I use my shredder frequently, and it works very well. However, when I see the red light indicating that the receptacle is full and needs to be emptied, my heart sinks because I haven’t figured out a way to empty my shredder without making a mess.
Emptying my shredder requires me to remove the heavy top which contains the shredding mechanism. That means there are tiny little pieces of cross-cut paper just waiting to fall on the floor when I remove the top. And fall they do.
I bought a Staples Mail Mate shredder for my dad, hoping to avoid this problem. To empty the Mail Mate , you pull out the shredder basket instead of taking off the top. I haven’t shredded too much at my dad’s yet, so I haven’t had to sweep up too many paper scraps — just a few. However, I used a Mail Mate shredder at a client’s recently to shred a huge volume of paper, and we needed to use the vacuum afterward.
This echoes the experience that I have at most of my client’s homes or offices. I thus concluded that there was no such thing as a shredder that empties neatly.
And then I discovered the Fellowes Powershred® DS-1 Cross-Cut Shredder at a client’s home. Like the Mail Mate, you remove the shredder basket to empty it — and it doesn’t make a mess! In addition, the shredder basket is actually a step-on can, so you can use it to collect other recyclable papers along with your shredding.
The Powershred is available at Staples, along with some other retailers. The Fellowes website tells you how and where to purchase it.
