Powershred 225Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder

The 225Ci is Fellowes' mid-size commercial cross-cut cabinet: twenty-two sheets a pass at DIN 66399 P-4, a 9.5-inch throat, a 16-gallon bin and a motor rated for continuous operation.

It sits between the 125Ci and the 425Ci in a range where the differences are capacity rather than security. All three are P-4 cross-cut machines cutting roughly 4 by 38 mm. What the 225Ci adds over the 125Ci is two more sheets, two more gallons and half an inch of throat; what it gives up against the 425Ci is eight sheets, fourteen gallons and two and a half inches of width.

Key Features

• Twenty-two sheets per pass on 20 lb paper at DIN 66399 P-4.
• Cross-cut at 5/32 x 1 1/2 in (3.9 x 38 mm per Fellowes' manual, about 148 mm² per particle).
• Continuous duty. No scheduled cool-down to plan a session around.
• 9.5-inch throat and a shred speed of about 14 ft/min.
• 16-gallon pull-out bin.
• 100% Jam Proof System with SafeSense contact protection and SilentShred acoustics.
• Shreds paper, credit cards, CDs and DVDs, staples and small paper clips.
• 31.2 in H x 17.7 in W x 17.7 in D, 92 lb, at 120 V, 60 Hz, 6 A.

Fellowes' own documentation is inconsistent about the sheet rating on this model. The 2012 operating manual states 20 sheets per pass; current retail listings and Fellowes' marketing quote 22. We have published 22 as the current figure and are telling you about the discrepancy so that you can plan against 20 if the specification matters. Either way, stapled sets, creased pages and glossy stock all reduce the practical number, and the Jam Proof system will decline an overload rather than attempt it.

The exclusion list is the same across the Powershred commercial cabinets: no adhesive labels, continuous form paper, transparencies, newspaper, cardboard, large paper clips, file folders, X-rays or plastics other than credit cards and discs.

Specifications

Sheet ratings are Fellowes' figures for 8.5 x 11 in, 20 lb paper at rated voltage. Fellowes publishes no decibel value for this model, describing the acoustic design only as SilentShred.

What's in the Box

Shredder on its 16-gallon pull-out bin, with power cord and operating instructions. Fellowes specifies its own non-aerosol vegetable-based shredder oil, part 35250, and asks that the machine be oiled each time the waste bin is emptied. Aerosol lubricants must not be used in any shredder.

Who Should Buy This — and Who Should Not

Buy the 225Ci for a department that shreds every day and wants headroom rather than a machine running at its limit. Continuous duty and a 16-gallon bin mean a records clear-out is a matter of emptying the bin rather than watching a timer, and the 9.5-inch throat takes a loose handful more comfortably than the 9-inch models.

Do not buy it if you were told this machine is P-7. It is not, and our own supplier data was wrong about that — it is a P-4 cross-cut. If your requirement really is high security, the Fortishred HS-440 is the only Fellowes machine in that class. Do not buy it if a policy names P-5 either; the Microshred 225Mi shares this cabinet size at 16 sheets and 24 mm². And if your material includes ledger or A3, the Powershred 425Ci with its 12-inch throat and 30-gallon bin is the right size up.