PSA: don't spray lithium grease in your shredder.

[rich in distress]

I actually have used wd40 with no explosions... was that wrong? should I not do that?

[JoeH]

Chakravartin wrote:
[quote=Sam3]
Vegetable oil. Specifically Canola oil / soybean oil.

That's just Fellowes.

Everybody else uses mineral oil. Some of them add a bit of Naphthalene to the oil. (Don't add napthaline to your mineral oil.)

I'd avoid vegetable-based oils as they are prone to denaturing and gumming up the works.
It is not just Fellowes. There are a number of other brands of shredder lubricants that are based on vegetable oils or a mix of vegetable and mineral oil.

[Thrift Store Scott]

rich in distress wrote:
I actually have used wd40 with no explosions... was that wrong? should I not do that?

While WD40 is a decent temporary lubricant/penetrating oil suitable for loosening stuck bolts and nuts (although in my personal experience Liquid Wrench is far better in this capacity), WD40 is just about the worst thing you could use for a permanent or semi-permanent lubricant because not only does it not stay where you put it, it also washes out any remaining good lubricant from precision machined parts like locks and hinges.

The only task I ever found WD40 to truly excel at was removing built-up gunk (a combination of lug nut grease and brake dust baked to the consistency of tar by the heat of disc brakes) from auto lug nuts. Just placing the gunkiest of lug nuts in a small container of WD40 for a minute or two and swishing them around a bit would render them clean, shiny, and ultra-easy to install.

I have no WD40 in my home at all. I do, however, have Lock Ease (a graphite-infused penetrating oil) for lubricating locks and hinges, Liquid Wrench for loosening stuck nuts and bolts, and 3-In-Oil for lubricating things where using Lock Ease is not appropriate.

[Chakravartin]

JoeH wrote:
[quote=Chakravartin]
[quote=Sam3]
Vegetable oil. Specifically Canola oil / soybean oil.

That's just Fellowes.

Everybody else uses mineral oil. Some of them add a bit of Naphthalene to the oil. (Don't add napthaline to your mineral oil.)

I'd avoid vegetable-based oils as they are prone to denaturing and gumming up the works.
It is not just Fellowes. There are a number of other brands of shredder lubricants that are based on vegetable oils or a mix of vegetable and mineral oil.
Don't use vegetable oil.

Mineral oil is cheap and reliable and doesn't gunk up.

[cbelt3]

The real key to cleaning anything that produces dust is to DO IT OUTSIDE, and also out of the wastebasket that collects the shreddings.

Dust don't explode when it's blowing in the wind.

[rz]

Chakravartin wrote:
For future reference:

Shredder lube is just mineral oil.

Buy a small bottle of mineral oil from your local drug store or supermarket. After you empty the basket, spread some mineral oil on a sheet of 8.5x11-inch paper and fold it in half, then run the paper through the shredder. (Don't use so much oil that it drips off the page.)

That's all there is to cleaning and lubing a home or small-office shredder.

Thanks for this suggestion. We have an older shredder that I've never lubricated, and on occasion have been curious of the best way to do it.

[DRR]

I don't understand. You mean explode, as in a firey explosion? How did it combust? What was the ignition source?

I need someone with better science skills than me.

[OWC Jamie]

an unsealed motor with brushes could provide an ignition source as could sufficient heat.


with all that paper and potential paper dust one might think an unsealed motor wouldn't be used for safety reasons.


Even those compressed air cans shouldn't be released just anywhere.