Best Bonsaii Paper Shredders

Buying guide for best bonsaii paper shredders

Written by Michael

Updated August 2021

Founded in March of 2005, Bonsaii is one of the leading manufacturers in the paper shredding industry. Preventing identity theft is one of the most common reasons people buy paper shredders today, and a Bonsaii shredder can help you safeguard your identity. With a Bonsaii paper shredder, you can destroy paper items that contain personal information that makes you vulnerable: bills, account statements, and other highly sensitive documents.

In fact, new laws in the workplace mandate the destruction of personal information in some circumstances. Shredding is the easiest and most cost-effective method of obeying the law and preventing lawsuits against your company.

Shredding excess paper is good for the environment, too. Shredded paper decays faster in a landfill, and it’s easier to recycle. Shredding excess paper helps keep your house or office cleaner and tidier.

Shredders come in a wide variety of sizes and capacities. Keep reading to learn more about Bonsaii shredders so you can find the right one for your home or office.

The best location in the office for a paper shredder is near the printer.

Key considerations

Number of people using the shredder

• Home office: If you’re working from home or just need to get rid of some occasional papers at home, you don’t need a heavy-duty shredder. A Bonsaii shredder with a short run time that only takes a few pages at a time is sufficient for your needs.
• Business office: If you’re buying a shredder for a busy office environment, you need a large-capacity machine with a lengthy run time that can handle multiple sheets of paper on a continuous basis. Bonsaii makes this type of shredder, too.

Number of pages shredded

The more pages a shredder can handle at a time, the faster you can finish shredding documents. Small-capacity Bonsaii shredders can only handle four to six pages at a time, while a heavy-duty Bonsaii shredder can take up to 18 pages at once.

Waste capacity

The size of the waste bin is important. In a small office or at home, three or four gallons is more than sufficient. At a large office, you need a much larger capacity. Many Bonsaii shredders can’t accept a plastic bag to catch the waste, so you have to carry the basket to the trash can. This is one of the most common complaints about Bonsaii shredders. Keep the weight of the filled bin in mind when you’re choosing a Bonsaii shredder.

Features

Material

The motor and cutters of Bonsaii shredders are generally stainless steel, while the body of most is high-impact plastic with heat resistance built in. The stainless steel cutters are very sharp and cause serious injuries to your fingers and hands if you stick them in the slot.

Color

Shredders aren’t generally considered conversation pieces or decorative pieces of art. White, grey, and black are your color choices.

Run time

The motor on a paper shredder generates a tremendous amount of heat. So much heat, in fact, that manufacturers have had to develop “continuous run” motors with special cooling equipment on them to dissipate the excess heat. These are intended for industrial shredders.

Bonsaii shredders for home and office have less rigorous motors that can only run for only a specific amount of time (run time) before they begin to overheat and cause damage to their internal parts and the surrounding plastic in the body of the shredder.

The run time on shredders is different for each model, so be sure to check the description to find how long the run time is on the model you’re interested in.

Cooling time

Once your shredder has reached its run time limit, it needs to shut down so it can cool off. Most shredders automatically shut off when the limit is reached. If this happens, there is nothing you can do but wait until the unit has cooled off and can safely be restarted. Each machine has its own cool-down time, but 30 minutes is the industry average, and Bonsaii is no exception.

Security levels

The level of shredding you need varies depending on the sensitivity of the documents in question. Shredders use a standardized security classification system.

• P-1 is the lowest level. The paper is cut into full-length strips 12 millimeters wide. The shredded data can be reconstructed without using special equipment, but the process is time-consuming.
• P-2 is an unlimited strip length, but the width of the strips is only 6 millimeters. The data can be reconstructed, but it is cumbersome, difficult, and time-consuming.
• P-3 is for information that is considered confidential and/or personal. The width of the strips is only 2 millimeters. There is no limit on the length of the strips, but reconstructing the data is particularly difficult.
• P-4 should be used for information that is especially private, personal, or confidential. The paper is shredded into tiny pieces that measure 4 x 35 millimeters. It can only be reconstructed with the assistance of equipment that isn’t normally available to the general public.
• P-5 is for confidential information that must be protected. The length of the strips is only 2 millimeters, and the data cannot reasonably be reconstructed using state-of-the-art technology.
• P-6 is recommended for information that requires extremely high security. The length of the strips is only 1 millimeter, and the data cannot be reconstructed by any state-of-the-art equipment.
• P-7 is recommended for top-secret information that cannot be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. The pieces are less than 1 millimeter in length or width, and the data cannot be reconstructed by any current technology or any emerging technology in the foreseeable future.

Manual vs. auto-reverse

Paper jams happen. When they do, the best way to clear the jam is to reverse the direction of the shredder to back it up. Lower-priced Bonsaii shredders require you to manually reverse the machine, but more sophisticated Bonsaii shredders are able to sense the jam and automatically reverse themselves.

Noise level

Paper shredders are often noisy, so manufacturers have tried to reduce the noise generated by them. Many of these shredders generate between 55 and 65 decibels of noise. For comparison, 60dB is the normal amount of noise from people talking or an air conditioner running.

If the description of the shredder doesn’t include the decibel level of the machine, it is usually because it is higher than 65 to 70dB (the sound of a shower or dishwasher).

Bonsaii paper shredder prices

Inexpensive: Below $100, shredders are noisier and slower, and they overheat more often than higher-priced machines. This is where you’ll find the home office/single user shredders.

Mid-range: $100 to $200 is where most shredders are found. P-4 security levels and the ability to shred multiple pages at a time are common in this range.

Expensive: Above $200, you can find extremely quiet and robust shredders with extended run times, high-capacity waste bins, and P-4 and above security levels.

Tips

• Don’t try to stuff more pages through a shredder than the manual states. Manufacturers may overstate how many pages a shredder can handle — going beyond that is guaranteed to cause trouble.
• Small shredders have limited run times, so don’t save all your shredding for the end of the day. Shred your papers throughout the day and the machine won’t overheat.
• Keep your shredder well-lubricated to prevent paper jams.

The average warranty on a paper shredder is one to two years. After that, it’s less expensive to buy a new shredder than to repair the old one.

FAQ

Q. Can paper shredders handle paper clips?
A. Many paper shredders can handle staples, but paper clips are bigger and stronger. Check the manual before inserting papers with paper clips on them.  Each Bonsaii shredder is different.

Q. What security level do I need around the office?
A. P-3 is adequate for most business needs.

Q. The paper is turning sideways and the shredder is stopping. Is it a jam or is it overheating?
A. When the paper is pulled sideways or crinkled, you’re normally looking at a paper jam.