Shredder jammed — the right way out
Applies to: Fellowes Powershred and similar office shredders
What this error means
Fellowes' official procedure: press and hold Reverse for 2–3 seconds and gently pull the uncut portion of the paper out. Still stuck? Slowly alternate Reverse and Auto-Forward in 2–3 second pulses to walk the wad out of the cutters. If hands are going anywhere near the throat: power off, unplug, and use tweezers — never fingers (the cutters don't care what they're cutting).
Symptoms
- Motor hums but paper won't move
- 'Remove Paper' indicator lit
- Fed a stack past the sheet rating (we've all done it)
Try this first (safe DIY steps)
- Hold Reverse 2–3 seconds; pull the free end gently as it backs out
- Alternate Reverse / Auto-Forward in short pulses if it won't release
- For manual extraction: OFF, unplugged, tweezers
- Refeed in smaller batches under the sheet rating — and skip the sticky notes (adhesive gums cutters)
- After a bad jam, oil the cutters (see our oiling guide)
Safety: power off before any physical intervention. Never bypass covers or interlocks — fuser areas run hot enough to burn.
When to call a technician
A shredder that jams constantly at half its rated capacity has dull or gummed cutters — oil first; if that fails on an office-grade unit, service quotes rarely beat replacement below the commercial tier.