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I'm confused. How would a hand dryer spread viruses when you're using it on hands you just washed?
They don’t. The op is a victim of misinformation. Use the restroom wash your hands and leave. Pretty simple. Yes, don’t touch your face or pick your nose until you get home and wash your hands.
Just wear a face mask, face shield, hazmat suit, gloves. When you get home, strip down in front of the washing machine, toss clothes in. Then pour bleach on your head and shower for 15 minutes. Make sure you use a clean towel that has been microwaved for two minutes. Oh yes, have your car detailed to make sure there is no trace of plague on it.
I just let my hands dry if paper towels are not available. I wont use an air dryer
In fact, when I traveled, I had 1.5 in round day glow colored stickers stating "Where can I blow my nose on this thing" made up and I plastered them on every electric air hand dryer I saw.
carry hand sanitizer,or wet wipes, in your pocket, if you use a restroom while away from home.
The point is that you should not enter a restroom which has an electric dryer. How you personally dry your hands is irrelevant. The air could be unsafe because of all the particles being stirred up by the blowers.
The op is a victim of misinformation. Use the restroom wash your hands and leave. Pretty simple.......:
You can do the research on your own. You will find numerous articles in prestigious scientific journals on this subject. I originally thought about posting some, but realized that regardless of the facts someone would deny and argue. Spend a few minutes. You will have no problem finding links to numerous studies which show bacterial and/or viral contamination stirred up by these blowers.
carry hand sanitizer,or wet wipes, in your pocket, if you use a restroom while away from home.
Useless, the predominate way of infection is directly through droplets in an infected airspace. You can be swimming in a pool of hand sanitizer and still get infected if there are enough infected folks standing around you in an enclosed room.
Wet Wipes or sanitizer are only a convenience when you can't wash your hands. You can have the virus on your hands and not get infected as long as you do not touch your face.
This is why face mask is the best protection you can have. Simply walking into a contaminated air space and inhaling droplets will get you infected.
I'm confused. How would a hand dryer spread viruses when you're using it on hands you just washed?
Everyone’s idea of a “thorough” hand wash is different. Many use no soap so by using the dryer they are just creating an aerosol of the crud that is on their skin.
The other problem is that after you’ve carefully washed your hands, and then dried them, you have no paper towel to open the door with. LOTS of people don’t wash their hands at all, and then open the door.
Stores like the air dryers because they don’t have to stock paper towels, but they are much less hygienic.
I've always thought that the doors to public restrooms should be pull open with a handle to get in, and push the door (no handle) to get out. But in reality, it is almost universal in being the opposite....so if you do wash your hands, and the restroom has no paper towels, you have to touch the door handle with your hand that you just washed!
There are lots and lots of studies published in reputable, peer reviewed journals which show that hand dryers spread bacteria and viruses. I guess hot air hand dryers are cheap and do not require maintenance so it has been convenient for many places to ignore the science. There are also some "jet" dryers which have no heat but dry with a highly forceful blast of air. These are really, really bad for spreading germs. Most of the germs being spread are probably not very infectious or harmful.
Now that Covid is upon us, I would think twice about using a hand dryer. In fact from a personal point of view, I do not want to enter a restroom which has one. That means not going anywhere if you might need to use a public restroom. When the need arrives, you need to be able to get back home within the necessary time frame.
I have not seen any studies with Covid and hand dryers but the logic seems clear. We do know Covid can hang in aerosols for long periods of time. We know these aerosols cause infection. We know that dryers do not reach temperatures that would kill the Covid virus. We also know that cloth and paper masks do little to stop aerosols. For that you need a properly fitted N95 mask or better.
A point I've been trying to make since way before COVID-19 even a twinkle in China's eye.
With a paperless, hand-dryer-only bathroom, all it takes is ONE person not washing their hands to contaminate the door handles and who-knows-what else. That's how your fecal bacteria get on each and every McDonalds touch screen
Due to this trend TOWARD paperless bathrooms, I've begun carrying my latest receipt in my wallet for just an occasion. To open the bathroom doors that are installed incorrectly, and open inwards.
Everyone’s idea of a “thorough” hand wash is different. Many use no soap so by using the dryer they are just creating an aerosol of the crud that is on their skin.
I saw it somewhere that 80% of people don't wash their thumbs when washing their hands. No references. Don't take it as a factoid, just food for thought.
I've always thought that the doors to public restrooms should be pull open with a handle to get in, and push the door (no handle) to get out. But in reality, it is almost universal in being the opposite....so if you do wash your hands, and the restroom has no paper towels, you have to touch the door handle with your hand that you just washed!
I saw a meme that had a picture of a door with two handles, one labeled 'Washed Hands' and one labeled 'Didn't Wash Hands'.
Most restrooms I've seen also have towels as an option. Just grab a towel - or piece of toilet paper - to use on the handle.
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