I used to just wash them out in the toilet, toss 'em in a bin and wash separately with a gentle detergent.
The only disposable I use is paper towels and usually only for things others have mentioned like grease, pomegranate, pet messes or anything that will hurt septic or be hard to clean from cloth. I used to use a lot more paper towels than I do now. For most things, cloth is much more efficient.
It also feels wasteful to use as many paper ones as I used to but as others have mentioned there can be so many variables is hard to tell which is more eco friendly in the long run. I am reminded of this column from a while back. I tend to wash my towels in loads that would have been washed anyway but I did find it interesting.
Ask Mr. Green: Paper Towels or Rags? | Sierra Club
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Me too, and greasy paper towels are magic fire starter.
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That’s a good point! I’ll have to remember to use them that way. We use a wood stove frequently. I wonder if it will make the house smell like whatever was cooked in the grease. I’m guessing not too much. I make bees wax/pine needle starters and I have never noticed a strong pine smell.
Wow, you’re industrious. Have you ever tried the Lightnin’ Nuggets starters?
I have seen them but never used. I used to think they were silly and silently mocked people who used them. I can make a fire pretty quickly and chopping wood creates lots of starter material. I only make the fire starters because I found myself with several pounds of bees wax (long story) and got sick of storing them and did not feel like making candles. So really not as much industrious as lazy and space challenged, LOL. Turns out I really like having them. It will be interesting to find out if once I run out of wax, I end up buying the ones like you mention.
ETA: Husband openly mocked me when I first made them and said it was nice for me to have them but did not need them for himself. Last week he noted that we were out. I asked, “how do you know that if you never use them?”
Hey, if you have the wax to use up, makes perfect sense.
IME, the Lightnin’ Nuggets work well. Depending on how seasoned and dry your wood is, you can oftentimes dispense with kindling entirely. Ironically, I started using the LNs because we stopped taking the newspaper.
I just bought more of the LNs–if you shop online, you can get 200 for <$50 with free shipping.
I keep a couple in my pack in case I get lost and have to spend a night out.
Good idea to put one in your pack. I have a flint stick but one of those starters would probably be easier to work with. Especially if you had cold shaky hands.
Long ago we unsubscribed to our local newspaper. I resubscribed a year or so ago because I missed having local news but we also because we missed having paper to use for our BBQ charcoal starter. The editor himself was pushing subscriptions saying that if nothing else they are good to start fires and line your birdcage.
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Wow.
He was trying to be funny. It is a tiny paper. Circulation of about 2000. One reason I resubscribed is that I would miss knowing we had a paper if they went under. There is no other media that covers our county for the most part. Unless it is election season the most interesting part is the sheriff call log. That and some loony letters to the editor.
Yeah, I guess so.
We have/had the exact same situation here ( not joking!) and years ago I felt responsible for keeping it afloat (and lining my guinea pig cage). I recently re-subscribed to the digital version, and it’s just so sad.
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