I might have read past it, but I feel like the article didn't actually go into what the costs are of washing the dishcloths? There is an offhand remark about just throwing them into a wash you...
I might have read past it, but I feel like the article didn't actually go into what the costs are of washing the dishcloths? There is an offhand remark about just throwing them into a wash you were going to do anyway. But that just makes it a bigger load and doesn't magically take the energy usage away.
Not to mention that you probably want to wash them quite frequently as they will be wet and full of all the stuff you wipe up, so a hotbed for microbial growth.
Edit:
I got annoyed not knowing if I had read past it
At this time, however, there are no major, publicly available life cycle assessments for any Swedish dishcloth brands (at least that the Guardian could track down).
In other words, this article provides a whole lot of nothing compared to what the title seems to promise.
I actually don't know much about this but does throwing a couple of dish clothes in the wash with your regular load add an appreciable amount of energy/water usage to it? Surely there's an...
I actually don't know much about this but does throwing a couple of dish clothes in the wash with your regular load add an appreciable amount of energy/water usage to it? Surely there's an economies of scale to it where it's not really adding much extra cost right?
Possibly, though you also do need to factor in the original production. The thing is though, us speculating in the comments here is one thing. But, if you write an article centered around this...
Possibly, though you also do need to factor in the original production.
The thing is though, us speculating in the comments here is one thing. But, if you write an article centered around this question, I would expect more than just that speculation.
I noticed that too. They also didn't detail the environmental cost to manufacturer the towels, or how long they have to last and how long they typically last. If you need to use them for two years...
I noticed that too. They also didn't detail the environmental cost to manufacturer the towels, or how long they have to last and how long they typically last. If you need to use them for two years but people toss them after a year since they get nasty, then it's not worth it.
They kind of did, but in a round about way: Which I guess means that a 3-pack of swedish towels aprox. 11 gallons of gasoline to produce? Not as clear as it could be and if they really want to do...
They kind of did, but in a round about way:
If a three-pack of Swedish dishcloths has the same carbon footprint as a roll of paper towels, Earth911.com estimates, then switching to dishcloths can help families eliminate about 200 pounds of CO2 emissions each year.
Which I guess means that a 3-pack of swedish towels aprox. 11 gallons of gasoline to produce? Not as clear as it could be and if they really want to do an article on the benefits of maybe switching.
I'm surprised they even mentioned Microfibers clothes which I think are made from petrol chemicals.
Just some random thoughts that this article brought up: What is a microfiber cloth, really? It seems like a really generic term that might be meant to obfuscate the actual material it is made of -...
Just some random thoughts that this article brought up:
What is a microfiber cloth, really? It seems like a really generic term that might be meant to obfuscate the actual material it is made of - which is presumably some sort of plastic fibers. I've never heard of anyone use the term "natural microfiber" before, of course.
How common is composting, really, either in the US or UK? I personally don't know anyone who composts, and I don't think I've heard of a citywide composting program. I do think that composting is an important thing that we as a society need to do in order to deal with waste, but I don't think anyone is interested in making it a public policy.
On the topic of composting, why wouldn't one be able to compost a soiled towel? As long as the substance is organic, won't it compost?
Two rolls of paper towels in a week sounds like an awful lot of usage. Do people not use rags or sponges? A roll of paper towels generally lasts for about a month in my household of three adults.
I don't know anything about Swedish dishtowels, so I have a natural skepticism about them, but it feels really weird that this article is about them and not just regular dishtowels and rags. Rags seem to be the ideal use case in this situation, because we have a massively wasteful fashion industry that makes and disposes of countless articles every year. Except for the pretty designs, they have all the benefits of Swedish dishtowels if they are made of cotton, including being able to wash them in the dishwasher.
It also seems somewhat unfair to consider the energy or water usage of cleaning dishtowels/rags/sponges because I am very skeptical in that people are actually washing them as much as they should... but I get it.
Really? AFAIK there are "green bin" composting programs in most cities and municipalities here in Canada. So I thought for sure it would be similar in the US too. But googling around it looks like...
and I don't think I've heard of a citywide composting program
Really? AFAIK there are "green bin" composting programs in most cities and municipalities here in Canada. So I thought for sure it would be similar in the US too. But googling around it looks like that may not be the case. It does look to be slowly becoming more common, and is getting implemented in more US States and cities though:
Mandatory composting programs have thrived over the past decade in cities such as San Francisco; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle. (Seattleites send 125,000 tons of food and yard waste to composting facilities each year, turning those scraps into compost for local parks and gardens.) Pilot programs are underway in Boston, Pittsburgh and Jacksonville, Florida.
States also are getting into composting. Nine states — California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington — have enacted laws over the past decade that divert organic waste from landfills to composting facilities, though composting requirements and opportunities for residents and businesses vary by state.
I feel a bit dumb because I just remembered that we actually do have a composting program where I live, but they only accept yard waste. It's a bit annoying actually because something like 9/10ths...
I feel a bit dumb because I just remembered that we actually do have a composting program where I live, but they only accept yard waste. It's a bit annoying actually because something like 9/10ths of the year it's completely unnecessary for our house, but then autumn rolls around and we have so much from the trees that we can't fit them into the bin.
In my left-leaning US city, houses are given the option of free compost pickup. But I believe larger apartment buildings have to pay for city pickup or for another waste hauler. So it's mostly the...
In my left-leaning US city, houses are given the option of free compost pickup. But I believe larger apartment buildings have to pay for city pickup or for another waste hauler. So it's mostly the few buildings that have "eco-friendly" as a selling point which make composting options available. There are free city drop-off spots too, but unless you live within a few blocks of one, that's not particularly convenient.
This is what my very left city in California is like too. Only houses get compost. In our neighboring city, everyone gets compost, but it's also not utilized as it could be. I've been debating...
This is what my very left city in California is like too. Only houses get compost. In our neighboring city, everyone gets compost, but it's also not utilized as it could be.
I've been debating getting a Lomi to compost things at home since I do garden a little on my balcony and would love to garden some more, it's just the cost is a prohibiting factor.
It is kinda frustrating as an apartment-dweller. I experimented with worm composting in a 10-15 (?) gallon bin for a while. But it seemed like that could not handle the amount of food scraps that...
It is kinda frustrating as an apartment-dweller. I experimented with worm composting in a 10-15 (?) gallon bin for a while. But it seemed like that could not handle the amount of food scraps that I produced. Maintaining the balance of paper/dirt/scraps/moisture was a challenge too, although maybe I just didn't find my groove. It seemed like I would have had to scale up and add more bins, and especially in a small apartment, that just didn't make sense to spend my time/energy on.
I would totally try to have a worm compost if I had the space for one. My balcony is tiny, so I wouldn't have the space for that and plants. It's why I was thinking the Lomi might work for me. If...
I would totally try to have a worm compost if I had the space for one. My balcony is tiny, so I wouldn't have the space for that and plants. It's why I was thinking the Lomi might work for me. If it ever goes down in price to something I think I can swing, I might go for it.
I hadn't heard of municipal composting until I moved from FL to MN, but it is widespread and doesn't appear to be a particularly new thing here. I am surprised this state isn't listed in the quote...
I hadn't heard of municipal composting until I moved from FL to MN, but it is widespread and doesn't appear to be a particularly new thing here. I am surprised this state isn't listed in the quote you had.
I use old t-shirts in my workshop and they're fine when used in one piece but when you cut them into smaller sizes they shed fibres almost constantly and fall apart fairly quickly. Also old...
I use old t-shirts in my workshop and they're fine when used in one piece but when you cut them into smaller sizes they shed fibres almost constantly and fall apart fairly quickly. Also old clothing is nowhere near as absorbent as the towelling hand-cloths we use in the house (which started out being baby cloths but now get used for almost everything). Rags just don't work that well for general household use imo. They're great for wiping on finishing oil onto a piece of woodwork though.
We have a municipal compost collection but if we put paper towels in there, that load would be rejected. They take only plant matter. The reason is simply that there aren't sufficient resources at the council to sort each load of compost manually, which is what it would need - at a glance it's hard to tell a paper towel from a plastic bag and plastic in compost isn't good news. So sadly they just dump anything which isn't obviously plant matter. Hopefully this situation will change at some point.
I prefer using old (cotton) towels to make cleaning rags and dish "sponges" from. They're super absorbant and even as just rags fairly sturdy. To make more durable sponges, I cut a strip 2x long,...
I prefer using old (cotton) towels to make cleaning rags and dish "sponges" from. They're super absorbant and even as just rags fairly sturdy.
To make more durable sponges, I cut a strip 2x long, fold it in half to make it 2ply, and sew a quick blanket stitch around the edge. They dont fray, last a couple months, and rewash easily.
That's a good idea, although I'm still using the towel I had when I was 17 (not to mention one over a decade older, although that's not daily use) so I'm not sure if I'll have any spare material...
That's a good idea, although I'm still using the towel I had when I was 17 (not to mention one over a decade older, although that's not daily use) so I'm not sure if I'll have any spare material any time soon!
I really meant paper towels specifically, but that answer doesn't really answer my question. If a towel is compostable when perfectly clean, why would having food waste ruin the ability to compost...
I really meant paper towels specifically, but that answer doesn't really answer my question. If a towel is compostable when perfectly clean, why would having food waste ruin the ability to compost it?
Though really, I do know that fats can really attract pests, so for municipal composting in particular it does make a degree of sense.
I don't understand what cows have to do with compost, though.
There is a local volunteer non-profit type org in my city that runs a compost program that can compost paper towels. It is not free, so I am waiting to sign up after I find a job. What I really...
There is a local volunteer non-profit type org in my city that runs a compost program that can compost paper towels. It is not free, so I am waiting to sign up after I find a job. What I really with was that we had somebody composting the commercially compostable plastic bags. As I climb the hill toward more sustainable living, getting off Ziploc is one of the hardest things.
Compostable plastic is typically some form of PLA, which is technically compostable, but not under natural conditions. It requires keeping it in a heated enclosure for long periods of time, which...
Compostable plastic is typically some form of PLA, which is technically compostable, but not under natural conditions. It requires keeping it in a heated enclosure for long periods of time, which means that it draws energy which costs money.
Paper is a lot better than plastic for a number of reasons, but reusable stuff is ideal.
As a point of reference, afaik most municipal waste services in my country (Germany) specifically exclude compostable plastics from compost. And that's big operations that compost all the food...
As a point of reference, afaik most municipal waste services in my country (Germany) specifically exclude compostable plastics from compost. And that's big operations that compost all the food waste and plant trimmings from 100k+ people. Apparently these things are a royal pain in the ass.
(Just looking into it, and picking a random big city in Germany: Frankfurt, a city of 700k people, does not allow compostable plastics in their compost waste. They process 118000t of material per year.)
Same with the few Canadian municipalities I'm familiar with. I believe the explanation is that the machines aren't able to differentiate between types of plastic, so they all get treated as...
Same with the few Canadian municipalities I'm familiar with. I believe the explanation is that the machines aren't able to differentiate between types of plastic, so they all get treated as noncompostable.
There are a small subset of compostable bags that can easily break down in a normal home compost. You want to look for the TUV Home compositing certification. I've used them before and can confirm...
There are a small subset of compostable bags that can easily break down in a normal home compost. You want to look for the TUV Home compositing certification.
I've used them before and can confirm they break down readily in my tumbler in a few months, while ones that weren't home composting certified remained for much longer.
If they’re the same ones we have in my house, I agree. I was super skeptical of “compostable plastic bags” as compost bin liners until our municipality gave every household a little 8L tub to...
If they’re the same ones we have in my house, I agree. I was super skeptical of “compostable plastic bags” as compost bin liners until our municipality gave every household a little 8L tub to collect food scraps in the kitchen, and like a 10-pack of the bags.
I decided I’d give them a go with the intention of using the plastic bag to take out the food scraps to the green waste bin, and then chuck the plastic bag itself into the general rubbish… but the plastic was already breaking down if I left it for more than 4-5 days in the kitchen!
I figured if it’s dissolving that fast without any assistance (the food scraps in the bag hadn’t even started to get mouldy or smelly) then I can believe they’re gonna compost without any troubles!
I don't think that's true in all industrial composting contexts. I became familiar with a particular industrial composting facility, and picked up some information about it. The composting process...
PLA [..] requires keeping it in a heated enclosure for long periods of time, which means that it draws energy which costs money.
I don't think that's true in all industrial composting contexts. I became familiar with a particular industrial composting facility, and picked up some information about it.
The composting process itself (through the metabolism of microorganisms) produces significant heat energy. Even in a cold climate, large compost heaps can produce enough heat to maintain temperatures of >130 degrees F for multiple days (which is relevant to ensure the safety of the compost afterwards). Besides the energy put into maintaining the compost heaps, there is no heat added by humans.
I own a 3D printer and am thus invested in reducing the waste it produced. PLA is the most commonly used polymer for home printing. I have reported what my research has shown. I would love to tell...
I own a 3D printer and am thus invested in reducing the waste it produced. PLA is the most commonly used polymer for home printing. I have reported what my research has shown. I would love to tell you details but PLA composting facilities are so rare there doesn’t appear to be much information on them available to the public.
Just as a point of reference, my city in Germany (where we separate trash into lots of different bins, including a separate bin for compostables) says biodegradable towels can be composted. Normal...
Just as a point of reference, my city in Germany (where we separate trash into lots of different bins, including a separate bin for compostables) says biodegradable towels can be composted. Normal paper towels either go in the paper recycling if sufficiently clean but in the normal trash if too dirty. So maybe they're mixing up paper recycling and compostables? (I can't see the comment you responded to, as it's been deleted.)
I use Swedish dishcloths because they're functionally superior to paper towels, sponges, and cloth rags. They're immensely absorbent, easy to wring out, dry quickly, and tolerate repeated use of...
I use Swedish dishcloths because they're functionally superior to paper towels, sponges, and cloth rags. They're immensely absorbent, easy to wring out, dry quickly, and tolerate repeated use of oxidizing sanitizers without becoming brittle. A couple of weeks ago, I cleaned up a dozen dirt-covered seed starting trays and covers with bleach water to prep for the new season, and the Swedish dishcloth I used came out looking better afterwards. Through a couple of years of use, I haven't yet had a Swedish dishcloth fall apart to the point of trying to compost it. We've eliminated nearly all use of disposable paper towels - pretty much the only thing we still use them for is oil cleanup, where it's not safe to wash and dry oily cleaning rags.
I'm also fortunate enough to have my own compost bins. I will say that paper and other processed cellulosic materials (seed starting bags, etc.) take more effort and time to digest than green plant matter, not unlike larger pieces of wood. I can see why composting facilities won't take them.
If you look at your home dryer manual and labeling, you'll see warnings against drying clothes or rags that are contaminated with oil. Vegetable and petroleum oils can produce enough heat through...
If you look at your home dryer manual and labeling, you'll see warnings against drying clothes or rags that are contaminated with oil. Vegetable and petroleum oils can produce enough heat through oxidation to cause spontaneous combustion. Oil-soaked cloth provides both extra surface area and fuel. There's a commercial kitchen safety brochure here.
Fun read as a Swede. This is one of those things I just assumed everyone in the world had. I use paper towels as well, but I guess my dishcloth usage makes me use paper towels a lot less.
Fun read as a Swede.
This is one of those things I just assumed everyone in the world had.
I use paper towels as well, but I guess my dishcloth usage makes me use paper towels a lot less.
As a Finn, I've never called them "Swedish" anything :D But yea, everyone uses dishcloths. Even though making paper in all forms is a huge industry in Finland, using paper towels for every spill...
As a Finn, I've never called them "Swedish" anything :D
But yea, everyone uses dishcloths. Even though making paper in all forms is a huge industry in Finland, using paper towels for every spill just seems like a complete waste.
I only use them for things after which I'd have to throw the dishcloth away, like puppy 💩 or similar spills.
I might have read past it, but I feel like the article didn't actually go into what the costs are of washing the dishcloths? There is an offhand remark about just throwing them into a wash you were going to do anyway. But that just makes it a bigger load and doesn't magically take the energy usage away.
Not to mention that you probably want to wash them quite frequently as they will be wet and full of all the stuff you wipe up, so a hotbed for microbial growth.
Edit:
I got annoyed not knowing if I had read past it
In other words, this article provides a whole lot of nothing compared to what the title seems to promise.
I actually don't know much about this but does throwing a couple of dish clothes in the wash with your regular load add an appreciable amount of energy/water usage to it? Surely there's an economies of scale to it where it's not really adding much extra cost right?
Possibly, though you also do need to factor in the original production.
The thing is though, us speculating in the comments here is one thing. But, if you write an article centered around this question, I would expect more than just that speculation.
I noticed that too. They also didn't detail the environmental cost to manufacturer the towels, or how long they have to last and how long they typically last. If you need to use them for two years but people toss them after a year since they get nasty, then it's not worth it.
They kind of did, but in a round about way:
Which I guess means that a 3-pack of swedish towels aprox. 11 gallons of gasoline to produce? Not as clear as it could be and if they really want to do an article on the benefits of maybe switching.
I'm surprised they even mentioned Microfibers clothes which I think are made from petrol chemicals.
Just some random thoughts that this article brought up:
What is a microfiber cloth, really? It seems like a really generic term that might be meant to obfuscate the actual material it is made of - which is presumably some sort of plastic fibers. I've never heard of anyone use the term "natural microfiber" before, of course.
How common is composting, really, either in the US or UK? I personally don't know anyone who composts, and I don't think I've heard of a citywide composting program. I do think that composting is an important thing that we as a society need to do in order to deal with waste, but I don't think anyone is interested in making it a public policy.
On the topic of composting, why wouldn't one be able to compost a soiled towel? As long as the substance is organic, won't it compost?
Two rolls of paper towels in a week sounds like an awful lot of usage. Do people not use rags or sponges? A roll of paper towels generally lasts for about a month in my household of three adults.
I don't know anything about Swedish dishtowels, so I have a natural skepticism about them, but it feels really weird that this article is about them and not just regular dishtowels and rags. Rags seem to be the ideal use case in this situation, because we have a massively wasteful fashion industry that makes and disposes of countless articles every year. Except for the pretty designs, they have all the benefits of Swedish dishtowels if they are made of cotton, including being able to wash them in the dishwasher.
It also seems somewhat unfair to consider the energy or water usage of cleaning dishtowels/rags/sponges because I am very skeptical in that people are actually washing them as much as they should... but I get it.
Really? AFAIK there are "green bin" composting programs in most cities and municipalities here in Canada. So I thought for sure it would be similar in the US too. But googling around it looks like that may not be the case. It does look to be slowly becoming more common, and is getting implemented in more US States and cities though:
https://ncnewsline.com/2023/06/20/save-your-food-scraps-save-the-earth-more-cities-and-states-look-to-composting/
I feel a bit dumb because I just remembered that we actually do have a composting program where I live, but they only accept yard waste. It's a bit annoying actually because something like 9/10ths of the year it's completely unnecessary for our house, but then autumn rolls around and we have so much from the trees that we can't fit them into the bin.
In my left-leaning US city, houses are given the option of free compost pickup. But I believe larger apartment buildings have to pay for city pickup or for another waste hauler. So it's mostly the few buildings that have "eco-friendly" as a selling point which make composting options available. There are free city drop-off spots too, but unless you live within a few blocks of one, that's not particularly convenient.
This is what my very left city in California is like too. Only houses get compost. In our neighboring city, everyone gets compost, but it's also not utilized as it could be.
I've been debating getting a Lomi to compost things at home since I do garden a little on my balcony and would love to garden some more, it's just the cost is a prohibiting factor.
It is kinda frustrating as an apartment-dweller. I experimented with worm composting in a 10-15 (?) gallon bin for a while. But it seemed like that could not handle the amount of food scraps that I produced. Maintaining the balance of paper/dirt/scraps/moisture was a challenge too, although maybe I just didn't find my groove. It seemed like I would have had to scale up and add more bins, and especially in a small apartment, that just didn't make sense to spend my time/energy on.
I would totally try to have a worm compost if I had the space for one. My balcony is tiny, so I wouldn't have the space for that and plants. It's why I was thinking the Lomi might work for me. If it ever goes down in price to something I think I can swing, I might go for it.
I hadn't heard of municipal composting until I moved from FL to MN, but it is widespread and doesn't appear to be a particularly new thing here. I am surprised this state isn't listed in the quote you had.
I use old t-shirts in my workshop and they're fine when used in one piece but when you cut them into smaller sizes they shed fibres almost constantly and fall apart fairly quickly. Also old clothing is nowhere near as absorbent as the towelling hand-cloths we use in the house (which started out being baby cloths but now get used for almost everything). Rags just don't work that well for general household use imo. They're great for wiping on finishing oil onto a piece of woodwork though.
We have a municipal compost collection but if we put paper towels in there, that load would be rejected. They take only plant matter. The reason is simply that there aren't sufficient resources at the council to sort each load of compost manually, which is what it would need - at a glance it's hard to tell a paper towel from a plastic bag and plastic in compost isn't good news. So sadly they just dump anything which isn't obviously plant matter. Hopefully this situation will change at some point.
If you have access to a sewing machine, I recommend running a zigzag stitch around the edges of your rags to keep them from unraveling.
I prefer using old (cotton) towels to make cleaning rags and dish "sponges" from. They're super absorbant and even as just rags fairly sturdy.
To make more durable sponges, I cut a strip 2x long, fold it in half to make it 2ply, and sew a quick blanket stitch around the edge. They dont fray, last a couple months, and rewash easily.
That's a good idea, although I'm still using the towel I had when I was 17 (not to mention one over a decade older, although that's not daily use) so I'm not sure if I'll have any spare material any time soon!
Understandable. I use my towels for a very long time, too. I've mostly sourced very old towels by raiding older relatives' closets :)
I really meant paper towels specifically, but that answer doesn't really answer my question. If a towel is compostable when perfectly clean, why would having food waste ruin the ability to compost it?
Though really, I do know that fats can really attract pests, so for municipal composting in particular it does make a degree of sense.
I don't understand what cows have to do with compost, though.
There is a local volunteer non-profit type org in my city that runs a compost program that can compost paper towels. It is not free, so I am waiting to sign up after I find a job. What I really with was that we had somebody composting the commercially compostable plastic bags. As I climb the hill toward more sustainable living, getting off Ziploc is one of the hardest things.
Compostable plastic is typically some form of PLA, which is technically compostable, but not under natural conditions. It requires keeping it in a heated enclosure for long periods of time, which means that it draws energy which costs money.
Paper is a lot better than plastic for a number of reasons, but reusable stuff is ideal.
As a point of reference, afaik most municipal waste services in my country (Germany) specifically exclude compostable plastics from compost. And that's big operations that compost all the food waste and plant trimmings from 100k+ people. Apparently these things are a royal pain in the ass.
(Just looking into it, and picking a random big city in Germany: Frankfurt, a city of 700k people, does not allow compostable plastics in their compost waste. They process 118000t of material per year.)
Same with the few Canadian municipalities I'm familiar with. I believe the explanation is that the machines aren't able to differentiate between types of plastic, so they all get treated as noncompostable.
There are a small subset of compostable bags that can easily break down in a normal home compost. You want to look for the TUV Home compositing certification.
I've used them before and can confirm they break down readily in my tumbler in a few months, while ones that weren't home composting certified remained for much longer.
If they’re the same ones we have in my house, I agree. I was super skeptical of “compostable plastic bags” as compost bin liners until our municipality gave every household a little 8L tub to collect food scraps in the kitchen, and like a 10-pack of the bags.
I decided I’d give them a go with the intention of using the plastic bag to take out the food scraps to the green waste bin, and then chuck the plastic bag itself into the general rubbish… but the plastic was already breaking down if I left it for more than 4-5 days in the kitchen!
I figured if it’s dissolving that fast without any assistance (the food scraps in the bag hadn’t even started to get mouldy or smelly) then I can believe they’re gonna compost without any troubles!
I don't think that's true in all industrial composting contexts. I became familiar with a particular industrial composting facility, and picked up some information about it.
The composting process itself (through the metabolism of microorganisms) produces significant heat energy. Even in a cold climate, large compost heaps can produce enough heat to maintain temperatures of >130 degrees F for multiple days (which is relevant to ensure the safety of the compost afterwards). Besides the energy put into maintaining the compost heaps, there is no heat added by humans.
I own a 3D printer and am thus invested in reducing the waste it produced. PLA is the most commonly used polymer for home printing. I have reported what my research has shown. I would love to tell you details but PLA composting facilities are so rare there doesn’t appear to be much information on them available to the public.
Just as a point of reference, my city in Germany (where we separate trash into lots of different bins, including a separate bin for compostables) says biodegradable towels can be composted. Normal paper towels either go in the paper recycling if sufficiently clean but in the normal trash if too dirty. So maybe they're mixing up paper recycling and compostables? (I can't see the comment you responded to, as it's been deleted.)
I use Swedish dishcloths because they're functionally superior to paper towels, sponges, and cloth rags. They're immensely absorbent, easy to wring out, dry quickly, and tolerate repeated use of oxidizing sanitizers without becoming brittle. A couple of weeks ago, I cleaned up a dozen dirt-covered seed starting trays and covers with bleach water to prep for the new season, and the Swedish dishcloth I used came out looking better afterwards. Through a couple of years of use, I haven't yet had a Swedish dishcloth fall apart to the point of trying to compost it. We've eliminated nearly all use of disposable paper towels - pretty much the only thing we still use them for is oil cleanup, where it's not safe to wash and dry oily cleaning rags.
I'm also fortunate enough to have my own compost bins. I will say that paper and other processed cellulosic materials (seed starting bags, etc.) take more effort and time to digest than green plant matter, not unlike larger pieces of wood. I can see why composting facilities won't take them.
Can you elaborate on this? I know cleaning oils out of fabric is difficult but I’d never considered it unsafe…
If you look at your home dryer manual and labeling, you'll see warnings against drying clothes or rags that are contaminated with oil. Vegetable and petroleum oils can produce enough heat through oxidation to cause spontaneous combustion. Oil-soaked cloth provides both extra surface area and fuel. There's a commercial kitchen safety brochure here.
Fun read as a Swede.
This is one of those things I just assumed everyone in the world had.
I use paper towels as well, but I guess my dishcloth usage makes me use paper towels a lot less.
As a Finn, I've never called them "Swedish" anything :D
But yea, everyone uses dishcloths. Even though making paper in all forms is a huge industry in Finland, using paper towels for every spill just seems like a complete waste.
I only use them for things after which I'd have to throw the dishcloth away, like puppy 💩 or similar spills.
Dutch use yellow ones appropriately called "gele doekjes".