Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

Tip: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

Tired of spending money on paper towels? Sending them to a landfill is not good for the environment. Instead, use rags: Worn out towels, old fabric etc. When these rags might have seen their last scrub, their useful life is not over.

Layer 2 or 3 rags and sew them together, each about 12 inches square. Then place your old soap ends and maybe some stinky soap you won't bathe with in the center. Tie the layers together (with your favorite rag on the outside) with a strong string or cord and make a pouch.

You can tie this soapy wonder in an outdoor wash area or from the faucet in the bathroom. No fuss or muss, and no icky slime on the sink. When it wears out, compost it and make another.

By sue123 from Oroville, CA

Tip: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

Keep a rag on your paper towel rack and quit buying paper towels altogether! Use newspaper for washing windows. Use cheap paper napkins for food as needed. You'll be surprised at how often you'll grab that rag to wipe up a spill and you are saving lots of money. Have a bunch on hand and just wash up a load every once in a while.

By Laura from Mason, OH

Feedback:

RE: Use Rags Instead Of Paper Towels

We've even done away with the paper napkins and use cloth for everything including school lunches. My daughter's friends think it's cool that she is "so fancy" and my husband's co-workers think it's cool he's "green", some have even started following suit. (03/10/2009)

By irishmomto2cuties

RE: Use Rags Instead Of Paper Towels

We've started doing the same thing. I would advise, however, to make some cloth napkins and keep them set aside for guests. I was so embarrassed to hand my guest a kitchen towel last week! I went to WalMart and bought some $1 fabric and made a few napkins. (03/10/2009)

By michellenperry

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

I purchased some inexpensive wash clothes to use as napkins. I have nice cloth napkins for company. (03/11/2009)

By Danialle

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

Thanks, you're right! I just bought my last paper towels. I have some vintage cloth napkins that I treasure, found at a thrift shop. (03/12/2009)

By kimhis

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

The rags are a great idea. I had an old sheet that I cut into small rags (about 12 x 15 inches). I folded them and put them in a little basket on the counter near the paper towels. I told DH that every time he would get a paper towel to grab a rag. I do the same. I wash them when I do the towels. We also have used cloth napkins for several years. We use paper towels on really yucky messes but have reduced our paper towel use by probably 95%. Good for the budget and good for the environment. (03/12/2009)

By Happy05

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

When my dishcloths and tea towels get too old and grubby for 'show' I start using them as cleaning rags. They're much sturdier than paper towels and work pretty well as stain-scrubbers. Keep them clean and hang them up after use to keep smells away. For really dirty or greasy cleaning I use those semi-disposable cloths you buy in packs in the grocery store; I try to reuse them but if they're too yucky I just toss them out. (03/17/2009)

By Tapestry Lady

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

It's a great idea. I haven't used paper towels for years. When your baby has grown out of muslins or swaddle cloths, they make great wipe-up cloths too. (03/04/2010)

By Lucy Lethbridge

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

Ma was raised on a farm during the depression and so we learned long ago to use newspapers and rags. When someone pulls a long roll of paper towels to wipe up a drop I cringe. (03/04/2010)

By helenrae

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

I've use rags for cleaning for many years. My favorites are my husbands old worn white work socks cut so they lay out flat (down through the back and heel side). I like to leave some in tack and turn them wrong side out and put them on like a glove. They are great that way for cleaning my stairway spindles. After cleaning the house, I usually rinse the rags a little then put them in with a load of jeans. (03/04/2010)

By loves parties

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

I have been using rags for years and years. I refuse to buy paper towels or napkins. Instead, I use rags for clean-up and cloth napkins for meals including picnics. It's easy, cheap and more " efficient, plus they don"t add to the land-fill. I just save them until I have a decent washer load and do them all at once. Then I'm ready to go for a couple of months.

In the "old days" , over forty years ago, everyone used worn out cloth diapers for dusting and cleaning up. They were soft, lint free,absorbent and re, re, re-usable. Nothing ticks me off more than seeing a cart load of paper anything that is to be used once and thrown away. (03/05/2010)

By sue123

RE: Use Rags Instead of Paper Towels

I use napkins and old burp clothes as rags. I still use paper towels but I am phasing them out. I also use old phonebook pages for mirrors and windows. (03/06/2010)

By Kayjayday