Article: You will want a container tall and wide enough to easily contain all of the documents and liquids you are pulping. Similarly, the material needs to be strong enough so that it won’t deteriorate or lose its form when in contact with bleach and water. Since you will be using roughly 22L of liquid to dissolve the documents, choose a trashcan that is greater than or equal to 30L. This will give you enough room to properly churn the documents. Plastic trashcans work well and can withstand the effects of diluted bleach.  Large plastic trashcans are available at home improvement and construction stores, as well as general commodity stores like Kmart, Target, and Walmart. They are also available online. Remove the documents from any envelopes or packages. Many stores sell brand name and generic bleach with a 8.25% concentration; this is perfect for your purpose.Bleach is going to help break down the paper. Commonly used in the recycling of used paper, it will also destroy the colorants of ink. This will guarantee a more complete destruction of any secure information in your documents.  Bleach is a hazardous chemical and can cause serious illness if not safely used. Avoid contact with your skin and eyes; do not ingest bleach. Only mix bleach with water. Combining with other chemicals – such as ammonia or toilet bowl cleaners – can produce toxic, potentially deadly fumes.  It is advised to wear long sleeve clothing, pants, close toed shoes and an eye cover when working with bleach.  In the case you accidentally swallow any of the solution, immediately drink a small glass of water or milk. Call poison control at 1-800-222-1222. Although bleach is the more chemically harmful (and stronger) part of this mixture, simple water is doing a lot of the work. Once the paper is completely saturated, you’ll be able to reduce it to an unrecognizable pulp. All the documents need to be submerged so they are completely saturated and can be broken down. If you have more documents that liquids, then you can do one of two things: work in smaller batches, or work with a larger container. If you choose the latter, make sure you increase your proportions of water and bleach to match.  Do not use your bare hands to push the documents down. This can cause great harm to your skin. Instead use the paint turbine mixer, a broom stick, or else wear long rubber gloves. For example, assume you have 30L plastic bin with 22L of liquid. If you have too many documents for this and purchase a 90L bin, you should be using 6L of bleach and 57L of water. Sitting in the bleach-water solution for 24 hours will effectively break down the sensitive documents and make them easy to pulp. If this is an emergency situation, and/or the documents need to be destroyed more quickly, consider the other methods listed here. After waiting 24 hours, the documents should be soft and discolored. Using an electric mixer, blend the paper until it becomes a soft, uniform mash.  If at any point you reach into the pulp to check the contents, always wear rubber or nitrile gloves to prevent skin exposure.  Broomsticks, canes, staffs and other long handled tools work as well. Anything that can reach deep into the container to churn and break apart the paper will succeed. Sift through the pulp looking for any large clumps. If there are pieces where you can still identify the information, break them apart by hand and then continue mixing. Putting the pulp directly into bags may lead to leakage and could possibly be rejected by the garbage men. Instead, lay out a large plastic tarp and pour the pulp evenly over the surface. Allow the pulp to dry completely before disposing of it. Some people decide to use this dried pulp as mulch for their yards. However, if you go this route, it’s advised to not use bleach during the pulping process. Place the dried remains in garbage bags and leave them out with the regular trash. Anyone who goes digging through your garbage – such as identity thieves – will be hard pressed to learn anything from your pulped documents. Pulp can also be composted.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Place the documents in a large trashcan. Pour in ½ Gallon (2L) of bleach. Add 5 Gallons (19L) of water. Push the documents down into the bleach water. Let the documents sit for 24 hours. Blend the documents with a paint turbine mixer. Lay out in sunlight to dry. Dispose of the pulp.