Power Shredding at Home

Taxes are finally done and it is time to get rid of old documents. But with concern for identity theft, what is the best way to destroy documents? I was given the opportunity to try out the Fellowes Powershred 73Ci and I have found the solution. It will shred paper, credit cards, staples, small paper clips and CD/DVD’s.

With its cross-cut capability you can be assured that confidential documents are shredded to unreadable pieces. A cross-cut shred will give you 399 particles per 8 ½ X 11 piece of paper. In addition, the smaller cut will mean that you won’t have to empty your bin as often.

You could call me a hoarder. I have not shredded any of my tax information since I started filing taxes. I finally hauled out my file and gave it a go – destroying quite a few years of tax info that I did not need anymore. The machine worked steadily for a good ten minutes before it needed to cool down. My job was complete quicker than I expected! I feel good knowing that it shreds down to such small pieces and that I do not have to worry about confidential information being compromised. And, I have extra space in my filing cabinet again!

Green Shredding

With the convenience of having such a capable machine, I wondered how I could use this shredder to its full capacity as well as being a little more “green” as a family. You can use your shredded paper for animal bedding, making a warm and comfortable bed for animals. It also works great as package filling when sending items in the mail. Use colorful paper and it could even be a cheap alternative inside gift bags.

When doing a little research,  I found that shredded waste material takes up less room in a landfill and decomposes better. In an attempt to be greener as a family, we have started to shred pretty much anything that we can that will go in our recycle bin – junk mail, homework assignments that we don’t need any more, and receipts, just to name a few. I simply make a pile on top of the machine and I can count on one of my kids to pick it up and shred it. (I wonder how long that is going to last!?!?)

I have owned several shredders over the years. Most of the time I buy a fairly inexpensive machine which is probably why I have owned several different shredders. While this machine is a bit more expensive than what I would likely purchase I have come to realize that with a quality machine such as this, you will come out ahead in the long run.

Fellowes goes above and beyond when it comes to quality assurance. Prior to launch, all Fellowes shredders are subjected to extensive field and laboratory tests, including a proprietary continuous abuse test and long-term wear. These tests simulate years of abnormally high use to ensure their products perform reliably, even under the most demanding conditions.

I feel assured that I will not need to replace this machine for a long time. The Fellowes 73Ci is built to last with solid steel cutters, a powerful motor, and parts that are engineered to outperform its competitors.

Fellowes Powershred 73Ci features:

• A 100% Jam Proof System eliminating paper jams and powering through tough jobs
• A Patented Safesense Technology stops shredding when hands touch the paper opening
• An Innovative touch screen technology with back-lit LEDs
• An Energy Saving System when in use and out of use
• Capabilities to shred up to 12 sheets of paper at a time

It’s Jam Proof!

I hate when a shredder jams! It takes forever to unclog the machine and is just plain frustrating. The Advanced Jam Prevention electronically measures paper thickness to prevent paper jams. As you put paper in the shredder it gives you three different lights –

GREEN to indicate that more sheets can be added

YELLOW to indicate optimal productivity

RED to indicate that too many sheets have been inserted

If it turns red, you can remove several sheets until the indicator is below red. If a misfeed does occur, all the indicators light up and the shredder pauses for 3-6 seconds. The shredder will then reverse the direction until all the misfeed is cleared up. Regular shredding will then resume.

Oops! The red indicator shows us that there is too many pages in the shredder.

Safety

I have young children therefore safety is very important to me. What kid doesn’t like to do the shredding for you? With this machine, you can be assured that your child is completely safe. With their Patented SafeSense Technology, the machine immediately stops shredding when hands touch the paper opening. I tried it and there is no way that fingers could accidentally get in the way.

The Control Panel

The control panel features multi-touch back-lit controls. When the shredder is off, the control panel will not be visible. Oh yeah, remember those kids? I don’t have to worry about them breaking a button off since there are no buttons on the control panel! When you turn on the shredder you need to also hit the On/Off button on the control panel. The LED panel then becomes active showing you things like Reverse, Forward, Bin Full, Bin Open, the SafeSense indicator, Remove Paper and Overheat.

It’s Quiet

Wow! Not much that I have to say about this one except that I am impressed by the sound (or, the lack of sound.) It is not nearly as loud as other shredders that I have used. It is ideal if you are sharing an office with someone or it is in a busy area of your house.

The Bin

I love the way the bin is set up. With many shredders you need to take the top part of the shredder off in order to empty the bin. With the Fellowes Powershred, the bin simply pulls out and looks like a small trash can. The LED light illuminates to tell you when the bin is full as well as when the bin is open. In addition, the shredder will not run if the bin is open. It features a 6 gallon bin.

Pull out bin makes it easy to empty.

Six gallon bin allows you to shred for a long time before needing to empty it.

The Fellowes Powershred 73Ci is available at Amazon
for $140.00 and plus $21.15 shipping. This particular model is recommended for home and small office use. Fellowes has many other shredders to suit most any need.

A Mom’s Perspective

Like I said earlier, the price tag was a little higher than I would probably choose to spend on my own but I have quickly realized that you get what you pay for. I expect this machine to last significantly longer than some of the little dinky ones that I have purchased and therefore I will save money in the long run.

In addition, you are getting a more efficient machine as well. I appreciate that it will go into sleep mode after 2 minutes of inactivity. When you have little hands that like to help, they don’t always remember to turn machines off when they are done. As a mother with young children, safety is always a priority.

With the Fellowes Powershred 73Ci, I can be assured that my children can be “helpful” and that I do not need to worry about them hurting themselves. This in itself is reason enough to consider this shredder.

But beyond that, it is just a well-thought-out machine. With included casters that make it roll smoothly to the bin that pulls out and looks like a trash can, it just makes everything convenient. It is important to me as well that it shreds paper to such small pieces so that I don’t need to worry about confidential information ending up somewhere that I don’t want it. Notice that there wasn’t a pros and cons section? That’s because it is a great product and I couldn’t come up with much that I would change.

*I was given a Fellowes Powershred 73Ci in exchange for my honest opinion, all of which are my own.