Hand dryers for Schools - A Logical Way to Save Cost

We all know there has been a squeeze on budgets for schools so it makes sense to cut back on unnecessary and environmentally damaging expenses where possible. Hand dryers represent such an opportunity for schools that currently spend thousands of £ on paper hand towesl that also end up blocking toilets and creating mountains of single use waste (paper towels cannot be recycled contrary to popular belief!)

We have prepared a simple guide to help you..........

Hand dryers may be one of the last things on your mind when it comes to fitting equipment for school buildings, but even with this small aspect, there are a few things to think about so that your school has the most suitable units accessible.

We have supply lots of schools, colleges and universities with hand dryers, and we have put together a guide to steer you in the right direction when it comes to choosing your own hand dryers.

A few of the issues to consider when choosing the appropriate hand dryers for your school:

1. The age of the school’s population - pre-school and infants are more susceptible to sound and may also appreciate a more visually friendly hand dryer.

2. Robustness and reliability

3. The need for quiet hand dryers - how close will the hand dryers be sited to areas where noise disturbance is a higher risk?

4. Improving health – it would be beneficial to schools to have hand dryers with enhanced hygienic properties, especially with the heightened risk for cross infection resulting in increased absenteeism.

5. Faster drying times - children won't wait around for very long to properly dry their hands with an inefficient hand dryer, and as wet hands are breeding grounds for germs, fast drying is an essential.

6. Efficient energy use - future generations need to be educated on the need to be energy conscious and invest in low emission equipment. Plus, energy efficient hand dryers mean annual running costs are low, maximising the already limited school savings.

7. Budget - getting the most suitable hand dryer for your initial budget and a quick ROI from energy savings is a must.

We will be explaining the above in more depth, if you need more help on choosing the best hand dryer for you and your school. And you can also contact us and we will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

We have specifically designed models that appeal to children with cartoon style graphics. Just contact us and we can get your design printed onto a dryer or come up with something suitable.

However, if the children are older, the aspects of your hand dryers may differ. Noise levels may not be such a key factor, as the older children get, the more they can cope with noise levels. But, factors such as higher traffic and higher risk of vandalism may become more important.

If vandalism is an issue in your school, we suggest a unit that has no obvious leverage points. Effective hand dryers would be the blade-style hand dryers but these are an obvious larger target for vandalism with parts that weight can be fully leveraged on. The unit types with drainage holes are at risk of foreign objects being pushed into the holes and these are at a lower level so can also be easily kicked.

So, we suggest a steel unit, in a brushed stainless finish, as the white finish can attract graffiti and the chrome finish is easily scratched. Of course, brushed stainless isn't completely immune but it does tend to be the most hard wearing and the least attractive to graffiti on.

Other things you could consider are anti-vandal screws and steel back plates (where possible) to prevent any tampering with the covers and removing from the wall.

We recommend the TurboForce and G-Force MKII as they have thick steel covers, anti-vandal screws, steel backplates (Turboforce) and no leverage points.

Manufacturer's dbA ratings are not always the most reliable source of information as the acoustics in a particular area can be dependent on whether it is a hands under or blade hand dryer. So, it is always a good idea to conduct a site visit with the dryer options so you can experience yourself how the noise carries.

The Quiet Mark are setting the standard in testing products to check their noise levels are tolerable and yet still perform their intended function. You can have a look at our hand dryers that have achieved this accreditation here.

We recommend the Dryflow Elite MKII. This is a great option as it achieves a balance of energy efficiency, noise level and performance. It is also ideal for small washrooms as its depth is 10cm!

When it comes to hand hygiene, the most important and effective factor is hand drying.

With paper towels, they are often quickly grabbed, wiped and discarded. And then when we see those old and clunky hand dryers, we don’t really tend to bother with them as they take ages and it doesn’t feel like it dries our hands properly anyway.

Therefore, a modern looking, efficient, and effective unit will boost proper hand drying and restrict the growth of nasty bacteria on the hands.

Additionally, HEPA filters can boost the air hygiene by preventing bacteria from forming in the unit and cleanses the airflow from the dryer. We also have hand dryers that have non-touch activation, which is also important for hygiene. The Dryflow Viper and Dyson Airblade V have these features.

Hand dryer use in schools can really stack up with school children likely to go to the toilet and wash/dry their hands a minimum of three times a day. The carbon footprint of paper hand towels completely outweighs that of an energy efficient hand dryer.

The associated carbon footprint of just a single paper towel is estimated to be 7.5g of CO2 and more likely than not, multiple towels are used to dry one pair of hands. That’s quite a bit of carbon! Their footprint spans the whole process - from the felling of trees, to the transportation of the materials, to the collection of waste.

The cost savings against paper hand towels in a school can be really quite significant. We recently conducted a survey for a school with 1000 pupils and the savings were over £15,000 per year, which is money that could be spent on something a lot more useful.

Looking at hand dryers, the difference in energy use between an energy efficient unit and a conventional unit is anywhere from 20-30-watt hours per dry, which can really add up in costs and savings in the long term.

We recommend the Dryflow EcoSlim model - a great example of how energy efficiency has become a key factor in high performing and best value hand dryers.

The spend on hand dryers has to be balanced against the factors we have discussed above to make sure you are purchasing a hand dryer that is fit for your purpose.

We give our best prices to the education and public sector on moral grounds as we strongly believe that these are the areas where value is key.

For more hand dryers for schools/colleges/universities, Please click here.