Do you use dish cloths?

[baileyann3]

Just wondering..

I recently, within the last month, switched from sponges to cloths. I am still not used to it. I still bust out the sponge for big really messy things, like a pot of red sauce of something. Also, do you use that same wet cloth to wash the counters around the sink? or do you use a different one?

[lifeguard]

I generally use one dish cloth a day & I use it on everything. On really busy, messy days I may use more. Having them sit around wet/damp grosses me out.

[deditus]

Originally Posted by baileyann3

Just wondering..

I recently, within the last month, switched from sponges to cloths. I am still not used to it. I still bust out the sponge for big really messy things, like a pot of red sauce of something. Also, do you use that same wet cloth to wash the counters around the sink? or do you use a different one?

I use dish cloths, usually 2 a day since I have to do lots of dishes by hand. I usually wash dishes with a fresh one and then use it on the table, counters, and sink, then it goes in the dirty pile (actually we hang them on a towel bar in our kitchen closet so they dry then put them in a former diaper pail and wash once a week).

[rosie29]

Originally Posted by lifeguard

I generally use one dish cloth a day & I use it on everything. On really busy, messy days I may use more. Having them sit around wet/damp grosses me out.

Same here. Never used sponges in the kitchen. A couple years ago I switched from thin store-bought dish cloths to hand-knit (by DH's aunt) dish cloths. It took some getting used to, but now I love them!

[SuzyLee]

I use a dish cloth mostly for wiping up messes. I use 1 a day (or maybe 2) then hang it to dry before I put it in the laundry, so that they don't get musty.

I use a plastic scrubby thing to scrub pots and pans. I use the same one for months, throwing it in the dishwasher as needed if it gets gross.

[zoebird]

i'm also a daily dish cloth user.

ok, here's the actual deal.

i have a whole pile of simple wash cloths (ikea) in a little basket in the kitchen. i use these for baby messes, cleaning dishes etc, and countertops and what not. so, i usually use 3-5 a day.

they go in with everything else in the wash--clothes, dipes, etc. i just toss them in, fold them up, and back out into the kitchen they go.

[Alyantavid]

I use dishclothes to wash dishes. I use a sponge to wipe down the counters, tables, etc. The sponge sits on the sink and I send it through the dishwasher to clean. I use 1 dishcloth a day for dishes.

[EricaDoula]

I use dishcloth to do all the dishes, and then I use lysol and paper towel to docounter. Or I have one cloth labeled COUNTERS for the lysol and counters. I don't usually use a sponge, but I have a few under the sink, just in case!

[sunshineafterrain]

I use dishcloths for everything. Everyone seems to grab a new one, so there's always a bunch used by the end of the day...but they beat using paper towels ~and I have read too many germ-y stories about sponges

[sunnysandiegan]

I use one dish cloth a day to wash dishes --> counters --> stove top --> the floor near the stove/sink - corner where food prep is done - (in that order), then it hangs to dry. Once it is dry, it goes into the laundry area and gets washed with whichever load is next. (If I am starting a new load of laundry, I will grab the dish cloth and towels from the kitchen, but the timing is generally the way I first described.)

I use a green scrubbie or stainless steel ball to clean the pots and pans first and then wash in the soapy water with the dish cloth.

We have this nifty magnetic box ($2-3 at Ross/Marshalls/TJ Maxx) that is on the side of the dryer where we keep a handful of clean rags for anyone to use for anything. (We have another small pile in the upstairs linen closet. The main stash is above the dryer in a cabinet.) In most cases, used rags get used once and are hung to dry, then washed like the dish cloths. If a rag is used for a greasy or otherwise flammable mess (very rare), then I toss it in the trash. Super messy and/or gross (but not flammable) messes get cleaned up with rags, which are then rinsed WELL and hung to dry, and then sit on the powder room counter until I wash an appropriate load or they accumulate enough for a load of their own (like today ).

[Vancouver Mommy]

Originally Posted by lifeguard

I generally use one dish cloth a day & I use it on everything. On really busy, messy days I may use more. Having them sit around wet/damp grosses me out.

This.

[EdnaMarie]

I use one dish cloth a day, and one for drying / shining the sink, and then I have a scrubby (um, don't know how to describe it... it's not a sponge, it's made of woven plastic) for when necessary.

I use the same cloths for wiping the sink and table. It's all "clean" food stuff, it's not like I'm sharing between, say, the living room windowsills or the bathtub or something.

I do, however, use the kitchen cloth to wipe down the bathroom sink and bathtub and the toilet (in that order) before it's retired to the laundry basket. But obviously that never goes in the reverse order (bathroom to kitchen) 'cause that would be nasty.

I have never used paper towels, and sponges feel gross to me.

[Gingercat]

Talking about dishclothes, is anyone using the woolen ones? I keep seeing some lovely handmade woolen ones on Etsy but I'm hesitant buying them as I do not have a clue how they perform in terms of hot water, drying, washing etc.

[bjorker]

I can't stand sponges, they really squick me. I use dishcloths and rags. We have lots of rags so I'll use as many as I feel is needed. I wash all rags and cloths with towels.

[vm9799]

i use one dish cloth & dish towel each day just for dishes (i do them twice a day....no dishwasher). we have a huge stack of bar mop dish cloths and all purpose dish towels from williams-sonoma. for really nasty dishes that need scrubbing i use a scrub brush from ikea. for my stainless steel cookware i use barkeepers friend and a scrubby sponge.......but in general i can't stand sponges.

for spraying down the counters, stove, etc. i use seventh generation all purpose cleaner and a microfiber cloth (got a stack of these from target).

each evening all the cloths/towels go down the laundry chute and once a week i run a load.

[greenmansions]

I use a sponge, a dish brush and dishcloths. Dishcloths are for everything - wiping counters, doing some quick dishes (tho we use the dishwasher for everything that can go in it), wipe up the kids, wipe tables, spills, the floor. I go through usually 4 a day. My sponge has a scrubby side and I use that when it's needed and I often end up washing cookie sheets and the like with it, and I use a brush for scrubbing inside pots and stuff. I hate getting my hands in the greasy icky water. The brush is long handled.

Dishcloths are hung to dry after use and go into the wash. The sponge is squeezed out and put up to dry after every use, and it and the brush go into the dishwasher at least several times a week.

It took me a long time to train DH to ring out the cloths and sponge and leave them where they could dry, rather than dropping them back into the sink to get musty and gross.

[vm9799]

Originally Posted by greenmansions

= I hate getting my hands in the greasy icky water. The brush is long handled.

i'm this way too.....and am a HUGE fan of gloves!

[lisa0416]

We use dish cloths to clean dishes, then at the end of the night one is used to wipe down the counters really well. I also have rags in the kitchen to sop up spills. NO sponges here, they gross me out. We use at least one dish cloth a day, and they get washed either that day or the next. They go in with our regular laundry. I usually throw them in the washer first and let them hang out the longest in the soapy water before adding the rest of the load.

[sunnysandiegan]

Originally Posted by vm9799

i'm this way too.....and am a HUGE fan of gloves!

[SophieAnn]

No sponges here (except to clean the bathroom). We use dish cloths, and a scrubbie (plastic or steel wool) for the really stuck-on bits. After dishes are done I use the same dish cloth to wipe counters, stovetop, rinse and hang to dry for the next day. We both work full time so dishes are only done once per day... so a dishcloth lasts 2-3 days, depending.

Hubby is terrible about leaving the dishcloth in a wet heap at the bottom of the sink (yuck!) but if it's hung over the tap to dry properly then I feel better about reusing it another day.

The discloths we use are all handknit (half by myself, half from my grandma) from Handicrafter Cotton. The pattern is very simple garter stitch and is printed on the yarn labels, or available on the website:
http://www.bernat.com/pattern.php?PID=2328