The Vapordri is available as standard in a graphite finish with a blue LED light strip down the side of the unit , it can be requested for projects in white, black, silver, or stainless steel. The unit is covered by a 5-year warranty and the manufacturer claims low sound levels, 10 second dry times, and 1.5 million cycle lifespan. The Vapordri has been on the market for 3 years, designed and made in Europe, it certainly is very pleasing to the eye with its compact, sleek design but how does it compare with other ‘hands in’ blade hand dryers ?
The best mid-range ‘hands in’ hand dryer available. Although it performs well in high-traffic locations we would trust Mitsubishi’s build quality a little more. The only area where the Vapordri falls is vandal resistance. We definitely prefer the look of this dryer to both the Dyson Airblade and the Mitsubishi Jet Towel Slim .
From £470.00 + VAT
This is not a low-cost hand dryer, however, it scores well on overall value At £470 + VAT, the Vapordri is priced in the mid-range ‘hands in’ category and comes in at a lower cost than some premium ‘hands under’ units like the Dyson V HU02 . When you consider the Vapordri performs well for speed, energy efficiency, and noise, a score of 4 is well deserved. It’s almost half the price of a Dyson ab14 but has a number of significant advantages, like the drip-tray, its modern design, and its compact size, it also doesn’t have any major drawbacks for most locations. The value of this product is optimised when it’s sited in a low to mid traffic washroom with no major risk of vandalization.
The manufacturer claims 10 seconds but achieved 11 seconds in our in-house test. This is a negligible 1-second difference from the Dyson Airblade AB14 and the same as the Mitsubishi Jet Towel Slim. It’s 3-5 seconds faster than any of the other ‘hands in’ hand dryers in a similar price bracket.
Calculating the energy efficiency of a dryer depends on 2 things, rated power and the dry speed.
The Vapordri has an intelligent heat system which means it disables the heat element and reduces energy usage when the room temperature is above 24 degrees C. This reduces the heat down from 1.5kW to 1kW or 3.06 – 4.58 W/hour per dry. To give you an idea, that means 1800 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels .
It is always difficult to assess the manufacturer’s stated sound levels as there is no single uniform standard. The Vapordri is measured from a 2m distance, others from 1m, so 65.6 dB(A) is more likely to be 75 dB(A) from 1 metre. The reality is that the noise level is acceptable and the sound quality smooth. We think given the dry speed, it is actually pretty quiet and the noise should not be a concern for all but the most sensitive areas.
Compared with a Mitsubishi or a Dyson ab14 this is where you can see the difference. The Vapordri looks great but would not cope well if there was a major impact. Be mindful that this is probably not the dryer for a high-traffic location where knocks and abuse are likely.
The manufacturer states 1.5 million cycles which is excellent for a brush motor dryer. We have not been able to verify this with lifespan testing as yet, although we can say that we have had no motor or mechanical issues with the Vapordri over the last 3 years. We have had more issues with sensors than we get with the Mitsubishi Jet Towel Slim or the Dyson AB14 and it’s clear that the build quality is a little lower but that is reflected in the price.
We have been trying to encourage the manufacturer to look at the use of alternative bio-plastics in production and reduce packaging materials and unfortunately, they have not been as receptive as some. European products also don’t benefit from a proximity advantage as much as you may think when compared with products produced in Asia, the reason being that more road transport is involved. Asian product is mainly transported via low-emission, sea-freight.
The Vapordri does benefit from being more compact and using much less material than other air blade hand dryers, the result is that the embedded carbon in manufacturing is only around 54 kg/co2 around 20-25% lower than other competing dryers. This is still much higher than hands under dryers, so it’s worth considering whether the large ‘hands in’ blade designs are right and necessary for your location.
Still not sure?
Speak to an expert.
right of the screen
Back to which hand dryers are the best?
