How Can Hand Dryer Noise be Reduced

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Reducing Hand Dryer Noise

Conventional hand dryers can be noisy with sound levels reaching more than 80dB when in use. This sound is loud enough to penetrate walls and create disturbance in the surrounding areas which can be distressing for young children and distract people nearby. There are ways to reduce the impact of sound in the local environment through a combination of what design of hand dryer you choose and how they are installed and positioned.

What causes hand dryer noise

Conventional warm air hand dryers are known to create a lot of noise when in use. This is a side effect of their design and cannot easily be mitigated. A warm air hand dryer uses a fan to blow air over a heating element and then onto the hands of the user. The warm air causes the water left on the skin after washing to evaporate.

The way a warm air hand dryer works requires a large nozzle to be used. This slows the movement of the air to allow it to warm up sufficiently, however also has the drawback of exposing the fan to the exterior which allows noise to escape. The wide airflow also creates a great deal of turbulence in the surroundings, which amplifies the noise and allows it to spread.

Warm air – or evaporative hand dryers also work quite slowly. It can take more than thirty seconds for them to completely dry the user’s hands, which means that the loud noise is present for longer.

How jet hand dryers reduce noise

A modern jet hand dryer such as the Mitsubishi Electric Wave i01 has several design differences that reduce the amount of noise that is produced, and which can disturb people nearby.

The first, and most important of these differences is the design of the nozzle. Rather than a wide opening, the air is blown through a narrow slot at high speed to blow droplets of water off the skin.

This narrow slot creates far less turbulence than a wide nozzle, and as such, much of the sound is reduced. A further benefit of the jet design is that the internal aerodynamics of the design create a barrier between the fan motor and exterior which, when coupled with soundproofing, means that much less noise is released. The Mitsubishi Electric Wave u02 hand dryer emits just 57dB of noise in use.

As a result of their clever design, jet hand dryers work much more quickly than their warm air counterparts. Hands are dried in under 10 seconds, which means that as well as making much less noise, the noise is released for a much shorter period.

How hand dryer placement can reduce noise

The location of hand dryers in a bathroom can have a significant impact on how much noise is heard in the surrounding areas. By positioning the dryers away from the doorway and avoiding mounting them on shared walls, the sound can be “trapped” in the bathroom, which means that there is much less disturbance in the

Find Out More

If noisy hand dryers are causing disturbance, choosing a quieter model can help. Installing Mitsubishi Electric Wave hand dryers in your office or school bathrooms can help reduce distraction and improve productivity, while in restaurants or bars, they can create a more enjoyable atmosphere for guests. To find out more, please contact us to book a demonstration.

Wave i01
Wave u02