October 28th, 2016 by Josh Hulme

With such a wide range of hand dryers on the market, businesses are now more than ever spoilt for choice. While it's great to see brands launching new and innovative units into the market, this wide range of (often very similar looking) hand dryers can be very confusing for those on the hunt for a specific unit to satisfy their business' needs.

We've done the hard part for you and have put together a guide to help you identify which attributes to look for in a unit and ultimately which hand dryer best suits your needs!

Hand dryers for schools

Key attributes: Noise level, efficiency, operation and durability

When selecting a hand dryer for a school, you need to ensure it is one of the quieter hand dryers available. This serves multiple purposes.

1. A class in silence does not want to be interrupted by a nearby hand dryer setting off and in a primary school

2. A low noise unit is less likely to scare younger children, unlike a louder hand dryer which could end up frightening them - putting them off washing and drying their hands.

In a secondary school, a robust, durable hand dryer is essential as often these are the subject to vandalism externally and heavy use internally which means a tough and reliable dryer is required. With secondary schools, this also falls into the high traffic area so you will also need to ensure an energy efficient hand dryer is installed with low costs per use to ensure energy costs do not spiral. For both primary and secondary schools, we strongly recommend an automatic, sensor operated unit. The push button on a manual hand dryer can quickly harbour bacteria leading to germs spreading quickly for both pupils and teachers. Automatic hand dryers do tend to be cheaper to buy initially (as opposed to manually operated units) due to their popularity, ease of use and effieciency - so it's a win win situation. The Gladiator Hand Dryer Airdri The Quote Series Dyson HU02 Hand Dryers New to the market, the Dyson V Hand Dryer combines fast drying with low noise for the perfect all rounder  

High traffic hand dryers

(train stations, airports, sports stadia) Key attributes: Efficiency, longevity, drying time Similarly to secondary schools mentioned above, high traffic areas need to have quite a specific range of features to service their location to the best of their ability. A low running cost is essential considering these dryers may be used tens of thousands of times annually. In addition, they must be durable externally and internally to live up to this demand and survive any vandalism attempts. A quick drying time is also pivotal to ensure queues within the toilets are limited sporting stadiums and music venues need to be able to quickly get users in and out of the toilets within the interval/half time period) Typically, a fast hand drying time accompanies a low cost per use mentioned above anyway. Our recommended units for high traffic areas: Dyson HU02 Hand Dryer Pro-Dri the Qube Hand Dryer HSD Hands in Blade Hand Dryer Warner Howard Airforce Hand Dryer Dyson AB14 Hand Dryer   The Dyson AB14 Hand Dryer is a fantastic choice for high traffic areas

Small to medium Workplace/Office hand dryers

Key attributes: Operation, noise level

Hand dryers for small businesses have to meet a different set of criteria. Again, selecting a automatic hand dryer rather than manual cannot be overstated, as an illness can quickly spread through small businesses and cause staffing issues as well as reduced productivity should a lot of staff be absent or unwell.

If the office is quite compact with a nearby toilet, noise level needs to be a key consideration so staff are not disturbed either whilst working or on the telephone with clients.

Our Top 3 Recommended Hand Dryers for small to medium workplaces:

Pro-Dri Compact Hand Dryer Jet Flow Automatic Hand Dryers Dyson Hu02 Hand Dryers The Jet Flow Hand Dryer is a automatic nozzle dryer, reliable, affordable and robust

Hand dryers in hospitals and doctors surgeries

Key attributes: Operation, filter capability, efficiency

In hospitals, doctors surgeries and other medical premises it is vital to ensure hands are dried as hygienically as possible as users have a higher probability of already carrying an illness which can be very easily spread. Using a unit with a Hepa filter that captures 99.9% of particles is highly recommended. These are often very efficient units with a low cost per use.

Our Top 3 Recommended Hand Dryers for hospitals and doctors surgeries:

Dyson AB14 Hand dryer HSD Hands in Blade Hand Dryer Gladiator Hand Dryer Series

Nightclub / Public House Hand Dryers

Key attributes: Durability, drying time, efficiency

Due to the very nature of the business, pubs, nightclubs and leisure facilities often have to replace hand dryers far more regularly than other types of businesses. It is strongly recommended that a durable, robust hand dryer is fitted that has strong anti vandal properties. A stainless steel unit with a fast drying time (to ensure customers are quickly in and out of the bathroom) and a low energy per use unit (to keep running costs to a minimum) would suit these types of places perfectly.

Our recommended units for the leisure industry: Pro-Dri Extreme Hand Dryer The Gladiator Hand Dryer Pro-Dri the Qube Hand Dryer The Gladiator (as seen in a brushed finish here) is very popular throughout commercial premises  

HSD Online has over 12 years experience in providing hand dryers to customers across the UK and are happy to offer unrivalled advice and expertise to ensure you select the best suited hand dryer for your business. Please feel free to email us on sales@hsdonline.co.uk / b2b@hsdonline.co.uk for large building projects or call on 0800 0913171 for friendly, expert advice.