Best Garden Shredder Reviews and Customer Shopping Guide

Trimming hedges, mowing the lawn, clearing dead leaves and tidying up the veggie patch; all these simple gardening duties have one irksome thing in common – you are usually left with much more stuff than you started with.

Be it a pile of grass and hedge clippings or a mix of dry twigs and messy kitchen waste; you need to dispose of them in the most effective and cost-efficient way possible. Sure; you could take it to the council tip, but it doesn’t make much sense to make an outing of it every time you mow your lawn.

And pardon the pun here, but merely filling your trash bins with trimmings and green debris is a huge waste of your garden waste! So, what do you do with all that waste?

Simple – recycle and reuse. If properly stored and processed, your garden and kitchen waste will make exceptional compost for your lawn, yard, and garden. Of course, to achieve the best results with the least effort, you need the best garden shredder for the job.

By feeding debris like branches, grass, leaves, trimmings, twigs and kitchen waste into the shredder, you get well mixed and composted mulch to fertilize your compound. Not to mention how garden shredders make for an environmentally friendly way to manage your home’s waste.

If you’re tired of making endless trips to the tip or evil glares from the garbage guys, it’s time to make the most out of your garden waste with one of the following best garden shredders in the UK.

Best Garden Shredders on the UK Market

1. Bosch AXT 25 TC Quiet Shredder

Bosch AXT 25 TC Quiet Shredder

 

If we’re talking about power tools and equipment, then Bosch definitely has more than one hand in the cookie jar. Their latest release has gained instant popularity, especially in the landscaping business. The Bosch AXT 25 TC Quiet Shredder is a highly versatile, multipurpose garden shredder that achieves professional levels of performance with its innovative features. This unit boasts of a Turbine-Cut System with an automatic feed and quick material throughput. In addition to a high powered 2500 W motor that makes quick work of thorny shrubs, hedges and hardwood, the AXT 25 also has a 53 L collection box for fewer trips to the heap.

Pros

  • The 45mm cutting capacity is ideal for larger shredding tasks
  • Lower noise levels of 82 dB
  • Powerful 230Kg/h throughput rate

Cons

  • The only downside is the high cost that comes with this unit, but you sure get what you paid for

2. Bosch AXT Rapid 2200 Blade Shredder

Bosch AXT Rapid 2200 Blade Shredder

 

When I said Bosch had more than one hand in the cookie jar, I meant it. This time, the global leader in power equipment designed something relatively affordable and convenient for non-commercial, home purposes. The new Bosch AXT Rapid 2200 Blade Shredder is a low priced garden shredder with slightly less power and specifications than its larger brother, the AXT 25. Even at a lower cost, the AXT rapid shredder manages to shell out 2200 Watts on the motor and a double sided 40mm diameter cutting capacity. With Anti Start-up protection and an overload Cut Out, the AXT Rapid from Bosch is one of the safest units.

Pros

  • Incorporates large capacity hopper and plunger
  • Lightweight for more mobility
  • Safety features for user protection

Cons

  • May not be the quietest machine out there, but the shredding is not too loud

3. Dirty Pro ToolsTM Garden Shredder

Dirty Pro ToolsTM Garden Shredder

 

If you are starting out in the gardening business and want something cheap yet powerful for regular use, then the Dirty Pro Tools Garden Shredder fits the bill perfectly. With a 2500 W motor and a high 40mm cutting capacity, the unit can handle anything that the average yard can throw at it. The 4050 RMP blade shredder for Dirty Pro Tools is compact, easy to store and comes with a 50-litre collection box with easy viewing. The larger wheels make it easy for landscapers and gardeners to move through more extensive lawns and multiple homes.

Pros

  • Shreds branches with up to 40mm thickness
  • Larger wheels for easy manoeuvrability
  • Built-in safety devices for worker protection

Cons

  • Some customers have claimed that cutting thicker twigs is very hard, be sure you don’t exceed the 40mm standard

4. Draper 35900 Garden Shredder

Draper Garden Shredder

 

For those of you new to the brand, the Draper gardening tool range is designed to be robust, sturdy and offer great value for your money. The Draper 35900 Garden Shredder incorporates all these elements along with the brand’s trademark ease of use. From the occasional gardener to professional landscapers, the Draper 35900 Shredder offers enough power and all the features you would expect from a decent unit. This includes a 2400 Watt motor that is fully capable of shredding twigs up to 400mm in diameter. With a built-in emergency stop brake and a quick release housing interlock for blockage clearance, the 35900 is ideal for beginners and professionals.

Pros

  • Comes with UK approved plug
  • Handy collection bag with wheels
  • Ample safety features for beginners

Cons

  • Customers have pointed out the occasional blockage, but the quick release housing should sort that out quickly

5. Bosch AXT 25 D Quiet Shredder

Bosch AXT 25 D Quiet Shredder

 

For anyone who does regular gardening with lots of branch waste and is looking for something that will get the job done right, then Bosch has exactly what you need. The Bosch AXT 25D is a highly reliable unit that comfortably handles old hedges, hardwood, and thick, thorny shrubs. The shredder uses an innovative cut and crush drum system designed to eat up large volumes at a go. With a powerful 2500 Watt motor and a large 53-litre collection box, shredding has been made simple and convenient.

Pros

  • Patented removable hopper for compact storage
  • Decent throughput of 190Kg per hour
  • Reverse pulse mechanism for easy blockage clearance

Cons

  • As with other premium products from Bosch, the price may be a bit high, but well worth the quality you get

6. Einhell BG-RS 2540/1CB Quiet shredder

inhell Quiet shredder

 

Coming to you with a 2-year guarantee from Einhell, the BG-RS 2540/1CB Quiet shredder is a new unit from Einhell that promises the utmost convenience and simplistic features. However, that is not to be mistaken for poor quality or cheap prices for that matter. Let’s see why this beauty will cost you a pretty penny. In addition to a 2500 Watt engine that distributes more than sufficient power to the blades, what makes this unit really stand out from afar is the ability to chow down thicker branches and shrubbery. To top it off, the clear collection box is absolutely transparent to monitor the levels.

Pros

  • Larger funnel opening for more feeding capacity
  • Reverse running for instant blockage clearance
  • Solid and sturdy undercarriage with wheels for easy transport

Cons

  • While the Einhell BG excels at chomping down thick branches, it tends to become sniffy at too many leaves

7. Electric Garden Shredder

Electric Garden Shredder

 

If you are looking for the best garden shredder that puts safety above all else, then you’ll want to direct your attention to the Electric Garden Shreder. With a super easy to use design and an average price that is decent for most average households, this unit is a must have for semi-professional gardeners. Safety comes in the form of electric motor protection and overload sensors. Like all the other high-end models, this particular shredder can chomp down up to 40mm diameter branches thanks to the 2500 Watt motor with effortless shredding. The large 50 Litre box is ideal for reduced trips to the compost, but some sort of viewing window would have helped.

Pros

  • Packed with safety features
  • Lightweight for portability
  • Self-closing mechanism for safer debris feeding

Cons

  • As stated, the manufacturer could have included a viewing window

8. Homegear 2400W Electric Garden Shredder

Homegear Electric Garden Shredder

 

For the homeowner who enjoys a little gardening now and then, it’s good to know that you don’t have to spend a fortune cleaning up after yourself. The Homegear Electric Garden Shredder is one of the most affordable, best garden shredder you will ever find on the market. But don’t be fooled by the low price range and overly simplistic design; this unit is as powerful and as efficient as they come. The unit boasts of a 2400 W motor that comes with sharp double blades to make for a max cutting thickness of 40mm. It also comes with a safety switch and guards to keep you safe.

Pros

  • Affordable cost
  • High cutting capacity of 40mm thickness
  • Simple, user-friendly design

Cons

  • Some customers have stated that this shredder tends to clog up frequently

Best Garden Shredder Buying Guide

If you’re sick of putting up with splinters and sap stains as you wrestle thorny hedges and branches in the bin, then you obviously need one of our top best garden shredders. But while we have reviewed quite a number of them, how do you know which one will suit your needs the most? If you have already made up your mind that you are buying a brand new unit, here are all the key considerations you need to make before you spend your hard-earned finances.

1. Type of Shredder

Before you buy a garden shredder, you need to consider a few things. This includes how much shredding you plan to do, what kind of material you shred and how you will dispose of the shredded waste. All these are of course covered by the different types of shredders. The types currently available in the market include:

Impact Shredder

Also known as rapid shredders, impact shredders have a sharp, spinning blade mechanism designed to slice up and chomp down garden debris. They are known to be the noisiest of all shredders looking to focus more on performance than comfort. Impact shredders chop down leaves and green branches to a very fine grain, but are not particularly suited for tougher, woody materials. Customers are advised to buy models with more than one blade since they wear out quick.

Roller Shredders

These types of shredders work by cutting up and crushing garden debris using the ridged roller in the machine. If you have a lot of material to shred, these would be more than suitable. However, it’s worth noting that roller shredders are much more likely to get blocked. So look for a unit with easier access to the housing for quick blockage clearance.

Petrol Shredders

If you own a large compound or garden where you will be required to manoeuvre your shredder far away from an electrical power source, then petrol shredders are a good way to go. Since they use petrol, you get a more portable shredder with greater throughput rates and durability. The only downside is the additional weight associated with these units. Not to mention air pollution and higher noise levels.

2. Cable Length

Since most models are electric, it’s important to consider the cable length on your potential purchase. Always choose a shredder with a cable that allows for ample reach all through your entire compound. Alternatively, you could get an extension or two to help.

3. Maintenance and Safety

Basically, this means looking for a garden shredder that requires the least bit of attention. Garden shredders tend to clog up, so it’s always wide to get a unit with easy access to the housing. This way, you can unblock any stuck debris immediately. As for the safety, most brands take all measures to make your unit as safe as possible. Buy a garden shredder with features like start protection, security guards, and automatic overload cut-offs to ensure you and your workers are as safe as possible.

Garden Shredder FAQs

Q: What does a shredder warranty cover?

Granted that garden shredders perform some very tough tasks, it’s only natural for customers to be worried about the durability. Most warranties for shredders cover anything from small malfunctions to complete breakdowns. Other brands even include replacements for individual, faulty parts as well as whole units. Always find out what a warranty covers before you make the purchase.

Q: Do I need protective gear when shredding?

Of course! Garden shredders are very powerful and dangerous tools that can pose an injury hazard to anyone in the near vicinity. If you are operating a shredder, make sure you have protective clothing such as eye goggles and safety garden gloves to keep your eyes and hands safe from sharp pieces. Additionally, you can use ear plugs if your garden shredder is very noisy.

Q: What is the purpose of a plunger in shredding?

As we’ve already established, garden shredders are very powerful and dangerous; they could make short work of your fingers and arms in a matter of seconds. A plunger is basically a small paddle that allows you to push material through the shredder while at the same time avoiding causing nasty injuries to your appendages. If you don’t have a plunger nearby, a sturdy stick will do just fine.

Q: What to do with garden shredder waste?

Garden shredder waste is a fantastic addition to your garden. You can use the woody parts of your garden shreddings for mulching your plants (to add nutrients back to the soil, and to keep delicate plants warm in the winter), or you can compost it.

Shreddings with a higher percentage of dead, woody material will take longer to decompose into soft, crumbly compost than the greener types, but it will still yield you good compost given a few years.

You can make your own bark chippings with garden shredder output, which can be used for garden paths and borders.

You can also make “dead hedges” which are basically piles of your shredded wood, stacked into piles or lines – these are useful dividing borders, and make excellent homes for wildlife.

Q: How to make your own garden shredder?

You can very easily make your own DIY garden shredder using just a 32-44 gallon metal rubbish bin and a string strimmer. You will also need ear and eye protection, as this type of DIY shredder can be very loud, and may spit bits of half chopped trig up at your face.

  1. Loosely pack the rubbish bin with dry leaves, twigs and other garden debris.
  2. Leaving it turned off for now, place the head of the strimmer underneath the first layer of leaves.
  3. Turn the strimmer on and move it across the bin, making sure that it does not rise above the leaves.
  4. Once the top layer starts to show signs of becoming shredded, move the strimmer down about 6 inches and continue back and forth.
  5. Continue moving the strimmer down as the upper layers of leaves become shredded.
  6. When you reach the bottom, continue moving the strimmer but now in an up and down pattern as well as side to side.

You should only add the size and diameter of material that you know your strimmer can get through. If the up and down shredding motion becomes too difficult, remove some of the material and start again.

You should always wear goggles and ear defenders to prevent any accident or injury. This is a very simple type of garden shredder; you can make a bigger, stronger version more capable of shredding large sticks and branches, but this requires a little more work and equipment; detailed plans exist online or in DIY books.

Q: How to unjam a garden shredder?

The first thing you should do is turn the shredder off. This should hopefully be a no brainer, but do not ever attempt to unjam your garden shredder while it is still running, if you like all your limbs intact.

Once it is off and no longer running, try to manually remove whatever is blocking it. If this does not work, you will need to remove the bolts that secure the housing onto the shredder, take off the cover and get deeper inside the shredder to get a look at the problem.

You may find that there is matter clogging up the blades; carefully remove this and clean the blades as much as you can (you should wear gloves for this part).

It is also worth checking whether your shredder is actually blocked, or whether there is some issue with the drive belt – if this is worn or damaged then the shredder will not work, even if the engine is running, and this can be an issue that is confused with a blockage.

Final Word

With this information, you will now be more than adequately informed to make a decision on which garden shredder to purchase. Whatever your choice is, remember to observe caution and keep kids away from the machine. A good shredder not only gets the job done, but it is also a great investment that will improve the quality of your lawn, garden or any other patch that could use some organic manure.

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