Shop towels sustainability
- Thread starter andyvh1959
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Renegade1LI
Well-known member
If you like the traditional shop towel these are 13 cents each, you'll never wash another rag.
Doug
Well-known member
I used to buy shop rags in bulk from Georgia Towel online. This was way more cost-effective than having a weekly service exchange them (plus the stop-off charge.)
Firebrick43
Well-known member
The last two places I have worked had rewashable rags and finally gave up. One place tried old shreaded clothes. Those were terrible. Finally just bought the wypalls.
landrover bodger
Well-known member
i just use old tshirts cut into squares when they are dirty they go in the outside bin to be collected to be dumped . i will use blue paper roll for some jobs most of that ends up as firelighter .
LS6 Tommy
Well-known member
Once I saw what cloth rag fibers did to a few engines, I switched to blue shop towels. I toss 'em. No washing needed. For things that require repeated use of the same wiper, I use good old Handi Wipes. Been using them since I was a kid. Grandma always had one hanging on the kitchen faucet. 
Tommy
Tommy
engineer2
Well-known member
Wife throws worn out, torn and bleach-stained towels in a bucket in the garage.
These are available for household chores and garage stuff.
If they get nasty with oil or chemicals, I just throw them in the trash.
As they get dirty, I put them in the dirty rag bucket under the kitchen sink.
Wife washes them once a week and puts the good ones back in the garage bucket.
The system works well and we haven't run out yet.
These are available for household chores and garage stuff.
If they get nasty with oil or chemicals, I just throw them in the trash.
As they get dirty, I put them in the dirty rag bucket under the kitchen sink.
Wife washes them once a week and puts the good ones back in the garage bucket.
The system works well and we haven't run out yet.
Last edited:
tmshort
Well-known member
Another vote for the Wypall stuff. I have a couple versions of them in dispensers, they are great.
I am cheap, and wash microfiber and other shop towels even when they get really oily.
What I do is use a clean trash can, dump in the dirty rags and hot water then a bunch of simple green. I use a rake or something to agitate them periodically, then rinse and repeat. After that the grease / oil is mostly gone and they go through the washer / dryer without any issue.
I am cheap, and wash microfiber and other shop towels even when they get really oily.
What I do is use a clean trash can, dump in the dirty rags and hot water then a bunch of simple green. I use a rake or something to agitate them periodically, then rinse and repeat. After that the grease / oil is mostly gone and they go through the washer / dryer without any issue.
toyotadriver
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2010
- Messages
- 1,586
I also keep a stack of these around the shop. They are awesome for soaking up oil and other chemicals.
mcbane
Well-known member
If you live in a big city, dont wash too many greasy towels at the same time or the "source control" investigators from the sewer treatment plant will track you down. They dont want oil and grease in the system and usually have an ordinance in place that allows them to fine violators. Industrial laundry places that wash greasy towels use oil and grease separators to make sure they dont violate sewer plant rules.
FloydShine
Well-known member
Pre soak rags in detergent soap/water in 5 gallon buckets with lids. Put buckets in back of truck and drive around a couple days prior to wash day. I bought a nice washing machine at auction for $5.00 as it was in basement and no one wanted to move it out. Dedicated to shop rags or shop towels, otherwise flat top of machine makes a great storage area for totes.
nadogail
Well-known member
Back in the day, pre 9/11 I worked in a Printed Circuit Board manufacturing plant with Hydraulic Laminating presses that were heated with hot oil. Occasionally a seal would blow or a hot oil line line would fail and I had a mess to clean up, the company was using Cintas for uniform and shop rags.
I would gather all the soiled rags and mop up the mess; the driver knew when he found a can of really black rags that I had been doing something; because by the time they got the rags they were no longer "soiled" they were black.
I would gather all the soiled rags and mop up the mess; the driver knew when he found a can of really black rags that I had been doing something; because by the time they got the rags they were no longer "soiled" they were black.
engineer2
Well-known member
Never heard of that unless you are a gross polluter, meaning putting gallons of oil down the sewer. I don't know why they would bother tracking down an occasional oily load of laundry.
I have "nice" rags that I use for cleaning (microfiber). I just fill a bucket with water and a squirt of dawn and let them soak. Squeeze them out, rinse them, squeeze again, and hang them up to dry. It takes like 5 minutes.
Greasy rags just get tossed though.
Once a rag gets demoted to garage duty, it never goes back in the house. Plus, if I blow up the washer, I have to fix it or replace it. It's not worth the risk for shop rags, lol.
Greasy rags just get tossed though.
Once a rag gets demoted to garage duty, it never goes back in the house. Plus, if I blow up the washer, I have to fix it or replace it. It's not worth the risk for shop rags, lol.
Daniel Dudley
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- Joined
- Sep 4, 2009
- Messages
- 3,546
I use blue shop towels for lots of things. I sometimes use painters rags that can be rinsed out and reused for painting, and sometimes I use microfiber towels for cleaning and polishing. Only the microfiber towels wind up in the wash if they aren't too bad. I have a top load washer that is a real workhorse. It can wash work clothes and towels without anyone feeling bad about it. In the end, all my shop rags go in the trash. The blue Scott shop towels are the best of the disposables. They are fairly tough, and lint free.
Davegvg
Well-known member
Only a machine with an internal heater will process shop rags without leaving gunk all over your internals.
Machines with high water heat completely eliminate the need for bleach and blast clean grease and grime.
Horizontal axis washers use less water that top loaders and achieve a higher soap % with much less product use.
Once you have owned a true high performance laundry machine you'll never go back to a regular unit.
My old 240V miele would heat the water to within 2 degrees of boiling.
I use rags until they are worn to shreds and rewash them for years.
Machines with high water heat completely eliminate the need for bleach and blast clean grease and grime.
Horizontal axis washers use less water that top loaders and achieve a higher soap % with much less product use.
Once you have owned a true high performance laundry machine you'll never go back to a regular unit.
My old 240V miele would heat the water to within 2 degrees of boiling.
I use rags until they are worn to shreds and rewash them for years.
bsaint
Well-known member
I was just thinking today I wanna get a mini washing machine for rags. Dawn and tsp prob get it pretty clean
Meursault74
Well-known member
bsaint
Well-known member
Awesome except manual crank
PhantomEB
Well-known member
2 paper towel holders for paper towels once the GF whittles them down a size i can fit them in my holders. annually I donate to my bucket of discarded tshirts I cut up for use out there. One shirt can last me weeks before they are discarded. She would kill me if I put one in the washer!
Meursault74
Well-known member
sure, also saves you a trip to the gym
bsaint
Well-known member
Depends which arm I use.sure, also saves you a trip to the gym
smokey0810
Well-known member
Now the real question needs to be, do you use fabric softener and dryer sheets? LOL...
I've never had that many to have this issue, but I could see some chemicals messing with your washing machine.
I've never had that many to have this issue, but I could see some chemicals messing with your washing machine.
Metallitubby
Well-known member
My situation isn't doable for everyone, but I buy the red fabric shop rags as well. Then I cycle them in and out of my work's Cintas rag supply, since they use the same (or similar) rags. I bring them a bucket full of rags, and they "give" me a bag of cleanER rags in return.
bsaint
Well-known member
I tried once to wash them in my ex wife's washing machine. Spent the weekend cleaning it out after. Unless you really don't like people who are unfortunate enough to have to leave their house to do their laundry, I would not wash them at the laundromat
bsaint
Well-known member
Okay I tried some hot water and dawn. 15 min soak. 10 min agitation. Hand rinsed each one until the water ran semi clear. Stacked to dry. I'll let you know how it turns out. This is half my dirty stack. 
kaymccampbell
Well-known member
Back when I did more of a volume of business, Morgan Linen supplied my shop rags weekly. After I moved, and shrank my business, I used to wash oily rags in a machine that sat out back in the woods. No more. I have paper towels, blemished printer's paper rags and the cheap microfiber rags from BJ's, Sam's or HF. Once they're polluted, out they go. Or they get used for firestarters when we're having a camp fire.
Most laundromats catch you washing shop rags, and you're banned.
Most laundromats catch you washing shop rags, and you're banned.
Meursault74
Well-known member
83VillageRepair
Well-known member
I have an old Maytag Wringer Washer I occasionally use for this. Works a treat. I would be permanently banned if I put rags in the house washer.
fsae0607
Well-known member
Get yourself a Wypall dispenser & a roll of Wypall x80's. You'll never **** around with red rags again!
I'm generally using blue paper towels but I do have some shop rags and those go into the extractor at work. Once done, I run it again with nothing but Simple Green to clean it out.
NewShockerGuy
Well-known member
I used to wash and clean shop towels but now it's way easier just to throw them out after they get oil or all messed up.
The one gym I used to go to was actually very good about giving me towels they would have thrown out because they were washed x amount of times or there was a hole in them. I simply asked them one day, what do you do with the old gym towels? They responded, we throw them out. I asked how many times they throw them out and they said almost weekly.
I asked if instead of them throwing them out could I buy them. They said that wasn't necessary at all and they'd give them to me. At first it was awesome. I was getting 20+ towels a week. Then it became a problem because I didn't have a spot to put them and I had a couple hundred, so I told them I'd just grab some every other month or so. That system worked out much better and now there's an endless supply of shop towels for me...ahhaha
-Nigel
The one gym I used to go to was actually very good about giving me towels they would have thrown out because they were washed x amount of times or there was a hole in them. I simply asked them one day, what do you do with the old gym towels? They responded, we throw them out. I asked how many times they throw them out and they said almost weekly.
I asked if instead of them throwing them out could I buy them. They said that wasn't necessary at all and they'd give them to me. At first it was awesome. I was getting 20+ towels a week. Then it became a problem because I didn't have a spot to put them and I had a couple hundred, so I told them I'd just grab some every other month or so. That system worked out much better and now there's an endless supply of shop towels for me...ahhaha
-Nigel
jeep63
Well-known member
I used to have a sweet deal with a mechanic friend of mine. I would swap 100 dirty red rags for a clean 100, and he would just cycle them through his dealership. When I filled my metal used shop can, I just called and arranged for a swap. This arrangement just ended: he is divorcing and moving away. I'm switching to blue paper towels and I'll just continue using the metal can for the old ones and use them as fire starters in our fire pit.
I'm pretty sure my wife would object to washing them (regardless how much pre-washing I did) in our machine. And, I know a laundra-mat will not permit you to use their machines for it.
Right now I'm on a case of the Scott Blue towels, but I may look into this Wypalls mentioned in this thread.
I'm pretty sure my wife would object to washing them (regardless how much pre-washing I did) in our machine. And, I know a laundra-mat will not permit you to use their machines for it.
Right now I'm on a case of the Scott Blue towels, but I may look into this Wypalls mentioned in this thread.
Jwallace1
Well-known member
my dad use to save old red rags, he must have had a couple hundred of them stashed away, i was driving home one day and saw a free washing machine on the side of the road, stopped and pushed it into the back of my pickup took it over and we did several loads of red rags and dropped it back out on the curb with a free sign and someone else picked it up.
I’ve been washing them in the house washing machine for years without a problem. Granted, if it’s full of oil or grease, like if it’s dripping then those just need to get thrown out.
I wash the rags on heaviest cycle with full dose of detergent and then some.
I use 409 and paper towels to clean the dark ring off the tub.
The next load after the rags will be shop clothes - car working clothes.
The next load after that will be dark colored clothes.
You could wash whites or whatever you want after that. I’ve never had an issue.
I wash the rags on heaviest cycle with full dose of detergent and then some.
I use 409 and paper towels to clean the dark ring off the tub.
The next load after the rags will be shop clothes - car working clothes.
The next load after that will be dark colored clothes.
You could wash whites or whatever you want after that. I’ve never had an issue.
kelpaso1
MEMBER EMERITUS
Why anyone would wash old dirty, greasy rags in their home washing machine is beyond me.
Agreed. I have several pairs of Dickies work pants and work shirts I used to wear when I worked in a shop. I still wear those when I work on cars at home. But I also wash those separately from anything else, other than maybe bath towels. I'm not putting dirty shop rags in my washing machine, or mixing dirty work clothes with my regular clothes.
In a shop environment you're going to have a cleaning service that will take dirty uniforms and rags, and replace them with clean ones every week. But at home, not so much. Once the shop rags are wet or otherwise soaked with oil or some other automotive fluid, they get thrown away. If they are dirty but dry, I keep them around until I need to clean up something wet.
At home, it's just me. I'm not running a shop with multiple people several hours a day 5 to 7 days a week. A new bag of 50 rags will last for months. I've been buying the HF rags for years. They are $10 for a 50 pack regular price and I always have a new unopened pack on hand. When I get low or open that sealed pack, I buy another. I might buy 1, maybe 2 packs, a year.
I also keep disposable shop towels and pig mats, etc. on hand as well. But for me, rag or not, it's all consumable.
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bsaint
Well-known member
Took a long time to dry but they came out clean. I'm doing another batch now with driveway oil surfactant
