Today I want to talk about hand dryers. You know the ones I mean. The electric things you see on the wall in almost all public toilets/washrooms/restrooms in Europe. In the USA you have both paper towels and electric hand dryers and the great debate remains.They are supposed to be more hygienic you know. At least that's what the manufacturers say. They pretty much all quote one source, the university of Ottawa as follows:
Doctors at the University of Ottawa have proposed that "the blowing of warm air may lead to an accelerated dehydration of the skin surface, thereby affecting the viability" of the microorganisms. Moreover, the warm air may "penetrate all the crevices in the skin, whereas absorbent towels may not reach such areas, even though the skin appears dryer"It's hardly what you would call conclusive proof of the advantage of electric hand dryers over paper towels. Note the use of the word "may"... three times.
A quick look at some of the manufacturers' sites reveals that some dryers take 3 minutes to dry your hands (we all know those cursed machines) while newer models take a mere 10 seconds! Now that is scary. How can your hands go from dripping wet to dry in 10 seconds without there being some kind of burning involved??
OK, so I'm willing to accept that the electric dryer might be more hygenic than paper towels. The part I don't understand is why the dryer is often placed directly above a rubbish bin.
I'm standing there while hot air at 63°C/145°F blows down over my hands, heating all of the rubbish and filth in the bin and blowing any tiny scum particles into the air and all around the bathroom.
Excellent. Nice dry hands and a torso covered in invisible airborne filth.
No comments:
Post a Comment