Lighting, Light Fixtures, Ceiling and Exhaust Fans - How many kW do old fashion hand dryers use?
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ecman51`
10-09-09, 07:06 PM
Our company is thinking of going to the new Dyson Airblade hand dryer. These are the lastest thing in technology. Award winning. Supposedly they only use 80% less electric than the old kind that required heat. With these, there is no heat.
I want do a cost analysis comparing the two. In McD's I used the restroom and on their old fashion hot air hand dryer it gave specs of 20A 120 volts, but did not say what the actual watt or amp draw was. Also, obviously, one has to factoir in run time. The McD's one ran for about 28 seconds and shut off. My hands still did not get dry, even as i was vigorously rubbing my hands! We have to research all aspects if we go to those new hand dryers, because we would not be buying them just for some initial novelty that people tire of. See much of the business is from repeat visitors.
I want do a cost analysis comparing the two. In McD's I used the restroom and on their old fashion hot air hand dryer it gave specs of 20A 120 volts, but did not say what the actual watt or amp draw was. Also, obviously, one has to factoir in run time. The McD's one ran for about 28 seconds and shut off. My hands still did not get dry, even as i was vigorously rubbing my hands! We have to research all aspects if we go to those new hand dryers, because we would not be buying them just for some initial novelty that people tire of. See much of the business is from repeat visitors.
Rick Johnston
10-09-09, 11:44 PM
20a @ 120v sounds about right. That's probably 1900 watts with both the heating element and the high-power fan running. Those dryers' effectiveness are dependent on the ambient humidity. No amount of warm air from it will dry your hands in 28 seconds if the humidity is 65%. But at 35% you'll walk away dry before the machine shuts off.
I found some "Marketing Speak" on the Dyson website: They claim it uses 80% less electricity, yet it boasts a 1400 watt motor. The main reason for the claim seems to be the less time it's running: 12 seconds versus 27.
Hepa filters clog quickly and are not cheap to replace.
It claims to be hygienic, but ... what happens to the water? Where does it go? Will it sit in the bottom of the channel and fester? Also, if I have to insert my hands into that contraption, who's to say I won't lean them against the sides while wet and transfer whatever's on them to the next guy's hands?
I'm not saying it's not a good product, but I think it begs more research. A typical hot air dryer costs around $350. The Dyson is $1,000 more, plus periodic filter replacements.
I found some "Marketing Speak" on the Dyson website: They claim it uses 80% less electricity, yet it boasts a 1400 watt motor. The main reason for the claim seems to be the less time it's running: 12 seconds versus 27.
Hepa filters clog quickly and are not cheap to replace.
It claims to be hygienic, but ... what happens to the water? Where does it go? Will it sit in the bottom of the channel and fester? Also, if I have to insert my hands into that contraption, who's to say I won't lean them against the sides while wet and transfer whatever's on them to the next guy's hands?
I'm not saying it's not a good product, but I think it begs more research. A typical hot air dryer costs around $350. The Dyson is $1,000 more, plus periodic filter replacements.