Zenith Washrooms continues its “Perceptions of Hygiene” series with the sense of sound.

The first 3 senses we covered (smell, sight, touch) were quite easy to imagine 1,000 words for. We are so conscious of the first 3 in our washroom services environments that we pick up on 90% of the problems with ease. Sound is different, as you will see. All sounds in the environment will influence our perception of hygiene. Some we have little control over, or so it would seem.

In my late teens, I was lucky enough to land a place on one of the few recognised sound engineering courses in the UK. One lecture we were privileged to have the lead sound producer for Doctor Who come in and show us the power of sound staging. We watched a 5-minute section of a Doctor Who episode (man picked his audience well, Tom Baker!). The thing was that there was no sound staging. It was just the raw audio from the set. It was so dull. Then the magic happened. He pulled a bunch of items out of a carrier bag, played the video again and did all the sound effects live for us. It was incredible. What was previously so dull instantly excited us. We absorb sound continuously as it provides us with the first signs of potential threat. We might not, however, be aware of the effect it has on our comprehension of our experiences.

What does one of the earliest qualified sound engineers in the UK bring to washroom solutions? My life is always a critique of noise, sound and music. Entering washroom environments can be fraught. We don’t know most of the time whether we will share the environment. This can be stressful for a lot of us. Closed doors offer us some clues, but noises give us answers. The noises we need to give us the answers are noises we don’t want to hear from others and nor do we wish to inflict ours on those people.

In Japan, they have the most amazing toilet seats on earth. Heated, self-cleaning, built-in bidets and dryers! In many public environments, there is also a button that, when pressed, produces the sound of a waterfall. They engineered this solution to allow Japan’s demure ladies to use the toilet without embarrassment. I think they have it right. Who else has sat on a toilet in a public environment and wondered just how loud their release might be today?

The solution is, in my mind, super easy. Piped music. Choose something entertaining, mutual and a volume that allows conversation without shouting. Radio 2 would be neutral enough in my mind (though would bring a huge tinge of sadness that Terry Wogan has left us). Now we have an environment that produces privacy in a public setting. I have nothing more to add on that subject. This is something all public washroom environments need.

What else do I offer on sound? Bar acoustically treating your environment (only for the most premium washroom service solutions), my number one area to examine is your hand dryers. Placement can offer a lot of relief from excessive sound, but choice of unit is a better method to ensure the right levels of noise. If you are installing in a high footfall area, then sound will not be your concern. Conversely, if you are installing in a sensitive environment such as an early childhood, care, medical or assisted service environment, then choosing a low noise unit is vital. Below is a useful scale for you to employ to allow you to choose an appropriate noise level for your environment.

56-65 dba @ 1m (normal conversation)
66-75 dba @ 1m (dishwasher)
76-85 dba @ 1m (vacuum cleaner)
86-85 dba @ 1m (food processor)

Virtually all of Zenith Washroom’s hand drying offerings fall into the 66-75 (dishwasher) bracket, allowing us to provide the perfect, low noise, hand drying solution for your environment. Contact Zenith Washroom Solutions today to allow us to provide you with a quick quote for your washroom service needs. We’ll leave you to source your own radio.