Dahle 20630ec Level 5 Cross Cut Office Paper Shredder

Staff Review

Dahle 20630 EC Level 5 Cross Cut Office Paper Shredder Review

A security Level 5 shredder meant for centralized office use, the Dahle 20630 EC is intended to give corporations and government agencies one of the highest levels of document destruction on the market. We took a look at its various features and compiled a list of some of this machine’s strengths and weaknesses.

Strengths:

1. The 20630 EC is a cross cut, Level 5 security shredder. This means that it is rated for the destruction of secret documents such as might be required in some government offices, or for documents that, if they were to fall into the wrong hands, might threaten the existence of your business. It more than complies with all federal regulations concerning the destruction of confidential client and employee information as well. Long story short, as far as security goes, this is all the shredder you will ever need and then some.
2. If you or your employees regularly handle and dispose of documents that are highly confidential, you will want to have a shredder like this in a place where everyone on your office can easily use it. With its one horsepower engine, this machine is cut out for fairly heavy use, and is designed to be placed near the copy and fax machines so that any sensitive documents aren’t left lying around, and it is meant to be used throughout the day.
3. A centrally located machine should get the job done as quietly as possible to cut down on the distraction level. To that end, Dahle designed a noise damping system that encases the cutting heads and places them on rubber shock mounts to reduce vibration to the cabinet. The result is what Dahle calls “whisper quiet operation.” That seems appropriate for a machine that is rated as espionage safe.
4. The feed opening (10-1/4″) easily fits letter, legal, A4 and A5 sized sheets, and will be enough to accommodate the vast majority of shredding jobs.
5. There are several user-friendly features on the 20630 EC as well. The control panel is clear and easy to operate, with an automatic on/off function, as well as reverse and continuous run. There’s also an auto reverse in case of a jam, and the machine turns itself off if the bag is full and needs to be emptied.

Weaknesses:

1. With extra high security shredder like this, there tends to be a bit of a tradeoff when it comes to capacity. The 20630 EC can handle up to 9 sheets at a time, which is good for a Level 5 machine, but if your aim is simply to meet the guidelines of the FACTA federal regulations, you can purchase one of Dahle’s Level 3 machines (such as the 20614 EC) and get about 2.5 times the productivity.
2. In another high-security tradeoff, the cutting heads on most of Dahle’s other machines are guaranteed for the life of the machine, but those on the 20630 EC carry only a one-year warranty.
3. As with any other shredder on the market, you will have to make sure you oil the heads on the 20630 EC on a regular basis. Dahle does, however, have an auto oiling system that can be purchased and used with this machine. If you don’t purchase the auto oiling system you should probably be prepared to oil this machine (or any high security level 5 machine) on a daily basis if it is used regularly.