Hair dryer and electric shaver

Motor appliances held against the head: among the strongest ELF magnetic fields in a home at the point of use — up to 700 mG (70 µT) at 15 cm across the models measured — but used for minutes a day, and down to at most 70 mG (7 µT) by 30 cm.

elf magnetichome

Last verified 12 August 2026.

Also searched as: hairdryer EMF, blow dryer radiation, electric razor EMF, shaver EMF

Category: elf magnetic
Emission bands: Power frequency
Environments: home
Duty cycle: Minutes per day, only while the motor runs — the shortest exposure of any high-field household appliance.

Field strength by distance

15 cm: 1–700 mGMeasured range — Measured range at 15 cm across hair dryers (1–700 mG / 0.1–70 µT) and electric shavers (4–600 mG / 0.4–60 µT) in the EPA's 1992 survey of 60 Hz appliances. The spread between models is three orders of magnitude, so the appliance class predicts far less than the individual unit.sources: nrc-1997-appliance-fields, epa-1992-appliance-fields
30 cm: 0–100 mGMeasured range — By 30 cm the strongest shaver measured 100 mG (10 µT) and the strongest dryer 70 mG (7 µT); the weakest units were indistinguishable from background at this distance.sources: nrc-1997-appliance-fields, epa-1992-appliance-fields

Mitigations, most effective first

Treat these as duration exposures, not level exposures: brief daily use is a small share of a cumulative dose.: Epidemiology on power-frequency fields uses time-weighted averages, in which a two-minute peak contributes little.
Measure the specific unit rather than trusting a class figure, and prefer a dryer whose motor sits away from the handle.: Field strength at the hand and head is dominated by the motor's position and winding, which varies by three orders of magnitude between models.

Measure with

ELF gaussmeter (power-frequency magnetic field)

Related records

Household background magnetic field (50/60 Hz)
Away from appliances, homes typically sit below a few milligauss; the WHO's epidemiological association with childhood leukaemia begins at a daily average of 3–4 mG (0.3–0.4 µT).
Sources & emitters
Building Biology SBM-2024 AC magnetic field bands
Sleeping-area grades at 50/60 Hz: below 0.2 mG no anomaly, 0.2–1 mG weak, 1–5 mG strong, above 5 mG extreme.
Exposure limits
Magnetic flux density
The quantity an ELF gaussmeter reports, expressed in milligauss or microtesla, used to assess wiring, transformers and power lines. 1 µT = 10 mG.
Quantities & units

Sources

nrc-1997-appliance-fields Possible Health Effects of Exposure to Residential Electric and Magnetic Fields, Table 2-3: magnetic-field strengths of common household appliances — National Research Council (US), National Academies Press, 1997. peer-reviewed, link checked 2026-08-12.
epa-1992-appliance-fields EMF in Your Environment: Magnetic Field Measurements of Everyday Electrical Devices (EPA 402-R-92-008) — U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, 1992. government, link checked 2026-08-12.

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