Hand dryers are replacing paper towels in more and more restrooms. Managements often do this to avoid the litter of paper towels and the costs of refilling the dispensers and emptying the trash containers. However, like many cost savings, these savings can be a cost shift to others. Paper towels can do so much more for the users of restrooms than hand dryers can.
1. Dry hands in 30 seconds. I and many other men dry our hands on jeans rather than wait and wait for a hand dryer to do the job.
2. Dry hands quietly. The noise of some hand dryers probably exceeds healthy sound levels.
3. Wipe up spills on clothing.
4. Wipe a runny nose.
5. Wipe a sweaty brow.
6. Staunch bleeding from a minor cut.
7. Wipe excess water from a sink.
8. Dry hands when replacing a contact lens.
And I'm sure you can think of many more uses for paper towels that hand dryers are useless for.
