A Buyers Guide To Hand Dryers For Schools & Colleges
Buyer’s Guide to School Hand Dryers
As we’ve discussed before, hand hygiene is an indispensable part of school life - and when it comes to the hand dryers versus paper towels debate, we here at School-Toilets.co.uk are firmly in the hand dryers camp. Not only are hand dryers more hygienic and eco-friendly than paper towels - they are also, despite the initial outlay, far more cost effective.
We stock hand dryers to suit schools and colleges of all types. In this buyer’s guide, we’ll talk a bit about the different types of dryers that are available, and help you figure out which is most appropriate for your school.
Hand dryer features
When selecting a hand dryer (or dryers) for your school, it pays to consider what you want in the way of features. To that end, here’s a side-by-side comparison of the most sought-after hand dryer features, along with some suggested models to help you on your way.
High-speed or eco?
As a rule, the greater the air speed of hand dryer, the faster it dries the user’s hands. You’d be tempted to think that the greater the speed, the better the hand dryer - however, the trade-off is that high-speed units are among the most expensive (both to purchase and to run) and least eco-friendly of all hand dryers.
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Eco dryers, on the other hand, use less electricity, making them cost-efficient and good for the planet, although they do take a longer time to do their job. Eco models can also be noisy, which may be a hindrance in schools - especially at exam time, and with smaller pupils who are frightened by loud and unexpected noises- more on that below. That said, modern high-end eco-dryers can offer the best of both worlds, with low noise ratings and quick drying times.
Suggested products
High speed: Biodrier Biolite High Speed Hand Dryer
Eco: Biodrier Eco Hand DryersHands-in or hands-under?
The ‘classic’ hand dryer that we’re all familiar with uses a hands-under design. In the last few years, however, various ‘hands-in’, blade-style units have come onto the market in a big way.
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While hands-in models boast greater energy efficiency and faster drying times, they carry a higher price tag to boot. There’s also a greater risk of the user’s hands coming into contact with the unit, making hands-under models the more hygienic choice.
Suggested products
Hands-under: Economy Hand Dryer
Hands-in: Biodrier Business 2 High Speed Hand DryerHands-free or button operation?
The next thing to consider is whether you would like your hand dryer to be sensor- or button-operated.
Sensor-operated units make for a totally hands-free (and therefore, more hygienic) hand drying experience, although the cost of the infrared technology they use makes them more expensive than simple button-operated units.
Push-button hand dryers are much cheaper, but carry a much greater risk of the user’s hands becoming contaminated - that’s why we only carry sensor-operated hand dryers at School-Toilets.co.uk.
Children’s hand dryers
Finally, junior schools, nurseries and creches often benefit from hand dryer’s specifically designed for younger children.
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In our experience, kids love the Biobot Children’s Hand Dryer - the friendly, anthropomorphic design and low decibel rating can help dispel the anxiety that many children feel around using hand dryers.
- 13th November 2017
