Why use Gallons?
Using gallons is the most popular accessory for office shredders for three reasons: 1. It's cheaper. Using gallons saves money, because gallons are much less expensive than quarts. 2. It lasts longer than quarts. Most offices tend to neglect oil duties when the oil runs out, which can reduce the longevity of your shredder. This just makes it easier. 3. Oil visibility is better. When oil gets low, it's immediately apparent. No windows or oil levels to check. Our gallon jugs are transparent, so oil levels can be spotted with a glance..
How does it work?
We've been engineering shredding equipment for over 70 years, and when our customers continually ask for something, we try our best to make it happen. Using gallon jugs with a shredder, like the 2604, that come equipt with an auto oiler just makes sense. It was one of the most asked for items, so our engineers crafted a hook for the easiest install possible. This hook is engineered specifically with the 2604 in mind. Simply slide it over the cabinet on the right or left side (your preference), and you are off and running. No tools or screws needed...
About oil levels
Don't worry about using too much oil. Using gallons does not use anymore oil over the quart bottles. It's just a bigger reservoir.
The bottom line
The 2604 shredder is built to last many years. We've seen models regularly last over 10 years, which is one of the main reasons the 2604 is so popular. It's a long term investment, and using gallons can easily save hundreds of dollars over the life of the shredder. It's easier, and cheaper than quart bottles, so save time and money. Consider our office ready bundle for your new 2604!
Have questions? We're here to help! Chat or call. We have shredder specialists standing by.
About the 2604 Shredder
What makes the 2604 such a popular office shredder is it's track record and feature set. When buying a shredder for an office, you don't want something that's going to break down, causing huge hassles for your internal staff. The 2604 has been refined over 10 years and is renowned all over the world for being the most durable office shredder in it's class. MBM/Ideal knows shredders better than anyone, and they know what to improve, and what to keep as is. The efficient shredding head hasn't changed in many years, because it's strong and efficient. Over the years, MBM has added features to make shredding easier, including a plastic receptacle, a feed capacity meter, and an internal auto oiler. There are a lot of little features that go into making this shredder an all-around best in class model, but those three are customer favorites.
We get constant feedback from customers about what they like and don't like. Most are initially attracted to the 2604 because of it's strong motor and reliable cutting shaft. There are also a lot of other well thought out features that elevate the 2604, beyond just another office product. Here are some features that make the Destroyit 2604 a well crafted shredding masterpiece.
Continuous Duty:
If you're looking for a shredder for more than one person in an office, you need one that's continuous duty. That means you can keep shredding for as long as you need to to get the job done. Shredders that aren't continuous duty will tend to shut off occasionally. If you've ever had to do some bulk shredding, you know what that's like. After about a grocery bag worth of shred, many other shredders will overheat, even emitting a light smoky odor. Their motors are designed to turn off when they get too hot, so bulk shredding becomes almost impossible. Even single users occasionally have bulk shredding, so a multi-user shredder in an office definately needs to be continuous duty. The 2604 is one of the smaller models that offers this feature, making it a entry-level to mid-level continuous duty choice. It's perfect for those that want this feature, but don't want to spend a lot of additional money.
Internal Auto oiler:
Auto oilers are important for office shredders, because it eliminates the responsibility of knowing who should oil and when. Oiling shredders is important because it keeps the blades in the best condition possible for optimum shredding capacity and longevity of the machine. Over time, the metal and wear, and the paper dust clings to the cutting head reducing efficiency and even causing the motor to work too hard or seize. Shredding oil lubricates while cleaning the cutting shaft keeping your shredder in working order. MBM's auto oiler is internal, quiet, and integrated into the control panel, so you barely know it's there. Too many oilers out there sound like droaning motors. The silent efficiency adds to the usability and cohesiveness of the shredder's design.
Horizontal Feeding:
This is one of the most overlooked features that you really don't know exists until you try a few different shredders. Vertical feeding systems are easier to manufacture, but they can have really clunky usability, causing papers to get caught up on the sides or top of the machine if not dropped in just right. We love the flat space in front of the cutting head, where paper can be rested, then slid into the feed opening with a single movement. Ergonomic shred feeding isn't something you get from pictures, but it's one of those little things that ties together to make a great package.
Plastic Shred Bin
Shredder companies have had so many goes at shred bin designs over the years that are a pain to use, so we really appreciate that MBM has come up with such a simple and effective solution. From pull-out trays to cardboard bins, these methods either break over time, or are messy and unintuitive to change bags. The bin is made from high quality plastic with suction reducing indents to make pulling full bags easy. It's simple and it works great! If only the other shredder manufacturers would follow suit.
Casters
Shredders need to move sometimes, and we've seen too many shredders with broken casters, just because they were rolled over a threshold or hit a large crack in the floor. It's one of the most common repairs, but can lead to an entire cabinet replacement. MBM includes high quality oversized casters to make moving and transporting the shredder a stress-free event. They're also 360 degree casters, which is nice, because many models out there only roll one way, which causes customers to think there are no casters at all. We install these all the time at customer sites, and really appreciate a shredder that can roll into the next room right into place without worrying about damages.
Feed Meter (AKA ECC)
The ECC or “Electronic Capacity Control" is basically a feed meter that shows you how hard the machine is working. It's electronic, but it's still simple, falling perfectly inline with the design dna of these shredders. It's easy to read and subtle on the shredder control panel. We've seen electronics get way out of hand on shredders in recent years, causing durability problems with circuit boards and sensors, but not the case with the destroyit shredders. We're glad to see this user friendly feature added in such a way that doesn't interfere with shredding or the longevity of the machine.
Hinges
Proper hinges are just one more small example of how this shredder was designed to last. 3 ultra-strong hinges connect the door to the cabinet. If you've ever had an annoying kitchen cabinet door with a loose hinge, you will know what I mean. It's very hard to repair, once damaged. To prevent this, Destroyit office shredders are equipped from the factory to avoid little pesky problems like this that might not pop up in the first year of ownership, but will appear after years of use. MBM has spent a lot of r and d on items like this to plan for a decade plus of ownership, so moving parts like these have to be right.
Power Cord
They think of everything with their shredders. The length of the power cord is significantly longer than most other shredders, giving customers even more placement options out of the box without running messy extension cords. They could easily save some money at the factory if they thought like other major shredder manufacturers, but it's just further proof of their mission to provide common sense quality and ergonomics over flashy sales pitches.
Safety Shield
We love the simplicity of MBM's safety feature. Lift up the transparent shield, and the shredder stops. This also helps to prevent trying to shred foreign objects or anything else that can lead to jams. Too many other manufacturers have come up with electronic solutions, overburdening the shredders with sensors and electronics that fail far too often. By using a physical shield, they have achieved safety concerns in the simplest possible manner. We've been fixing these since the design fist hit the market many years ago, and broken safety mechanisms are nearly unheard of. If safety is first, durability is an obvious second.
Lifetime Warranty
Destroyit is so confident in their ability to produce a long-lasting durable office shredder, they're giving the cutting shaft a lifetime warranty! It doesn't cover accidental damage, like putting metal in the shredder, but that's the same with any warranty out there. The fact that they are willing to vouch for the main heart of the shredder for life is the best proof outside of actual experience that this is high quality shredder.
Need a Bigger Option?
Do you like all the features of the 2604, but you want more sheets per pass? Are you trying to use this for many users to cover an entire floor of office space? Click here to checkout the 4002. It's the 2604's big brother, and offers all the same features, but is built for even more volume.