# Quick laundry question... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 23, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705 "2012-02-23T05:46:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/1 "2012-02-23T05:46:10Z")
This situation hasn’t come up a lot for me, so I thought I’d ask. I have a (white) cleaning rag that is literally almost caked with filth having been used to clean various stuff around the house. If I toss it into the washer with my other clothes (probably underwear, seeing as how it’s white), will its dirtiness somehow keep the other stuff from getting as clean as it could be? Should I maybe put the load size one level up so there’s more soap and water or something? ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/2 "2012-02-23T05:56:49Z")
just throw it away ---
**Author:** ![tesseract](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bb73d2/32.png) [@tesseract](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tesseract)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/3 "2012-02-23T06:17:29Z")
Don’t need to throw it away! But I definitely wouldn’t wash it with the other stuff. This is what I do with my rags that are pretty nasty. If cleaning, I keep a bucket to soak my rags in. I soak them in water for an hour or so with a dash of bleach. When I’m done cleaning, I wash the rags on hot and dry them, fabric sheet optional. They come out nice and white (ish) and disinfected. It’s very satisfying to me that they can be so nasty and come out so nice and ready for a new dirty project. ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/4 "2012-02-23T06:17:56Z")
Hand scrub it in the sink with detergent and a brush. You should be able to get it somewhat clean (or at least to the point where it shouldn’t “infect” other laundry). Then toss it in the washer with a regular load. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/5 "2012-02-23T13:41:17Z")
At the very least, I’d rinse it out first. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/6 "2012-02-23T13:58:37Z")
Yes, I’d rinse it first and wait to wash it until I could do so with a number of other similarly dirtied items. Is it just dirt or are we talking solvents, oily residue and pretty nasty gunk? You can buy disposable shop towels at Home Depot and the like if you don’t want to destroy other linens. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/7 "2012-02-23T14:11:08Z")
What I do: soak overnight in a basin of (initially) boiling soapy water. In the morning, rinse out thoroughly, then put through the wash with everything else. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/8 "2012-02-23T14:23:02Z")
If it’s oil based gunk, throw it out. Oil soaked rags, even if they’ve been through the wash, can retain enough flammable fumes to ignite in the dryer. Fun times. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/9 "2012-02-23T14:45:03Z")
[mod]Moved MPSIMS --\> our advice-giving forum, IMHO. [/mod] [nonmod]I keep a not-very-big basket that I throw all my rags, dustcloths, etc., in after using them, then do a load of wash with nothing but rags, dustcloths, etc. when the basket is full. [/nonmod] ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/10 "2012-02-23T15:39:17Z")
I do pretty much the same as **Twickster** , but I run them in the rinse and spin cycle before washing them. That way, I know nearly all the dust and cleaning fluids are gone. ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2012, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/11 "2012-02-25T00:15:13Z")
I do loads of wash with cleaning rags and towels on hot with stronger detergent. I wouldn’t recommend adding your underwear unless you wash them on the hot cycle with an extra rinse. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/12 "2012-02-25T20:54:23Z")
After doing a load of greasy rags, my washer had a residual smell. NO rag is so valuable I need to mess up my washer or subsequent laundry! At Sam’s Club, I bought a bundle of white terry towels. Bar towels, I guess you could call them. They work for almost any cleaning job, and a lot of other jobs besides. The beauty of these towels is that they are terry, so you can just throw them in the wash. If they get grungy, you make sure they are included in a load that gets bleach. But if they are incredibly filthy, greasy, have solvents, or other completely unacceptable unmentionables, YOU CAN THROW THEM AWAY. No guilt whatsoever. Petroleum products, insecticides, other hazardous materials do NOT belong in the family laundry. Just throw the rag away. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2012, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quick-laundry-question/613705/13 "2012-02-25T22:18:38Z")
Hmm. On one hand, the cloth in question isn’t a “rag,” actually, despite my OP; it’s an actual honest to god cleaning cloth specifically manufactured to be a cleaning cloth. It’s for cars, usually (waxing and stuff), but I decided to use it indoors. So I’d hate to toss it. OTOH, I did get it for free, IIRC. But still.