AIBU to say the washing sheets/towels and toilet brushes argument may have been solved...?

[WineAndTiramisu]

Saw this today and immediately thought of all the arguments on here over the years about washing towels, bed sheets and the horror of toilet brushes!

amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/feb/21/self.html

I'm definitely more dirty than the cleaners verdicts!

Me DS(13) and DS(9) I use a hand towel for drying. DS13 prefers a bath towel but I hide them so he has to use a hand towel. DS9 uses those square baby towels with the hood.
Oh come on, give the poor kid a proper towel!

Cow you change bedding every day? It's my most hated job, I'd never change them if I could get away with it

Those of you who need to wash towels after a single use need to learn to wash yourselves more thoroughly before drying. If you are properly clean and hang your towels up to dry properly after use then there's no way they need washing so often.

You sound like my minging builder who, it seemed from the evidence, would just run his hands under the tap to wet them then use the towel to actually clean them. Shudder!

@ilovemaxibondi you’re not really baffled as to why people don’t wash their towels after every use then are you? You understand perfectly well that washing bath towels adds significantly to the laundry hence you don’t use them yourself!

I’d rather comfortably use a bath towel a couple of times than struggle with a hand towel just so I could give it an unnecessary wash after every use

We are the last generation that can do anything to halt climate change. But still we have people washing towels and bedding after every use. Staggering.

@QuirkyQuark I know, it's utterly nuts. I physically cannot sleep unless the linen is clean and tumbled though
DD doesn't seem bothered, so I could probably leave hers but to me it still doesn't seem right.

I have no idea where the need came from.

I must be really disgusting then as I can’t remember how often I wash my towels. I have a shower and then hang it over the bannister to dry ready for the next day.
Bedding in the winter I probably change every couple of weeks as I don’t have a tumble dryer and it’s a hassle to dry in the house. In the summer I change once a week, more often if it has been a sweaty one.

The only thing that stands out to me in that article is that the environmentalists say the toilet brushes are not not an environmental issue- so what about all of the hard plastic toilet brushes that end up in landfill?

Oh come on, give the poor kid a proper towel!

He has a proper towel. It’s just smaller than he (and apparently you ) would prefer he has. He doesn’t actually say anything, but if two towels are in front of him he’ll lift the bigger one.

you’re not really baffled as to why people don’t wash their towels after every use then are you?

No, and I never said I was.

Those of you who need to wash towels after a single use need to learn to wash yourselves more thoroughly before drying.

Who said they needed to?

I’d rather comfortably use a bath towel a couple of times than struggle with a hand towel

Why would you struggle with a hand towel? They’re very simple to use.

We are the last generation that can do anything to halt climate change. But still we have people washing towels and bedding after every use. Staggering.

I’m sure you do nothing unnecessary at all ever.

Oh fuck that. Where the hell is everybody drying this shit?

DS13 prefers a bath towel but I hide them so he has to use a hand towel.

Fuck me, this is hilarious. This is going to be the making of a thread in 20 years time when DS is all like "hey did anyone else's mum hide bath towels and make them dry themselves with a hand towel????" and everyone replies "no way, that is so weird"

If that’s all he has to complain about in 20 years he’ll be doing ok.

Drying- over the banister if it’s raining outside.

I was towels about once a week and bedlinen once a week too. I love te smell and feel of clean towels and sheets, but don't have time to was them more often than that, don't notice any adverse effects as to health and cleanliness the way it is, and, more importantly, WASHING ALL THE TIME IS REALLY BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE, IT'S JUST SO WASTEFUL. I wouldn't wash more even if I had time, although I might make sure they dry better, haha.

And pls don't give me arguments about how "I probably never do anyhting wasteful ever" because it's besides the point. One less wasteful thing you do is good, the more sustainable you can live, the better, fight the overuse of ressources one little step at the time. Towels and bedlinen not a bad place to start.

I've never heard of anyone using a hand towel to dry themselves before.

I suppose it depends on individual body size. For me and my kids it’s enough.

Are you a family of Borrowers?

I own two towels - use one for a few days, put in washer, use other one, and so on.

Bedding gets done about every five days because of my skin.

I’m certainly no germaohobe but I wash towels after every use. It doesnt really take much time, I’m baffled that anyone would think it does. You just throw your towel in the wash basket with your clothes and then stick a load in when it’s full.
It doesn't take much time/space because you use hand towels!!
Back in the real world people use bath sheets or bath towels, they take up much more space and take much longer to dry.

The thing I never understand about the whole hygiene thing with washing frequency/temperature/powder Vs liquid, is what difference does it actually make? Do people actually get sick because their laundry isn't clean enough? I don't go around licking my bedsheets or knickers.

I wash towels after every use. It doesnt really take much time, I’m baffled that anyone would think it does.

But whyyyyyy? It's not dirty after just one use.

It's the time, the capacity in the washing machine, the the water, the electricity, the environmental impact, the general pointlessness of the whole exercise.

I would love to do 7 loads of laundry a week. I normally do 4-5 a day and that's without washing towels after every use!

How many people live in this house?! How small is this washing machine?! I do like 2 loads a week for the 3 of us!

@reallybadidea

My skin condition gets slightly better if I wash everything on a high temp, kills more bacteria.

But whyyyyyy?

It is make-work. For people who don't have anything better to do than to worry about washing towels after 1 use.

one would think that there is absolutely no danger of sea level rises and climate changes due to our overuse of resources such as electricity and water at all.

irresponsible and selfish to wash towels every use.

Yes, I can see that if you have a particular reason for needing to have your laundry very clean that it might make a difference. But for everyone else, does it really matter?

Dh and I share towels, we regularly get up close and personal - do whatever germs he’s got I’m gonna get them too! - do I win the most disgusting person on the thread award?

Are you a family of Borrowers?

You’ve sussed me.

And pls don't give me arguments about how "I probably never do anyhting wasteful ever" because it's besides the point.

No it’s not besides the point. Unless you are only living your life doing necessary things and nothing for comfort that contributes to the damage to the environment then you can’t really dictate to anyone what they do just because it’s not the wasteful thing you choose to do.

It doesn't take much time/space because you use hand towels!!hmm
Back in the real world people use bath sheets or bath towels, they take up much more space and take much longer to dry.

And water and energy to wash. How wasteful of them when they could take this very easy step o reduce their impact on the environment.

I can’t believe people are actually criticising me for reducing my wash load by reducing towel size (by half!)