Shredder oiling: the maintenance nobody does (and the WD-40 warning)
Applies to: All cross-cut and micro-cut shredders
What this error means
Fellowes' official guidance: oil a cross-cut shredder every time you empty the bin (occasional users: every couple of months; micro-cut: more often). The method is theirs verbatim: hold Reverse, squeeze oil across the entire paper entry, keep holding Reverse another 10 seconds to spread it. And the warning that should be printed in red: only vegetable-based, non-aerosol shredder oil. Fellowes states aerosol oils are petroleum-based and 'can be a serious fire hazard' — that means WD-40 in a shredder is not a hack, it's a hazard. Cooking oil gums and goes rancid; the purpose-made stuff costs a few dollars.
Symptoms
- Louder shredding, more jams
- Overheating on modest jobs
- Nobody remembers ever oiling it
Try this first (safe DIY steps)
- Buy shredder oil (Fellowes or equivalent vegetable-based, non-aerosol)
- Hold Reverse; squeeze a line of oil across the full width of the paper entry
- Keep holding Reverse ~10 seconds
- Repeat after every bin empty for busy office machines
- Never: WD-40, aerosols, cooking oil
Safety: power off before any physical intervention. Never bypass covers or interlocks — fuser areas run hot enough to burn.
When to call a technician
Never — this IS the maintenance.