed to shred (yes, I dread it, too!).  Some of the paper was longer, and I found the shredder was getting jammed before the long sheets could get through it.  This job took way too long.  After I got done, I decided to look at the underside of the shredder.  There was a ton of paper caught in the teeth.  Hmmm…then I noticed the little oil can symbol on the top of the shredder.

Okay, I guess I should oil it.  With what?  I referenced the manual and it talked about a specific lubricant for the shredder OR you could a vegetable based oil in a non-aerosol container with an extension nozzle.   Alright—this was a solution that allowed me to do this now (how long does it take to get back to a job when it’s put off for one reason or another??).

I actually used my “Mr. Mister” that replaces “Pam”.  It pumps air into a cylindrical container that creates a fine mist with no aerosol chemicals.  I bet a medicine dropper would work also (and would be cleaner).  The manual also said to NEVER use flammable synthetic oil, petroleum based or aerosol lubricants because it could combust.

Here is what my manual says:

1. From the top of the shredder, squeeze the recommended lubricant across the full width of the blades.
2. Move the power switch to AUTO position and allow the blades to run at least 3 seconds.
3. Move the power switch to REVERSE position and allow it to run for at least 3 seconds.
4. Repeat steps 2-4 above at least times.

Basically, the blades need to move back and forth to get the oil on it. Wow—what a difference that made. Papers aren’t jamming up as easily. The job goes quicker. It’s easier. If it’s easier to do it’s more likely that the job will get done in the future (in a timely manner).

Before you decide to oil your shredder, double check the manual or online to see what should be done. I remember one client’s shredder having the oil can crossed out (do not oil?).

Here is more on shredder maintenance:

www.papershreddersinfo.com/maintenance.htm

One other tip—put a bag in the container to collect the shredded paper. The above link mentions shredder bags (which I did not know about!). I use a paper bag and then the whole thing can be recycled. You may need to cut the bag to fit but it will save you time when you have to empty the messy paper out of the shredder container.

I hope these tips keep your shredder happy and chomping up those never ending papers like there’s no tomorrow.