28.01.08
David
Finally, a hand dryer that works
With all the fuss over Apple Air and Adobe Air I wondered if anyone had frequented the public loos at Waterloo station recently and encountered the new Dyson Air? Dyson Airblade to be precise. I have and I have to say they are fantastic – the Dyson, not the public loos at Waterloo…
Finally, someone (in this case, an engineer at Dyson who happened to be studying the properties of airflow – or visited Tokyo and used a Mitsubishi Jet Towel?) has tackled that age-old problem of drying your hands in a restroom, which as many of you know, can be highly unpleasant and unhygienic (let alone highly ineffective).
Now though, the 20p (to pee) for the loos at Waterloo is almost worth it in order to experience the engineering excellence of the ‘Blade. Forcing unheated air through a 0.3mm gap along its width, it creates a high velocity ‘blade’ of air travelling at over 400mph. Capable of drying your hands in 10 seconds it puts conventional hand dryers (paper towel included) to shame and comes with high environmental credentials too (using 80% less energy).
The only problem I can see foresee is the difficulty of drying any other parts of your body; just as Madonna did in Desperately Seeking Susan.
30.01.08
Michael
These were road tested (if that’s the right metaphor) at the Eden Project during the Summer of 2007. Their efficiency is amazing, and the sensation of using them is a revelation. It felt to me as if I was putting my hands into a pair of warm dry gloves. It was exactly the opposite of plunging ones hands into a basin of cold water. As to the environmental benefits, they will only arrive when people have stopped using the AirBlade many times over for fun, just so that they can feel that crazy sensation again and again!