Shredder Wizard
Average Machine Lifespan: Entry Level/Home Use: 2 years, Personal/Deskside: 5 years, Office/Departmental: 10 years.

Why Use Waste Sacks With Your Shredder?

The use of waste sacks with your shredding machine, whilst not always necessary on all paper shredders, is always recommended by ShreddingMachines.co.uk.
Shredders generally discharge waste in two different ways; either into a collection box or a waste sack that is normally held under the shredder head by a metal or plastic ring.
Collection Box
The most common way to collect and remove waste shreds is by using a collection box. The strip or cross-cut shreds normally fall directly into a container placed within the cabinet under the shredder head or for less expensive machines, a waste basket. These containers, which vary in size and volume, hold the shreds until they require emptying.
Placing a waste sack into the collection box or waste basket has a number of distinct advantages:
  • Dust - all shredders produce dust. Cutting a piece of paper using scissors will produce dust so naturally the process of shredding will multiply this depending on how many particles or strips are ultimately produced. The use of a waste sack, which can be tied off, means that the dust is collected within a sealed unit along with the shreds and cannot escape.
  • Volume - by using a waste sack it is possible to increase the amount of waste produced before your shredder requires emptying. Depending on the type of shredder chosen and the level of security that you use, the resultant shreds will make air pockets within the collection box. It is possible therefore, once the box is full, to manually push down the shredded paper making more space for additional waste. The use of an internal waste sack makes emptying much easier even with a full collection box.
  • Mess - anyone who has tried to empty a collection box directly into a skip in the car park or rubbish bin as the wind gets hold of it will only do it once! The use of a plastic bag will eliminate the possibility of shreds blowing down the street and generally causing an untidy mess.
Be Careful
Always use sacks as recommended by ShreddingMachines.co.uk. Each sack has been tested to its fullest capacity and will not break or tear under normal circumstances. In some cases sacks are colour coded to make the reordering much easier.