About a year ago I made the decision to try to get rid of some of the paper waste we create in our home. Now I'm not brave enough to switch to "family cloth" meaning cloth toilet paper and I'm not sure why as I cloth diapered both of my little ones and it didn't bother me a bit. Oh wait, I do know why - because my husband already thinks I've lost my mind, if I tried to do that I think he might have me committed!Now onto the real reason for this post. I have gotten rid of paper napkins and paper towels in our house. It was easy and relatively inexpensive to do. I didn't get fancy cloth napkins and paper towels. I simply purchased a couple of those packages of 10 washcloths that you see at Wal-Mart or Target. I knew that if I didn't keep them handy, I wouldn't use them so I found a basket and replaced our paper towel dispenser on the kitchen counter with the basket of washcloths.
I do have a roll or two of paper towels that I keep around for those messes that are so gross I don't want to have to wash them, you know the ones, like when pets get sick!
I was motivated to do this more as an earth friendly thing to do, but it was also happened to be a very thrifty move as I haven't purchased napkins or paper towels in a long time. It cost me about $10 to purchase 2 packs of washcloths and they've lasted a while and are holding up pretty well. I do wash them with my other towel laundry and make sure to sanitize them to keep them safe from bacteria.
I challenge you to make this small move and save yourself some money in the long run and help decrease the amount of trash your household produces!
I've halfheartedly tried to make the change with cloth napkins, but the washcloths are a GREAT idea. I picked up two packs at Costco last year for 7 bucks apiece. I now know how to use them. :)
ReplyDeleteNow, my question is, how is it that you sanitize them apart from just washing them? I know I can wash them on hot water, but I don't have a sanitize button on my washer.
PS. I just made my purchases this week to make my own laundry detergent. I was pleasantly surprised to see all the other cleaning that Borax and Washing suds are useful for.
I wash in super hot water and use Biokleen Bac-Out to make sure they get really clean.
ReplyDeleteBorax and Washing Soda do have tons of uses around the house, I hope you have good luck making your detergent!
This covers all the bases = saves you money, helps the environment, helps your health, makes you feel better, it's so easy to do and it costs less than $50.00; Save money and the Earth and be clean at the same time! Add Bathroom Bidet Sprayers to all your bathrooms. I think Dr. Oz on Oprah said it best: "if you had pee or poop on your hand, you wouldn't wipe it off with paper, would you? You'd wash it off” Available at www.bathroomsprayers.com with these you won't even need toilet paper any more, just a towel to dry off! Don’t worry, you can still leave some out for guests and can even make it the soft stuff without feeling guilty. It's cheap and can be installed without a plumber; and runs off the same water line to your toilet. You'll probably pay for it in a few months of toilet paper savings. As for water use a drought is always a concern and must be dealt with prudently but remember the water use of industrial users far exceeds the water use of household users and in the case of toilet paper manufacture it is huge. The pollution and significant power use from that manufacturing process also contributes to global warming so switching to a hand bidet sprayer and lowering your toilet paper use is very green in multiple ways.
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