Updated November 2026 · Southern New Hampshire
One-time shredding service for a single clean purge
When one job clears the backlog and when paper keeps coming back, with real totals for a New Hampshire home or small office. No contract, no schedule to sign up for, and the same prices on the first job and the tenth.
99¢ per pound at our Tewksbury drop-off. No long-term contract. Certificate of Destruction on every job.
- 99¢ per pound
- No contract
- Since 2007
- BBB A+ rated
Quick answer
A one-time shredding service is a single job with no contract: you drop boxes off, book one pickup or book one witnessed session, and get a Certificate of Destruction. At New Hampshire Document Shredding it costs 99 cents a pound under 10 boxes or $15/$20 per box at 10 or more, plus $34.90 per job and, for a pickup, $129.95 to $199.95 by zone, so one full banker’s box dropped off is about $64.60 and ten are $234.90. If paper keeps piling up, you simply book another pickup at the same rates when the boxes fill.
What a one-time shredding service is
A one-time job is exactly what it sounds like. You gather the paper you no longer need, we shred it once, and you get a certificate. There is no account to open, no service agreement, no bin left behind in your office and no monthly bill.
Here is something many customers do not expect: every job we run works this way. We do not sell plans or require long-term contracts. A practice that shreds four times a year books four one-time jobs. A household that shreds once after tax season books one. The price list is the same either way, and you can see all of it on our shredding rates page.
One drop-off
Drive your boxes to 1215 Main Street, Unit 115, Tewksbury, any weekday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. No appointment. Staff help you unload, and the paper is shredded the same business day.
One pickup
Book an appointment and our driver collects your sealed boxes from your New Hampshire home or office, then brings them to Tewksbury to be shredded. The transport fee is set by zone.
One witnessed session
Bring the boxes at a booked time and watch them go through the shredder. The certificate is signed in front of you. Priced at $1.99 per pound with a $100 minimum.
One-time does not mean lighter handling. A single box from a kitchen table gets the same locked handling, the same cross-cut shredder and the same certificate as a fifty-box office cleanout. The only thing that changes with volume is the price, and the 10-box rule means bigger jobs get cheaper per box, not less careful.
All three are part of the same set of shredding services, and all three end the same way: cross-cut shredding at our Tewksbury office, every shred recycled and a Certificate of Destruction for your file.
When a one-time shredding service is the right call
A single purge fits when the paper is a backlog, not a flow. Something happened, or a deadline passed, and now there is a pile. Clear it once and you are done until the next time life produces a pile. These are the situations we see most from New Hampshire customers.
After tax season
The IRS says to keep most tax records for 3 years, longer in some cases. Each spring, the oldest year that has aged out can go. One trip a year handles it.
Settling an estate
A parent’s filing cabinet, decades of statements and old checks. A one-time job clears it once the executor has kept what the estate still needs.
Moving or downsizing
Nobody wants to pay movers to haul paper. Shred before the boxes go on the truck, not after they sit in a new basement for three years.
Closing or merging an office
A lease end date forces the question. One large job, one set of per-job fees, one certificate covering everything that left the suite.
Two more fit the pattern. A home office that runs a side business tends to build up a box or two a year, and a single purge each January is plenty. A small office that finally cleans out a storage closet after a decade has a one-time backlog, even if its daily paper is small.
Our guides on estate cleanout shredding and what to shred before moving cover the two biggest one-time jobs in detail.
What a one-time shredding service costs
A single job has three possible parts. The shredding is 99 cents a pound under 10 boxes, or a flat $15 per small box and $20 per large banker’s box at 10 or more. The per-job fees are $34.90: a $14.95 HIPAA filing fee that covers the Certificate of Destruction paperwork and a $19.95 environmental fee that covers recycling. A pickup adds a transport fee by zone.
| One job, full banker’s boxes | Drop-off | Zone 1 pickup ($129.95) | Zone 2 pickup ($159.95) | Zone 3 pickup ($199.95) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 box (about 30 lb) | $64.60 | $194.55 | $224.55 | $264.55 |
| 5 boxes (about 150 lb) | $183.40 | $313.35 | $343.35 | $383.35 |
| 10 boxes (flat $20 each) | $234.90 | $364.85 | $394.85 | $434.85 |
| 20 boxes (flat $20 each) | $434.90 | $564.85 | $594.85 | $634.85 |
Zone 1 covers the Tewksbury area and New Hampshire border towns such as Salem, Pelham, Windham and Plaistow. Zone 2 covers greater Nashua and Manchester. Zone 3 covers the Seacoast and points farther north. For other towns, the zone is confirmed when you book. Pickup prices assume ground-level or elevator access, and a handling fee for stairs or restricted access is quoted up front.
A witnessed one-time session is priced differently: $1.99 per pound with a $100 minimum on the shredding, plus $34.90. One banker’s box comes to $134.90 because of the minimum. Five boxes, about 150 pounds, come to $333.40.
One purge at home
Most New Hampshire households fill somewhere between one and five boxes in a purge: old bank and card statements, pay stubs, cancelled checks, expired insurance policies and the tax years that have aged out. That is a single trip in the car.
From the Salem or Pelham line, our office is about 15 minutes down I-93 or Route 38. A one-box drop-off costs about $64.60 all in, and three boxes come to $124.00. Unless carrying the boxes is a problem, driving beats a pickup for a household every time.
Pickup still has its place at home. If stairs, health or distance make the trip hard, book one pickup and tell us about the stairs so any handling fee is quoted before the driver comes. Our page on residential shredding covers the household options.
One habit helps: make the purge an annual date, not an emergency. Pick a week after you file your taxes, pull the year that has aged out, and do it the same way each spring. Our post on running an annual document purge lays out the routine.
A single purge for a small office
For a small office, the question is not whether to shred but how often. Because the $34.90 per-job fees and any transport fee are charged once per job, one larger job usually costs less than several small ones holding the same paper.
| 12 boxes a year, split into | Each job (drop-off) | Year (drop-off) | Each job (Zone 2 pickup) | Year (Zone 2 pickup) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 job of 12 boxes | $274.90 | $274.90 | $434.85 | $434.85 |
| 2 jobs of 6 boxes | $213.10 | $426.20 | $373.05 | $746.10 |
| 4 jobs of 3 boxes | $124.00 | $496.00 | $283.95 | $1,135.80 |
Two effects stack up in that table. Twelve boxes in one job cross the 10-box line and get the flat $20 box rate, while three or six boxes are priced by the pound. And each extra job adds another $34.90, plus another transport fee if it is a pickup. For a Zone 2 office, one annual purge costs about $700 less than four quarterly pickups of the same paper.
That does not mean every office should shred once a year. It means you should shred as rarely as your storage and your risk allow, and no more often. Our post on one-time vs scheduled shredding works through the volume thresholds for different office sizes.
When repeat pickups make more sense
A single purge is cheapest on paper. It stops being the right answer when the paper you are saving up becomes the risk. A year of patient intake forms in a closet with no lock is not a cost saving. It is an exposure that sits there for eleven months, in reach of every cleaner, contractor and temp who walks by.
Signs you need a rhythm
Your office creates sensitive paper every day: intake forms, claim forms, payroll reports, client files. You have no room that locks. Staff are already stacking “to shred” paper on top of the copier. Any of these says the paper should leave more than once a year.
What repeat service means here
It is simply more one-time jobs. When the locked boxes fill, you book another pickup or make another drop-off at the same rates. No contract, no cancellation fee, and no schedule you have to remember to cancel when your volume drops.
The FTC puts the principle plainly in its guide for business: dispose of paper records by shredding, burning or pulverizing them, and make shredders available throughout the workplace. For anyone covered by the FTC Disposal Rule, the duty is to take reasonable measures against unauthorized access when consumer information is disposed of. A locked box that leaves on a reliable rhythm meets that duty better than a heroic purge after the paper has sat out for a year.
Practices handling patient records should read our post on HIPAA shredding requirements before stretching the time between jobs.
Planning a one-time purge, start to finish
One job goes smoothly when the decisions are made before the boxes are packed. Here is the order we suggest to New Hampshire customers, at home or in an office.
- Decide what you keepCheck retention first. The IRS says to keep most tax records 3 years, 6 years if income was underreported by more than 25 percent, 7 years for a worthless securities or bad debt claim, and employment tax records at least 4 years. Our document retention guide covers business records.
- Pack the restLeave staples, clips, rubber bands and file folders in. Pull three-ring binder hardware, hanging-folder frames and anything that is not paper. Bag drives and discs separately, since media is quoted per item.
- Count the boxesAbout 30 pounds per banker’s box. If you are at eight or nine boxes, look once more, because 10 boxes switch to the flat rate and can cost less than nine by the pound.
- Pick how it travelsDrive it down if you are near the line and can lift the boxes. Book one pickup for 10 or more boxes, stairs, or a long drive from the Seacoast. Book a witnessed session if you need to see it done.
- File the certificateEvery job includes a Certificate of Destruction. Keep it with a short note of what went: the years, the box count and the date.
Our guide on how to prepare documents for shredding covers packing and labeling, and the shredding pickup checklist covers access, counts and signing if you book a pickup.
Our honest take: for most homes and offices with fewer than a dozen boxes a year and a closet that locks, one well-planned purge a year is the right service. Add a second job only when the paper starts to outgrow the closet.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a contract for a one-time shredding job?
No. Every job is booked and priced on its own, and no long-term contract is required. You drop off, book one pickup or book one witnessed session, pay for that job and get a Certificate of Destruction. If you need us again in six months, you book again at the same rates. There is nothing to cancel.
How much does a one-time shredding service cost?
At drop-off, one full banker’s box is about $64.60, five boxes about $183.40 and ten boxes $234.90, including the $34.90 per-job fees. Under 10 boxes is 99 cents a pound, and 10 or more boxes are $15 small or $20 large each. A pickup adds $129.95, $159.95 or $199.95 depending on your zone.
Is a one-time purge cheaper than regular pickups?
For the same amount of paper, usually yes. The $34.90 per-job fees and any transport fee are charged once per job, so fewer, larger jobs cost less. Twelve boxes shredded in one Zone 2 pickup cost $434.85, while the same paper in four quarterly pickups costs $1,135.80. Shred less often only if you can store the paper securely in between.
Can I book another pickup later at the same price?
Yes. Repeat service simply means booking another job. The rates do not change because you came back: 99 cents a pound under 10 boxes, $15 or $20 per box at 10 or more, the same zone transport fee and the same $34.90 per job. Call (978) 636-0301 or book online whenever your boxes fill.
Do I need an appointment for a one-time drop-off?
No. Walk in Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 1215 Main Street, Unit 115, Tewksbury. Staff help you unload, the paper is weighed, and it is shredded the same business day. Pickups and witnessed sessions do need an appointment, and can be arranged outside regular hours by appointment.
When should a small office switch to repeat pickups?
When saving paper up becomes the risk. If your office creates sensitive paper every day and has no room that locks, or the boxes fill faster than you can store them safely, book another pickup each time the locked boxes fill. If you have a secure closet and under a dozen boxes a year, one or two purges a year is usually enough.
Can a one-time job include old hard drives?
Yes. Put drives, USB sticks, discs and phones in a separate bag and list them when you book. Media is physically destroyed and quoted per item, separately from the paper. Clearing an old office or a parent’s house is a good time to collect the forgotten laptops and backup drives along with the filing cabinets.
Do I get a certificate for a single job?
Yes. Every job, one-time or not, includes a Certificate of Destruction at no charge beyond the $14.95 HIPAA filing fee that is part of the $34.90 per-job fees. File it with a note of what went, such as the years and the box count. For a witnessed session, the certificate is signed in front of you.
Sources
- IRS: How long should I keep records? (checked November 2026)
- FTC: Protecting Personal Information, A Guide for Business (checked November 2026)
- FTC: Disposing of Consumer Report Information? Rule Tells How (checked November 2026)
- GovInfo: 16 CFR Part 682, Disposal of Consumer Report Information and Records (checked November 2026)
Clear the backlog in one job
Bring the boxes to Tewksbury any weekday, or book one pickup and we confirm your zone and any handling fee up front. No contract, no bin left behind, and a certificate when it is done.
Visit or call
1215 Main Street, Unit 115, Tewksbury, MA 01876. Route 38 near the I-495 interchange, about 15 minutes south of the NH line. Free parking out front.
Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Witnessed sessions and pickups outside these hours by appointment.
Three ways to shred: walk-in drop-off at 99¢ per pound, pickup by zone, or a witnessed session at $1.99 per pound.
New Hampshire Document Shredding · 1215 Main Street, Unit 115, Tewksbury, MA 01876 · (978) 636-0301 · Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.