Paper Towels vs. Hand Dryers in Restrooms

Use of paper towels is an efficient and sanitary way to dry hands. A trash basket should be near the towel dispenser. Cheap towels tend to come apart when grabbed with wet hands and leave litter on the restroom floor. Quality towels will leave the restroom looking better.

Many facilities are changing to air blowing hand dryers to avoid the expense of paper towels. They do reduce costs over time, however, they have some disadvantages. Some blowers are very slow and take minutes to dry your hands. Few have the patience to wait, so instead they shake their hands on the floor and pat dry them on their pants. This creates a dirty floor and annoyed staff. Other hand dryers are faster, but are very loud and can be heard outside of the restroom. Still, another design is a narrow trough that you stick your hands into that blows air from both sides. It works okay if you know how to use it, but it gets dirty and needs cleaning daily. Everyone who I have talked to prefers paper towels over hand dryers.

Ralph Temps
Owner
Ability Maintenance Service