Eco-Living Magazine

5 Ways Hand Dryers Are Helping the Environment

Posted on the 23 January 2013 by T_mackinnon @tedmackinnon

Investing in hand dryers represents a significant way to help the environment; this can be understood in a number of ways, but primarily relates to how hand dryers are more economical than paper towels, and to how they provide energy savings for businesses that want to reduce their overall carbon footprint. In addition, hand dryers can help the environment by cutting down on transportation and CO2 costs associated with other hand cleaning and dryer approaches, while producing lower operating costs and participating in an ongoing process of conservation.

More Economical than Paper Towels

hand dryer
Cutting edge hand dryer technology is more economical than older drier and paper air towels – cold air hand dryers are particularly effective at drying hands faster, while blade hand dryers reduce dripping and bacteria through air filters and curved designs. By comparison, paper towels produce a significant amount of landfill, and have a limited recycling shelf life before having to be throw away. Automated hand dryers that also dispense soap similarly reduce space in a bathroom, and can be particularly effective in busy environments like airports, train stations, and coffee shop bathrooms in terms of making the most of available spaces and reducing queues.

Energy Savings

Hand dryers are getting better and better at consuming less electricity while still providing high speed drying; cold air hand dryers are particularly effective, in this regard, as they use digitally assisted motors and automatic sensors to enable much faster drying – switching from older hot air hand dryers to blade and digital cold air dryers can consequently make more sense for a business that’s looking to reduce it’s carbon footprint.

Less Transportation and CO2 Costs

Another benefit that hand dryers provide is their extended life cycle compared to paper towels. Most hand dryers will last for about 10 years, and in that time will require little regular maintenance. By contrast, towel dispensers typically need to be restocked several times a week, leading to a supply cycle of replenishment and waste – hand dryers may need some maintenance to keep them working, but won’t build up as much secondary costs and CO2 emissions as manufacturing and transporting paper towels.

Lower Operating Costs

The net spend by a company on maintaining their bathrooms can be significantly reduced by using the latest hand dryers. Consider how many resources are spent by the average business on replenishing paper towels, and on replacing rubbish bags, as well as having to regularly clean up spilled and wet towels from the floors of bathrooms. Hand dryers are easy to wipe down and maintain, with many now being supplied with anti microbial surfaces.

Ongoing Conservation

Thinking long term, the technology for hand dryers is accelerating every year, with improvements being made in terms of dryer speeds, temperatures, and materials – by comparison, paper towels are making use of biodegradable materials, but still effectively produce a lot of waste, even after they’ve been recycled a few times. In this context, hand dryers represent a clearer future for hygiene and hand cleaning.

Author Bio

 

If you’re searching for a more economical and energy efficient solution to your hygiene needs, Jeff Mcneil recommends you explore the hand dryers from Handy Dryers. They offer a selection of High Speed dryers that will save you money and energy.

5 Ways Hand Dryers Are Helping the Environment

About Jeff Mcneil

Jeff Mcneil has written 1 article(s) for EnvironmentGreen.com.

If you’re searching for a more economical and energy efficient solution to your hygiene needs, Jeff Mcneil recommends you explore the hand dryers from Handy Dryers. They offer a selection of High Speed dryers that will save you money and energy.

  • View all posts by Jeff Mcneil
  • Web Site
Share Filed in: Green Tips & Advice

Back to Featured Articles on Logo Paperblog