Is a tissue and cleaning spray better or the same as a cleaning wipe

[giraffesateleaves]

Oh hear me out, I know wipes contain plastic, but are super convenient when you just want to quickly clean a handprint or wipe a skirting board. But if I use kitchen roll or tissue with a cleaning spray my thought is they all go into landfill and my understanding is there is no oxygen so nothing biodegradable can break down anyway. So does it matter?

And yes I could use a cloth and carry around a bucket of water, but it doesn't work well for damp dusting (as too wet) and then washing the cloths uses chemicals and electricity just like production of wipes.

So what should I do as I have little time ( just typing this as getting DD down for her nap, but I also work part time from home, I am the cleaner, the childcare, the school run mum, cook and walk the dog)

if it's just a little spill and not sticky you could just put water on kitchen roll?

Hmmm paper will slowly degrade; compostable wipes will slowly degrade too. Regular ones?

I like the convenience but I keep a stash of tattered soft cotton clothing (lint free) to use for things like this. It’s incredible how less waste has gone into the bin in a year. I don’t need a bucket either for small jobs. The cloths go into the laundry…. They are small so not a massive pile.

How about using a washable cloth with a spray cleaner rather than a bowl of water? I make up my own spray by diluting Stardrops detergent in a reusable spray bottle - it's cheap and really concentrated so a bottle lasts ages.

Just wiped the skirting and one window sill, used both sides .. I'd need to wash a lot of cloths,

Use a cloth and wash it afterwards. soak it before bunging it in the wash. I don't use tissues other than bog roll. You get used to it.

Limit how much spray you use as it can be inhaled

Paper recycling is nowhere near as green as people think it is and you'd just bin it after using it
Biodegradeable wipes only biodegrade if you leave them for ages. If you put them in the compost bin they'll probably take a decade to break down

Cloths all the way here save for meat juice. You just rinse and ring out then do the next bit surely? I have loads of old clothes for cotton ones but I much prefer microfiber. They aren't particularly environmentally friendly but they last forever so still a better option.

@giraffesateleaves

Just wiped the skirting and one window sill, used both sides .. I'd need to wash a lot of cloths,

Just rinse it out halfway through your cleaning, no need to use more than one cloth.

I have a pile of cloths and use a spray. No harder than using a wipe. Bung the cloths in with whatever wash you have next.

I don’t get why you can’t just rinse the cloth 🙈

And how often are you wiping the skirting boards?

Just get a wet bag and fill it with cloths and stuff and bung it all in the washing machine once a week 🤷‍♀️

I have reruns able wipes for my baby and use them for bums, face after her food, clean down the high chair etc

I throw them the wipes and my reusable nappies all in the one wash so it’s not just a wash for a small number of cloths

Can’t you wash your tea towels/ hand towels etc with the cloths

"I'd need to wash a lot of cloths"

What's wrong with that? Don't you have other things that need washing? Or, as PP sugest, you could just use one and rise and wring it out as you go.

I use washcloths for make up removal too. It's all about the reusable cloths in this house

I bought these from eco egg
www.ecoegg.com/product/ecoegg-bamboo-towels/

Bamboo kitchen towel, 20 in a pack for £8 and they can be washed and reused over and over again. Whats the issue with washing a lot of cloths? Even if I washed all 20 at once, they take up about as much space in the machine as 2 shirts, hardly any at all. They just go in with normal washing.

@giraffesateleaves

Just wiped the skirting and one window sill, used both sides .. I'd need to wash a lot of cloths,

Are you not meant to rinse the cloth in water and then do the next bit of whatever you are cleaning? That’s how my Nan and mum used to clean so that’s how I do it too.

@giraffesateleaves

Just wiped the skirting and one window sill, used both sides .. I'd need to wash a lot of cloths,

Better than throwing away loads of wipes which is the alternative

Cloths are best.

Also does your general waste go to landfill?
A lot doesn't anymore.

Ours is shredded and burnt to make electricity. Presumably burning paper is better than plastic (wet wipes).

I have a zillion stairs in this house and I can't walk back and forward to a sink when cleaning, so a bucket it would have to be. I have no idea why it's so dusty here, honestly I wipe my skirtings twice a week. I can't work it out, it is a build up area but not a through road.

Just soak and wring out a bunch of clothes. Stuck them in a bag and take with you. Then no need for a bucket surely.

You are making a bit of a meal out of it OP. To use a cloth you just dampen it then wipe, at the end of the day/cleaning session throw it in your laundry basket.

If you have convinced yourself you must use plastic wipes because you have a zillion stairs, live in a dust bowl, you have to do the school run and the cloth is too wet (?) well go ahead. You don't need to convince us.

OP you've obviously already decided that wet wipes are the only thing you can use for this job.

To answer your question, yes a tissue and spray would be better, a washable cloth would be even better. Wet wipes are the worst option but if you're convinced the other options will be SO much extra work then just carry on.

Twice a week?? Do you not go over them with the hoover pipe first?

I make squares out of old t-shirts, and use washing up liquid diluted in a small buckets.

I live in a very dusty house in a built up area but it doesn't have zillions of stairs.

I care about the planet and do not wish to add shitloads of wipes to landfill.

Biodegradeable stuff does not bodegrade in landfill.

This is my suggestion.

Buy a baby top and tail bowl or a plastic caddy with two compartments. Put plain water on one half and water with a bit of Stardrops/Flash or whatever you like to use in the other.
Then alternate dipping your cloth in the cleaning water and rinsing it off in the plain water as you clean.

You can buy mop buckets that are split but they are big and can be heavy. A caddy or top n tail bowl is smaller, lighter and uses less water. The caddy has the advantage of a handle making it easier to move around your home.

Cloths best, but anything is better than wipes. They’re plastic and packaged in plastic. The fibres break up into microplastic particles which are a huge environmental problem. They don’t degrade to harmless natural substances like paper does, even if slowly.

@giraffesateleaves

I have a zillion stairs in this house and I can't walk back and forward to a sink when cleaning, so a bucket it would have to be. I have no idea why it's so dusty here, honestly I wipe my skirtings twice a week. I can't work it out, it is a build up area but not a through road.

Just take a 2 or 3 cloths with you then, it really isn't hard. In fact you'd have to take a packet of wipes of they're that dusty and use more than one.

We use washable cloths that then go in the compost bin. Everytime I compost one I feel very happy.