Hand Dryer: All the advantages and how to use it the right way

The most public bathrooms have hand dryers, but no one really knows exactly how to use them. Regular handwashing is an essential part of hygiene, but few people know that effective hand drying is just as important if you want to stay healthy and prevent the spread of germs. This article describes the advantages of hand dryers, as well as short instructions on how to use them correctly and hygienically.

How to use hand dryers:

1. Thoroughly wash your hands.

Although hand drying is essential to reduce the spread of germs, thorough handwashing is even more important to good hygiene.

Before you dry your hands with the dryer, wash your hands as follows:

Wet your hands under warm or cold clean running water.

Take the soap and spread it on your hands, rubbing them together, making sure to that there is soap on the back of your hands, between your fingers and under your nails.

Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds.

Rinse under clean running water.

2. Get rid of excess moisture on your hands.

To do this, gently shake the water into the sink. The more moisture you remove, the faster you will dry your hands with the dryer.

3. Follow the directions on the hand dryer.

Most dryers have a diagram or instructions on how to use the dryer correctly and hygienically. Make sure to follow it.

4. Place your hands under the dryer.

Most modern hand dryers turn on automatically when hands are placed under them.

This makes the process more hygienic since you don’t have to press a button that many other people have pressed before.

5. Place your hands properly

Open your palms towards the air stream and let it blow the water off your hands. Place your palms slightly at an angle so that the water can drain off.

6. Don’t rub your hands.

Whatever you may think, rubbing your hands together under the dryer will not speed up the drying process, but will only lead to the spread of germs. So, make sure not to do it.

7. Wait until your hands are completely dry.

Keep your hands under the dryer until they are completely dry, as wet hands can spread germs.

8. Do not put your hands inside the unit or touch the rim.

These areas are teeming with germs, so touching them can negate the effects of handwashing. It will also expose people who dry their hands after you to a greater risk of contracting germs.

9. Remove your hands when they are completely dry.

Most modern dryers will turn off automatically if you step away from the unit or remove your hands from under the dryer. Some models turn off after a certain period of time.

Benefits of hand dryers:

1. More financially sustainable

Electric hand dryers are significantly more expensive than paper towels. However, they do not need to be changed as often, making dryers a good economic choice from a commercial point of view;

2. Availability

There is always a possibility to dry your hands: if there is no power failure, you can always dry your hands with a hand dryer;

3. Effectively remove bacteria

While this information may differ in studies using different methods, most of it confirms that a very small fraction of the bacteria from the hand dryer actually remains on the hands of a person who just dried their hands.

4. Save water and trees

Instead of grabbing onto a paper towel, use a hand dryer. To replace the paper towels we throw away on daily basis, about 51,000 trees are cut down every day. It takes 17 trees and 75 tons of water to produce one ton of paper towels.

5. Waste reducing

Unlike using paper towels, hand drying with hand dryers significantly reduces waste.

Globally, the use of paper towels results in 254 million tonnes of waste per year.

6. Prevent water stains on clothing

If you wash your hands and do not dry them, water stains may appear on your clothes. Use a hand dryer to prevent this from happening.

Conclusion

The age-old struggle between hand dryers and paper towels seems endless. Much of this is because it is still difficult to determine which method is more effective for drying hands and reducing the risk of bacteria spreading.

As we already said, the electric hand dryer will always be in place so you can wash and dry your hands. While paper towels may run out. Can you remember how often it turned out that there was nothing to dry your hands with? People are more likely to just walk away or wipe their hands on their clothes. This is the main way bacteria is spread. Think about it.