Environmentally, are public bathroom hand dryers REALLY better than using a paper towel?

Paper towels can be environmentally cleaner if it is of recycled material.....When handryers emit carbon dioxide...lot of harmful pollutants are also emitted while making paper towels.

I always wash my hands after using the bathroom. But I hate the hot air hand dryers, coz i dont feel clean...I stopped using them years ago after hearing "somewhere" that some "study" found that microbes get sucked in and blown right back out onto your hands. In public restrooms, I always opted for paper towel drying over automatic hand dryers.

oh gawd.. i was at my old high school the other day (niece had cheerleader camp) and there was a sign next to the hand dryer some snotty girl made that said something about how much damage to the ozone turning it on everyday just once (the girls apparently turn them on just to cover the sound of them peeing) and how if they would get over their insecurities they would stop destroying the planet. i threw the sign in the trash, the sign could have been written a bit more tastefully.

i forget the stats they used but it seems that either way you go you are going to kill the planet. you are either killing the trees and we will have no air to breathe, or you will deplete the ozone and who knows what will happen when that is gone.

i say have both, there are dryers that will turn on if your hands are under them and off as soon as your hands aren't. -less wasteful. and then there are those ridiculous paper towel machines that have a sensor and it gives you 4 inches of freaking paper, and even if you wave your hand in front of it again it won't give you more paper. -less wasteful.

EDIT: thank you cool, i don't think i will ever use a dryer again. i'm a complete germaphobe.

I think it depends on the circumstances. i think the hot air dryers that stay on for a full 30 seconds or so might actually be worse but the new ones that are motion activated and not heated are probably best. i usually just shake my hands a bit or wipe them on my pants. why do i care if my hands are a little damp? also, in places like my school, air dryers stop stupid kids from taking a whole paper towel role and "decorating" the bathroom.

If the electricity comes from renewable sources, then yes.

If the amount of electricity used by the dryer is less than that required in the production process and waste processing of a paper towel or two, then yes.

Otherwise paper is renewable and is IMO the preferred choice.

Actually, yes. Because the majority of paper towels are made from virgin pulp, that means a years worth of paper towels can be a large fraction of large trees. Also, towels are individually bagged in bathrooms, when they could be composted, adding to the landfill unnecessary waste. Paper towels also use much much water to make, and of course, theres gasoline to transport everything.

Though electric does mean burning coal, the amount of electricity to make a towel, and to power that appliance varies greatly.

If I had the choice of the two, I'd no doubt go w/the scratchy paper towels. Only because I feel it's quicker & I'm usually in a hurry. Leave it to you to think of a thing like that...lol

I go with the hand dryers.. I figure they would take an electrician to fix so I figure its job security. Anyone can screw a paper towel holder on the wall.

Hey..I'm just trying to help with the unemployment status.

With glasses I have 20/10 vision, without glasses I have 20/100 vision in one eye and 20/70 in the other.

Good point there really, paper is a resource and so is electricity, although a lot of tissue products in australia now are being made from cotton instead so it's more acceptable :)

yes, but think of all the energy used to make, ship, and stock the towels?