Germs And Paper Towels - Cleanliness And Frugality Can Co-Exist
March 23, 2009 – 10:18 amIf Moms know one thing it’s that kids spread germs. Your little one goes to a play date, day care, or school and it is inevitable that a runny nose will appear a day or two later. This goes on day after day, week after week, month after month… We make sure they wash their little hands every chance we get, wipe their little noses, and teach them to cough into their sleeves. What more can we do?
In my war against germs, I’ve turned to a seemingly expensive weapon. Along with all the self-defense methods to ward off the spread of germs, I’ve eliminated all the hand towels from the bathrooms and kitchen and replaced them with paper towels. I know this sounds very foolish money-wise, but I’m weighing the cost of fighting a bad cold or flu with the cost of a disposable item. Along with kid-friendly soap at the sink, this germ-proofing method works pretty well. However, there is the cost involved.
Paper towels are not cheap. I shop the dollar stores to get the best prices I can find, but still, it does get a little unnerving to see the discarded paper towels piling up in the trash. That got me thinking… Are there times and situations where those paper towels can be reused? It may sound like I’m defeating the purpose, but wait.
When I wash my hands with soap and water for as long as it takes to sing the ABC’s (the recommended time to fully cleanse), my hands are awfully germ-free, aren’t they? Then, when I dry them on paper towels the paper towels should be just wet and not germ-ridden, right? That’s when I decided to use my own paper towels for double duty. I purchased two mesh trash bins, found in the office supply store, and set them in my kitchen and bath. Now, when I thoroughly wash my hands, I toss the paper towel I used to dry my clean hands in the mesh bin. Then, when cleaning up spills on the floor, or doing any other “dirty job”, I grab a paper towel out of the mesh trash bin and use it instead of a new paper towel off the roll.
At first, when I used this method, I thought I would be a little germ-phobic about it. But, I got over it because my hands are clean! The only thing on those paper towels is water, so why not let them dry and reuse them to take care of those “dirty” chores? I wouldn’t recommend you encourage your little ones to do the same unless you are supervising their hand scrubbing, but certainly any adult or older child in your home should get the picture.
I have actually kept track of my paper towel consumption since starting this method of reusing the used ones and have purchased about half the paper towels that I used to purchase. That’s a pretty good savings in my book! If we’re all battling colds, I will abandon the method until I’m well, but normally I have a pretty good supply of used paper towels in my bin to use for any dirty job I’ve got to do! It’s a simple plan that works well - battle germs and save money. Works for me!