Super fast hand dryer noise causing 'unwelcome stress', research suggests

Researchers from Goldsmiths, University of London, say that the high speed dryers can force hearing aid users to turn off their devices in public toilets, cause discomfort to elderly dementia sufferers, and affect the navigation of visually-impaired people.

An acoustic test found the sound decibels reached by the dryers was 11 times higher in a typical public toilet than in product testing laboratories.

Interviews with members of the public found that the dryers can have a "negative” impact on people with hearing or sight problems and dementia sufferers.

Dr John Levack Drever, head of the unit for sound practice research at Goldsmiths, suggested that vulnerable people are being "seriously affected” by the loud noise.

He said: "Manufacturers tend to test hand dryers in ultra-absorbent acoustic laboratories which is perhaps why actual sound levels are so much higher than those advertised.

"From this initial study it is evident that 'ultra rapid' cold air hand dryers are loud, and this loudness is vastly amplified in the highly reverberant and reflective small toilet.

"A wide range of vulnerable subgroups are being seriously affected by hand dryer noise, resulting in unwelcome stress in this sensitive space, and in extreme cases people are being excluded from public spaces, the workplace and schools.”

Dan Pescod, campaigns manager at the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), called on manufacturers to consider the increased risk of people with sight loss "having an accident” due to the dryers.

"Anything which masks ambient sounds could be a problem for a person with sight loss, to a greater or lesser degree”, he said.

"As hand dryers are often situated by doors, loud models could increase the likelihood of a person with sight loss having an accident. RNIB suggests that manufacturers should consider this risk when designing hand-dryers."

Dr Drever added: "To solve these issues, we propose that engineers, sound artists and users come together to look at the acoustic space in which these dryers are found and tune the products accordingly to enhance the listening experience and minimise the discomfort that is caused to a whole range of people."