Traditionally all hand dryers relied on heated airflow and a large air outlet to gently blow warm air over the hands. The result was a relatively energy hungry and quite time consuming. Hot air dryers pre 2004 ranged anywhere from 1.8kw to 2.6kw with 30-40 second dry times.
Fast-forward to the 21st Century and a more aggressive hand dryer had appeared on the block, the Xlerator, loved by many, despised by others for its aggressive, high octane drying experience. The Xlerator used a high-speed vacuum motor with a low energy heater element to gently warm the air, but mainly to blast water from your hands. This machine raised the bar in energy efficiency, reducing the rated power to 1.4kw. Next came the Airforce, probably the most installed hand dryer in the UK over the last 12 years. This machine uses only high-speed airflow with no heater element and consumes just 1.1kw. This was the first cold or ambient air dryer and was soon followed by Dyson models all of which have no heater element and rely on heat recovery from the motors to gently warm the air. All these dryers cut the dry times down to as little as 10-20 seconds.
Over in Japan, Mitsubishi had launched an unheated blade dryer back in the 90’s which striped water from the hands in a way that didn’t really need heat.
All these cold or ambient air temperature dryers were great in warm environments or even when in use regularly. Think of them like a Brazilian football signing for Newcastle, great in the right conditions, but can they do it on a wet Wednesday night in Burnley? In the case of a hand dryer, a cold Burnley Boozer on a winter’s eve.
So effectively, Ambient/Cold air hand dryers are great unless they are only used sporadically and in cold conditions. In these cases, the cold air doesn’t have time to warm up and is therefore uncomfortable.
Thankfully there is now a whole range of low energy dryers that combine heat with faster or clever airflow design to get. Here are the top 5 Hot air hand dryers..
Top 5 Hot Air Hand Dryers
- Mitsubishi SMART
- G-Force Eco mark II
- Turboforce
- Turboforce Junior
- Dryflow Classic PLUS mark II
Advantages and disadvantages of Hot over Cold Air dryers
- Hot air dryers are more comfortable to use, especially in cold environments
- The dual effect of dispersing water and evaporating can be achieved at a quieter level
- Some bacteria are killed at higher temperatures if hands have not been washed thoroughly
- Heat can get into the skin to help aid the drying process
- The dual effect of heat and motion dries quicker if you take the identical machine.
Disadvantages
- Heater elements consume unnecessary energy
- Its an extra component so more wate and potential faults
- Heater elements could cause issues if vandals shove paper up into the dryers
- Some products have such high-speed motors, extra heat just isn’t necessary unless it’s a very low traffic environment.
A lot of the dryers in the list above have the ability to turn the heater element on or off, which means they can be set to maximise energy efficiency in a warmer, high traffic environment. The lower energy heater elements don’t get anywhere near as hot so they are likely to last longer and not be at risk from vandalism.
We hope you find this useful. If you would like further guidance on the best choice for you, please contact us on 0330 124 4717 or email
