For some people, Swedish cloths are a sustainable alternative to sponges and paper towel. For others, it's a lifestyle: a Swedish cloth can usually be found in every room of these people's homes. This guide is for everyone, regardless of if you are a beginner or advanced Swedish cloth user.
Maintaining a Fresh Swedish Cloth
There is no better feeling than using a fresh, crisp, new Swedish cloth. The cute design and brightness of the fabric almost make it difficult to clean that first spill. There's no need to worry, though: your Swedish cloth can stay good as new for some time.
Rinse your cloth after every clean up. This seems obvious but sometimes it's easy to wipe a small coffee spill or a pile of crumbs and be done with it. We recommend taking a few extra seconds to rinse your cloth in the sink so stains don't set as easily.
Machine wash! Swedish cloths have the remarkable property of being machine washable, so take advantage. Our preference is to lay our Swedish cloths on the top rack of the dishwasher during a regular load. The laundry machine works just as well but avoid the dryer. Always air dry Swedish cloths.
Remove tough stains with hydrogen peroxide. Inevitably, Swedish cloths will lose their brightness and have stains that are harder to remove. Dabbing or soaking your Swedish cloth with hydrogen peroxide before washing will make it look good as new. Note that you should not leave it soaking! Treat this process like your would treat bleach with clothing.
We recommend hydrogen peroxide over bleach because it is more environmentally friendly.
Sanitize with boiling water or a blast in the microwave. Whether it's a dirtier mess or you have a vendetta against every germ, sometimes you want to go the extra mile with cleaning Swedish cloths. For those times, you could put the cloth in boiling water or a bowl of water in the microwave for 1 minute. You can put a drop of dish soap in the water during this process too.
A Life Well Lived
After your Swedish cloth has done its duty, replaced more than 40 paper towel rolls, cleaned countless of messes, and wiped hundreds of square feet of surfaces...it will be ready to be replaced. Unlike sponges heading to your landfill, your Swedish cloth has a more sustainable ending.
Swedish cloths are compostable. Do not throw it in the garbage. Compost it! Treat it like you would an apple or banana peal. Made of cotton and plant-based cellulose, Swedish cloths are 100% compostable and should end up in your green bin.
Advanced tip: When your Swedish cloth is looking worn, stiff, and is no longer the centre piece of your kitchen counter, you don't need to get rid of it right away. You can transfer it from the kitchen to the bathroom or laundry room. Used Swedish cloths are perfect for bathroom sinks, tubs, and floors. Keep one handy to brush muck off shoes and equipment
Cleaning Areas and Techniques
You can use a Swedish cloth just about anywhere. The obvious places are:
- Kitchen counters
- Appliances
- Dish washing (replacing a sponge)
- Tables and large surfaces
- Drying and dry mat
Swedish cloths are extremely absorbent and can hold 15x their weight in water. This makes them perfect for wiping away large messes, absorbing everything in their paths. This is also why they can so easily replace a sponge and wash dishes. Inversely, they can also be used to dry clean surfaces, utensils, and laid out as a dry mat.
Advanced tip: When damp or wet, Swedish cloths are soft and malleable. You can fold it in half or quarters for solid and agile wipes.
Here are some of the more unique places you can use your Swedish cloth:
- Window and mirror cleaning
- Car/bike washing
- Computer or phone screen
- Baseboards
- Small Leak and floods
We have seen some creative use cases for Swedish cloths. Customers have used the dry mats as a gentle cloth while car washing or replaced microfibre towels with Swedish cloths to clean screens. They work well on windows and surfaces too. You can even put a Swedish cloth under plant pots with drainage while watering.
The Swedish Cloth Lifestyle
When you have a Swedish cloth in every room of your home and you're taking good care of them by periodically machine washing them, you will just need one thing: more Swedish cloths. Have as many designs stored as make you happy and rotate your Swedish cloths anytime you want a change. Swedish cloths bring fun to cleaning and vibrant life to a home.
Let us know how you use Swedish cloths. Our community discusses tips and tricks at Swedish Cloth Club. You can join here.