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posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday April 18 2018, @01:18AM   Printer-friendly
from the just-ick dept.

http://aem.asm.org/content/84/8/e00044-18.abstract

Hot-air hand dryers in multiple men's and women's bathrooms in three basic science research areas in an academic health center were screened for their deposition on plates of (i) total bacteria, some of which were identified, and (ii) a kanamycin-resistant Bacillus subtilis strain, PS533, spores of which are produced in large amounts in one basic science research laboratory.

Plates exposed to hand dryer air for 30 s averaged 18 to 60 colonies/plate; but interior hand dryer nozzle surfaces had minimal bacterial levels, plates exposed to bathroom air for 2 min with hand dryers off averaged ≤1 colony, and plates exposed to bathroom air moved by a small fan for 20 min had averages of 15 and 12 colonies/plate in two buildings tested.

Retrofitting hand dryers with HEPA filters reduced bacterial deposition by hand dryers ∼4-fold, and potential human pathogens were recovered from plates exposed to hand dryer air whether or not a HEPA filter was present and from bathroom air moved by a small fan. Spore-forming colonies, identified as B. subtilis PS533, averaged ∼2.5 to 5% of bacteria deposited by hand dryers throughout the basic research areas examined regardless of distance from the spore-forming laboratory, and these were almost certainly deposited as spores. Comparable results were obtained when bathroom air was sampled for spores.

These results indicate that many kinds of bacteria, including potential pathogens and spores, can be deposited on hands exposed to bathroom hand dryers and that spores could be dispersed throughout buildings and deposited on hands by hand dryers.


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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 18 2018, @02:17PM (7 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 18 2018, @02:17PM (#668581) Journal

    No, none of the above. I have no idea why the sensors can sometimes see me, and other times not. My body temperature isn't below normal. No, I'm not a vampire. I'm not a lizard person. Beats hell out of me. I think the tech is faulty. The blower guy will tell you that I'm faulty. All I know for sure is, I have about a 25% chance of having an automated bathroom work for me.

    Wait - maybe we're both looking at this wrong . . . can a bathroom be possessed? Maybe there's a bathroom demon that follows me around, and possesses the bathroom equipment as I enter?

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  • (Score: 2) by edIII on Wednesday April 18 2018, @11:21PM

    by edIII (791) on Wednesday April 18 2018, @11:21PM (#668755)

    I'm with you. I have about a 25% success rate on those automatics. I've literally been in bathrooms going from faucet to faucet waving my hands around like a fucking lunatic, unless you knew of course, that there was technology allegedly designed to help me operate a fucking valve.

    I've said fuck it, and just started wiping my hands on my shirt towards my back. I never touch a bathroom door anyways. That's what my shirt corner is for. Those air dryers are a public health hazard, but the lobbyists make sure they don't get banned. Extremely ineffective at drying your hands, never hot enough, poorly maintained, and never cleaned.

    Maybe we should just go Chinese, which is to say that all you're provided with is running water. Maybe soap, but that is in upper scale restaurants or "Westernized" establishments. The culture over there has you bringing paper napkins to the restaurant, gas station, etc. The thing I like about that idea, is there is far less waste.

    --
    Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
  • (Score: 3, Funny) by RS3 on Thursday April 19 2018, @12:36AM

    by RS3 (6367) on Thursday April 19 2018, @12:36AM (#668774)

    I'm embarrassed, it was too late at night and my brain was not functioning fully. I was stuck on vampires and lizards and needed to think more broadly.

    When you read the word "brain", did you salivate?

  • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Thursday April 19 2018, @12:38PM (4 children)

    by RS3 (6367) on Thursday April 19 2018, @12:38PM (#669046)

    It would be difficult to disprove your possession hypothesis, so I'll let that stand.

    I'm sure most people know the automatic faucets / dispensers use an IR (infrared) sensor. It's optically band-limited to human skin temperature. These sensors have been around for many years, in the early days mostly being seen in motion-activated outdoor light fixtures. Being inexpensively mass-produced, there's a "tolerance" on the spec, so some are better than others. Companies don't normally test things as much as we wish they would- don't want to hurt profit, right? Testing is done by the end user, warranty claim process. Blame the bean-counters and stock market.

    Anyway, that sensor has to be protected from environmental damage, so it's put behind some kind of window, which will affect the IR. Variations in that material will affect how well the thing works.

    Recently I was in an establishment that had many of these things and one time a drop of water landed on the faucet sensor window and the faucet would not stop running. Dumb design, the window being right behind the stream of water where normal hand washing splash will wet it. When I dried off the drop, the faucet stopped. I surmise the drop was a lens and gathered much IR from me.

    Another one was very finicky and on close inspection I noticed some tape residue on the little window. Rubbed it clean and it works well now.

    I usually have to put my hand pretty close to the sensor to trigger it. You may have thicker skin, or for whatever reason (apocalypse aside) just don't give off as much body heat. Find someone with an IR camera and see if you're as IR "bright" as other people.

    • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday April 19 2018, @01:37PM (3 children)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Thursday April 19 2018, @01:37PM (#669082) Journal

      That's an idea - find out what I look like on an IR sensor. A guy at work has one of those gadgets for finding electrical hot spots. He gives it very little serious use, just mostly playing with it. If I remember, I'll have him drag it out, and let me play with it. You've got me curious - do I glow less than other people? Thick skin? Maybe that explains why sensitivity training doesn't affect me. :^)

      • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Thursday April 19 2018, @04:09PM (2 children)

        by RS3 (6367) on Thursday April 19 2018, @04:09PM (#669147)

        If you don't show up much in IR, I know of some three-letter agencies who might want to hire you.

        About a year ago a good friend of mine decided to get into the energy audit / inspection world. He bought a fancy IR camera, took a course, etc. The camera is truly awesome. You touch a fender and it's amazing how long the camera can see the handprint heat.

        BTW, not sure where you live, but if it's a warmer climate, perhaps background IR is affecting the IR sensors in the restrooms, etc.

        • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday April 19 2018, @04:32PM (1 child)

          by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Thursday April 19 2018, @04:32PM (#669150) Journal

          Well, the thing is, I don't hear other people complain about the things. I live in Arkansas, where it's pretty warm. But, we've had a nice cold winter - actually a long winter - and few restrooms are heated very warm. I should probably be the warmest thing in the room, even if I'm less visible than the average person. I can walk into a restroom, someone is washing, then leaving. I KNOW the stuff works, because he just had the water running, and lathered up hands. But, I do my thing, walk to the sink, and - nothing. Maybe the soap works, maybe the water works, but no towels. Or blower, as the case may be. Alternatively, everything works except the water. It's mix or match. I'll have to remember the bit about splashing water on the sensors - maybe that will help.

          Of course, it's merely an annoyance to me. I don't lose any sleep over a failure to wash my hands. That annoyance is tinged with humor, too. Electronics never work quite as expected, it seems. Those bathroom fixtures just confirm that belief - you can't count on electronic gadgetry.

          • (Score: 2) by RS3 on Thursday April 19 2018, @05:11PM

            by RS3 (6367) on Thursday April 19 2018, @05:11PM (#669165)

            I'm in PA but otherwise kindred spirit. I have a HUGE issue with _anything_ that doesn't serve the purpose: help the human. My biggest gripes, closely intertwined, are generally UI (including ergonomics) and overly-automated everything.

            It would be a very different thing if you could adjust the IR sensors, but from what I've found, you can not. The sensor is a self-contained part with no adjustment. It just does its thing, and you have to like it.

            My stupid car will automatically turn on the headlights, unless the sun is directly on the dashboard sensor. There is no adjustment. I've done enough circuit design to know that any kind of light sensor will have wide spec. tolerances and need human adjustable circuits, or self-normalizing / self-calibrating. Someday I'll build something to put in the circuit and give me adjustment. But that said, if my life is ever that slow, there are other things I want to do...