Before you specify
Frequently Asked Questions
How much paper does it actually hold?
20 US gallons of volume, which HSM rates at up to 60 lb of paper — around 27 kg, or roughly 5,000 to 6,000 sheets of 20 lb bond stacked flat. The wide slot encourages people to drop sheets in unfolded, and flat paper packs far denser than crumpled paper, so the volume figure and the weight figure are closer to each other in practice than they look. A department generating a ream of confidential waste a day will fill it in about two working weeks.
Does it come with a lock and key?
Yes. The lid is lockable and HSM supplies a key with the bin. The useful part is that HSM keys the range alike — the same key opens every HSM console, cart, Shredinator bin and PDC — so adding a second or third bin later does not add keys to the facilities ring. If you need restricted keying for a particular department instead, say so at order time; that is a factory option, not something you can change afterwards.
Will an unfolded letter, legal or A4 sheet fit through the slot?
Yes. The slot is sized for unfolded sheets, which is the whole point of the design — if staff have to fold paper to post it, they stop using the bin and the paper ends up in an open tray instead. The bin footprint is 11 in by 20 in, so US letter, legal and A4 all drop in flat without being creased or jammed at the corner.
Why choose this over the 24-inch bin?
Twenty-five percent more capacity for zero extra floor space. Both bins occupy an 11 in by 20 in footprint; the 27-inch is simply three inches taller and holds 20 US gallons instead of 16. The only reason to take the 24-inch is clearance — if the bin must fit under a desk or a low counter, three inches decides it.
Can several people share one of these?
Comfortably. Twenty US gallons at up to 60 lb of paper suits a team of roughly five to fifteen people on ordinary office paper volumes, emptied weekly. What actually limits sharing is not volume but access: if the bin is more than about thirty seconds' walk from someone's desk, they will use their own wastebasket instead. Two 27-inch bins placed well beat one large bin placed badly.