[coderitr]

Is there a way (besides a retail-grade shredder) to securely destroy documents like bank statements, utility bills, tax returns, etc? What I'm looking for is a residential-grade incinerator or some sort of chemical cocktail that will do the job.

[JohnWill]

Well, you can just get yourself a burn barrel and have a hot dog roast. That's how we disposed of my sister-in-law's old business records, about 10 paper boxes full.

[Soundy]

A cheap Office Depot shredder will do a pretty good job of it... if you want to burn it as added security, the confetti goes up a lot faster, too

[DoubleHelix]

A commercial-grade incinerator?
Burned is burned. Something can't be more incinerated than something else.

[JohnWill]

There is no need to shred them if you're going to burn them. Besides, burning a large quantity of documents will be FAR faster than any cheap shredder! Those only handle a few pages at most at a time. Think about doing boxes of documents with one of those!

[coderitr]

What do you think prompted this thread? I had a couple of paper boxes full of stuff that I sent home with my father-in-law to burn in his barrel but now I've got another one full of several hundred pages. I have a shredder but like you said it only takes a few pages at a time and I have to empty it frequently. If I could rig it so the kill switch was deactivated while sitting over my trash can that would be semi-ok but I burned one up a couple of years ago doing that. The problems with burning are (1) I live in a subdivision with a fascist HOA; (2) I do not have a steel barrel; (3) I have to get a permit from the county before I can burn and they won't issue them for burning trash; (4) we're in a severe drought here in central NC so everything is very dry to begin with; (5) burned paper has a tendency to defy gravity once its mass is lessened enough that it can be carried out of the fire by its own smoke. This is why I'm looking for some sort of household chemical cocktail that will dissolve the paper and ink. The question then becomes one of disposal of the cocktail and waste material left behind.

[DoubleHelix]

If your local ordinances won't allow a simple burn barrel or bonfire, there's no way it's going to be legal to own any type of incinerator or "chemical cocktail". A person could do some serious damage to a home, other people, the ground, water table etc. Don't you have a friend or family member that lives outside of town where you can just burn the documents?

[arkansas gal]

I am fortunate to have a firplace and all mail and documents go there until I get around to getting a log in. I just pile it in bags until fall. Great started and better than newspaper.

I know everyone does not have a firplace but it works for me.

[arkansas gal]

shred your stuff and don't let it pile up easier that way.

[Gulo Luseus]

A bucket ( or a bath) of water, a good overnight soak, then a quick pick up and scrunch. If anyone can find it after that, they can have it.

[bp936]

I have a woodstove, find a farmer with a woodstove

[JohnWill]

You do realize this thread is several months old, right? I hope they figured it out by now.

[bp936]

yes John, I just like to look at old posts too, one never knows if another answer helps someone, but this one was mostly a joke (I am "slowbrain"