I admit. It's a taboo subject. It's not something you just bring up when you're making idle chat in the grocery checkout line. "Oh, I see you're buying toilet paper. Yeah, I haven't bought TP in a year -- we use family cloth." But my family and I use family cloth and I'm really, really happy with it!So what exactly is family cloth? For us, it's toilet paper and tissues. I know what you're thinking -- ew. It's really not any different than cloth diapers, honestly! I keep separate supplies of each, even from our kids' cloth diaper wipes. Everything is washed separately as well. Cloth diaper wipes have always been washed with cloth diapers, I wash our grown-up cloth wipes by themselves, and I wash our cloth tissues with our towels with a scent-free detergent.
I've found a system that works really well for us using Planet Wise flannel wipes (they conveniently come in a pack with lime & chocolate colored wipes, perfect for color coding noses and bottoms...however crude *ahem*) and Planet Wise Wet/Dry bags. I hang a wet/dry bag from our towel rod and put clean wipes in the front pocket. When used, they go in the wet pocket for washing. I use a Mini Wet/Dry bag as a tissue box, with clean wipes in the front pocket and dirty ones in the wet pocket. My husband LOVES the cloth tissues, like old fashioned hankies! They hold up so much better to blowing noses and are so soft! The flannel wipes are fantastic for bottoms as well (just like for diaper wipes) as they clean better and you need far less than if you used toilet paper! You can even wet them prior to use to get extra clean.
Now, I still keep toilet paper on hand for guests. But I'm teaching our son to use the cloth wipes as he's potty training -- totally easier than having the kid who uses WAY too much toilet paper each time!
I never thought I'd be this "crunchy" but it's a huge money saver for us and it's so much easier than I imagined!
13 comments:
I don't think I'd mind until it was time to do laundry then I don't know that I could handle it. I use liners with EVERY diaper change and have yet to fully convert to cloth wipes. I'm getting there though. Kudos to you for being able to do this. With a family of 6 we go through toilet paper and tissues like there's no tomorrow.
ive always been so curious about this, do you wash them differently then your CDs? cold rinse/wash hot wash??
thanks,
i want to do this for my family when i finally get my own place and save a boat load of money. :}
That's awesome! I was wondering about guests as I was reading but I see you answered that. LOL. Oh my gosh, I would so do this, but my husband is barely getting used to the idea of cloth diapers. Maybe I can convert him?! Truly commendable!
They are washed the same as cloth diapers. I also want to say that I don't 'see' or touch anything. I toss in the wet bags with the wipes (turn it inside out just like with diapers) so there's no mess. And no smell whatsoever!
So Casey, do you wash the hand/mouth/nose wipe with the cloth diapers? or in a separate load of wash?
I think it's a fabulous idea. I had actually never heard of it but it had crossed my mind so I was glad to see you write about it....I can show it to dh and he won't think it's some crazy idea I cooked up on my own. lol. As far as washing goes I think for myself I'd be more inclined to keep a small covered wet pail toiletside. As for the sharing after washing I don't see it as any different than using a towel or washcloth someone else has used after it's been washed....I'm sure everyone washes and dries their "output" areas, but they don't keep up with which washcloth and towel they used after they are washed. I'll probably just stick to hankies for nose blowing and such though.
I think it's great that you can do this. I don't think anyone in my family would go for it. It took me years (literally) to get my husband to stop using paper towels in the bathroom. No, I'm not making that up. Guess what he uses toilet tissue for....blowing his nose! He's a little, um, quirky. My compromise is I buy recycled toilet paper, paper towels, and napkins whenever it is possible to do so. I just wish more paper products were made from recycled paper. They work just as well as the other kind.
I pitched the idea to my husband (pointing out I'd still do ALL the cloth laundry), and got laughed at. He asked what we would do with the poop on the wipes, then went on to say he wasn't spraying his own poop off a wipe, that it was gross. :(
Have been wanting to do this but the husband wasn't quite on board. Maybe I will suggest it again and see what he says :) It took a while for him to come around to cloth diapers and now he thinks they are just as easy as 'sposies.
what about guests to your home?
I would love to do this. We have been doing cloth diapers for a while and I have already made the switch to cloth menstrual pads, this seems like such an easy and reasonable step... I just don't think I can convince my hubby to go with it.
Min - I wash the nose wipes with my bath towels, so they are separated.
Dana - I keep TP available in the bathroom at all times for guests.
Something to think about -- I can't speak for everyone, but at least for me there really isn't any poop on wipes. Sorry if that's crude, but if you think about how much is on the toilet paper you use, it's really not much at all!
Where in the world do you find the time to do so much laundry???? I started out with cloth diapers (in order to "save money") and ended up giving them all to a friend because all I did with my life was laundry... I'll never use cloth diapers (or cloth anything) ever again. Sorry, planet, I don't have time for you... I have a sweet baby to raise!
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