to take a personal washing up sponge to work?

[WindUpPenguin]

Big office. There is usually washing up liquid (provided by Facilities Management) by the sink in the kitchenette, but often no sponge, and if there is it is grim due to volume of people using it/ not rinsing/wringing after use.

I am now in the office two days a week. If I want to wash up my breakfast bowl/mug or lunchbox, I have three options:

1. Bring in a sponge everyday I am in, sacrifice it to office use (it will be chucked or in gross condition by my next office day).
2. Bring in a sponge. Wring it out and keep it in my locker (may not be completely dry, get a bit smelly).
3. Take all my stuff home everyday to wash (not too fussed about lunchboxes, but I would much prefer to leave my mug/bowl/cutlery in my locker).

So AIBU to go for option 2 and be the weirdo with the locker sponge. Will my whole locker smell damp and gross? Is there a special type of sponge or cloth which will be less smelly?

Well this had a lot more responses than I expected!😂

I feel I need to address some points.

1. The kitchenette is shared between about 130 desks. It gets a lot of traffic. When there is a sponge, it is a green scourer rag, often with visible remains of other peoples' food caught in it. Even if it is not germ-ridden, it is gross and I don't want to touch it, but the point people have missed is that most of the time there is no sponge at all.
2. I do not want to carry my porridge bowl and mug home everyday. I do this at the moment, but I commute by train and they take up unnecessary space in my backpack - especially if I'm going out after work.
3. I definitely do not want to throw away a plastic sponge every day. If I did buy sponges I would buy the biodegradable ones (if sacrificing one a day to office use) or a long lasting washable one if it was for my own personal use. I quite like the idea of cutting up a sponge (perhaps one of those dried gourd ones), and disposing of a small piece each day, but it does still feel quite wasteful.

what about a brush instead?
and you take in a lunch box? so the brush can sit in that on the way home? otherwise
i can't decide

Option 4

buy this pack of 20 sponges for £1.00

www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-sponge-scourers-20-pack/p/0178485

use a new one every day and leave it on the sink for others to use when you have finished.

keep the packet in your locker.

buy a new pack every 10 weeks. Worth it for 10p a week if you ask me!

Wait why do you have to throw away the new sponge every day?! Just leave it on the sink, I’m sure some of your colleagues will appreciate it!

Get a silicon one instead. Much less likely to go mouldy.

Buy cheap sponges and cut them into quarters if you're only going to use them once and then chuck them.

I pour boiling water on our kitchen cloth in the mornings and then leave it soaking in bleach. Still wouldn't use it though, it gets used for wiping the floor, toilet seats, all such things. And it always stinks the kitchen out, hence the bleaching. Don't get me started on the state of the kettle. I won't use the kitchen except the fridge. Mingers.

eat something other than porridge for breakfast and rinse your mug with water?

Good god, I despair of the people suggesting using and chucking away a new sponge every day 🙄(I see you're not planning to do that btw OP ).

I'm sure someone will be along shortly to tell me that it doesn't matter because one individual's puny efforts against plastic waste are pointless to the face of global plastic pollution etc., but does anyone actually think it's acceptable to throw away a plastic sponge every day or even every week just because they're so cheap and you can get 20 for a pound in Wilko?! Bloody hell.

Silicone scrubber is your best bet. Easy to dry and you can take it home and put it in the dishwasher if it gets gross.

Personally, I'd give up the porridge and just take a travel cup in with me. No way in hell I'd use our work kitchen to actually prepare food. I used to take a cereal bar and banana in.

Well let's put it this way, he didnt pass his probationary period and some strongly worded signs went up in the kitchen. Facilities management when informed were excellent and closed the kitchen, took EVERYTHING out and replaced with new.
This was 16 years ago and I still get queasy if I think about it !

I stopped using sponges and just use washable cloths (let dry and wash with my tea towels when I do that wash). You could take dry ones in and take wet ones home. At a group we use the thin clothes (often blue and white) and drape them in a cupboard. They dry very quick and we've never had any issues. We use them until they are worn. Unfortunately these don't all survive washing (some might). (Dry porridge would be difficult to scrub off)
Alternatively stand the sponge in thr top of clean mug somewhere to dry daily.

To add. I would have my own cloth and wouldn't care if anyone thought it was weird.

I used to buy a £1 pack of sponges and leave them in the cupboard- pretty sure no one but me bothered with them.

Do you have paper towels in the kitchen to dry your hands? (Sorry not sure what’s standard). I just grab one of those to use instead of the gross sponge.

Eurgh I know what you mean OP, it’s gross! Luckily we have a dishwasher at my normal office for mugs/ glasses and I take my lunchbox home to wash.
But on the occasions I’ve needed to hand wash something there I’ve looked around in the cleaners cupboard/ under the sink and got a new sponge out. can’t bare to use a dirty communal one 🤢

Anyway, if that’s not an option, definitely keep some clean ones in your locker!

What about using a silicon washing brush. Use it and dry with a bit of kitchen paper. It should not smell if it is put into your locker dry

@Onefootinthegroove my faith in humanity is restored, thank you 🙂

Bring a new one in every week and then leave it there for others to use or if you wash your bowl up straight away you can just wash it with your hands.

I would nag the facilities to team to provide a sponge every time it was missing or minging.

Could you use a washing up brush instead, then rinse shake it dry and take home in lunch box if you can't leave it at work

Surely if you rinse it and keep it clean it will not smell?
when it does change it? Keep a pack in your locker, you can get them pretty cheap and it’s only for doing a few items?. I’m a total shared facility phobe- nurse and I’ve seen the fridges and microwaves in these areas so I have nothing at work which requires refrigeration or heating up or washed. But understand not wanting to use a manky sponge for your stuff

This. Can be run through the dishwasher to clean/sterilise also. In a ziplock bag. Be BrushLady not SpongeLady. Though there's nothing wrong with Sponge. Features in my user name!

I have this problem. I rinse everything boiling water just before I use it.

We use microfibre cloths at home as dish cloths/tea towels.
You could take in two microfibre cloths. Use one to wash, one to dry. Bring them home to wash with your laundry. If you aren’t doing laundry hang them up to dry and chuck in the basket when dry.