I never had them in my S&B but, these past 6 months on the road, I have gone through an enormous number of baby wipes! They are so convenient for cleaning dishes, hand washing, wiping up spills, getting spots off my clothes...Well, today I happened upon the info that they are also a big problem for waste disposal. I try not to do stuff that makes the world worse for other people, when I can help it, so now I am thinking about alternatives. I guess biodegradeable paper towels would be at least a little better? Washable rags, like I use in my S&B would be best -- but both of these come with incrementally more hassle when camping. Hauling water, hauling weight, doing laundry.What do you folks use?

Baby wipes will clog up drainage pipes in a heartbeat. (Don't ask how I know). Even the ones that are suppose to be dissoluble causes problems and costly Roto-Rooter bills.If you truly want to be "green" your best solution is a simple wash cloth and water. If you want something really practical, durable, but still disposable, go to any Lowe's or Home Depot and pick a box of shop towels or a roll of shop towels. We quit using brand name paper towels a long time ago and use shop towels for everything now. They come is a blue color and a white color. They are paper, but a heavy duty paper material that can be rinsed and reused a time or two. (They make "Bounty" look puney!) Because it's just a paper (like a very heavy paper towel), you can burn them in your campfire, or toss out with the rest of your trash. Dry them out and use them again until they simply fall apart. I never tried to see how fast they dissolve, and you will NOT want to flush them down a toilet. Lowe's and Home Depot also sell cloth shop towels. They are often in a bundle and you get like 50 of them for a couple bucks. We've been using these around the house for months now. Machine washable, or because they are so cheap, just toss away if you get grease or oil on them or they stain and look nasty. They are great too.

Check This Google Search. Nuff said.

Naio wrote:They are so convenient for cleaning dishes, hand washing, wiping up spills, getting spots off my clothes.Sponge, paper towel, cotton towel.Life did actually exist before these wretched things. Just go back to what was done before.

We use soap, water and a dish towel. We washed the kids diapers when they were little. Long ago people were "green" not so much any more.

X-2, Long ago we were, but we didn't know we were supposed to be.;)

Have you found a greener alternative to wipes? | Good Sam Community

magnusfide
Explorer II
Mar 19, 2015
atreis wrote:
Paper towels are convenient. Cut up pieces of flannel work wonderfully and last many years, saving money as well.

Do you use them as fire starter or do you wash them thus using water and detergent:W
Mountain_Mama
Explorer
Mar 19, 2015
I recycle DHs old T-shirts (undershirts) for my rags. Good for lots of things for around the house or garage. Easy to wash or toss!
atreis
Explorer
Mar 18, 2015
Paper towels are convenient. Cut up pieces of flannel work wonderfully and last many years, saving money as well.
magnusfide
Explorer II
Mar 18, 2015
Vis a vis "green", nothing used by humans or animals is green. It will impact the environment somehow because food & water is needed to be hydrated and fed; urination and defecation is the result of drinking and eating. Washing sends detergent into the system. Water use impacts availability: just ask Californians. RVing itself uses fossil fuels. There's always trade-offs.

That said, we use paper towels to wipe out our cast iron. The oil soaked towel is then a terrific fire starter for charcoal. We save them in a ziplock bag. No water used; no trash and no chemicals to start our charcoal.
bukhrn
Explorer III
Mar 18, 2015
They are paper, (mostly), throw them in the fire, they'll burn.
Naio
Explorer II
Mar 18, 2015
Lots of good ideas, here!

The wipes I have been using are unscented and only have a few, nonscary, ingredients. It's the 'fabric' they are made out of that is the problem. It's indestructible.
mockturtle
Explorer II
Mar 18, 2015
I buy the big stacks of cheap white washcloths at Walmart. Most get washed and reused but some just get tossed. Only a few bucks for about 20.
rockhillmanor
Explorer
Mar 18, 2015
Ditto on the baby wipes have all kinds of perfumes and chemicals in them.

When paper towels went up to 3 bucks a roll and they decreased the amount in each roll by 50%, is when I decided not to be part of their profit margin! :B

I now use wash rags in the RV.

Takes about 2 minutes to put them in your sink or small bucket to wash them with a little dish soap. Certainly no need to go to a laundromat to wash a couple of rags.:W
dahkota
Explorer
Mar 18, 2015
Don't baby wipes have oils and fragrance chemicals in them? Not sure I would wipe my dishes with them.

For dishes and household stuff, we use sponges, soapy water, and bleach if needed. We carry clorox clean ups, also.
bukhrn
Explorer III
Mar 18, 2015
X-2, Long ago we were, but we didn't know we were supposed to be.;)