Tea-towels and hand towels

We have hand towels, tea towels and j cloths for wiping down. Hand towel and tea towel go in the wash at the end of the day. J cloth goes on the top rack of the dishwasher and used several times before being disposed of. Oh yes - I iron tea towels too! X

Separate hand towel and tea towel here too.
Jack, my dear MIL ( no longer with us, sadly) always used to iron pants and knickers too, and even towels. No wonder my husband was born in a taxi ...she just had to finish the ironing before she went to hospital!

I do have a separate hand towel in the kitchen, but really don't care whether that or a tea towel is used to dry someone's clean, wet hands. Hands are only wet and in need of drying if someone has just washed up in hot, soapy water - what's the problem? I have literally dozens of tea towels so I tend to pull a fresh one out several times a day and don't really care what they're used for as long as they're put out for washing straight away - they all go into a separate ninety degree wash.

I have a tea towel k ocking BOUT THE KITCHEN SOMEWHERE, BUT IT RARELY GETS USED. iF YOU USE PIPING HOT WATER TO WASH UP, THINGS DRAIN DRY VERY QUICKLY. I am sorry this went into capitals. I am not typing it out again. My tea towel is mostly used to dry apples and suchlike, and to dry the hands that washed the apple. Then it gets used to dry potatos for chips on a Friday. Then it get washed and a new one gotr out.

Our handtowel is changed frequently.

Re my post. I realise it reads as though my MIL was called Jack.. Was actually responding to Jack's post!

Grannyactivist, I also wash tea towels in a hot wash and also use a laundry cleanser which I suppose is a sort of disinfectant. Use it for all washes especially as low temp. washes don't kill the germs. Amazed that it seems fine for our excema prone family

90° wash!
After reading all this I realise that I really am a "scruff". But we're still alive (up to now!)

My DH has a habit of wiping his sweaty face on the hand towel. Not that he's sweating all the time, but if he's been mowing the lawn or something he does it. I wouldn't mind if it went straight in the wash but if I don't see him he will hang it up again.

I have separate hand and tea towels on different hooks. Tea towels don't get used too much because I like to leave the dishes to dry themselves except for cutlery and glass.

Bit difficult for anyone to admit doing anything unhygienic with all you wonderful housewives. But is the point of the blog to remind people about hygiene or really find out what they do.

P.S.

I thought research showed that leaving things to drain and air dry was much more hygienic than using a tea towel to dry. But when dishes are left around all day or night as they are I am not so sure.

I would think, from the point of view of hygiene, washing and drying hands after the using the lavatory is much more important than in the kitchen.

I think each is important. I would never dream of starting to prepare food without thoroughly washing my hands first.

2 tea towels, both on rack under breakfast bar; 2 fairly large hand towels, one under breakfast bar, one on a sucker hook on glass of back door; 2 small hand towels, both through cupboard handles, one at each end of the kitchen!
Two dish cloths, blue is always for dishes, red for wiping down worktops; also two kitchen towels, one on stand at far end of kitchen, one wall mounted above sink.
All towels etc are popped in the washer at bedtime every night, to be washed first thing the following morning!
Woe betide anyone who uses the wrong thing in my presence!

Crikey...

I have a hand towel,a tea towel, a kitchen cloth and a giant kitchen roll. The kitchen cloths get washed every single time a new load of washing is put on so are very frequently changed. The tea towels are all linen as it wears well, is super absorbent and never loses its ability to soak up liquid. Cotton is a poor substitute for linen.

I have just bought a tea towel for my DD for her birthday. It has a large picture of a duck on it and says, "Alright Duck?"

#teatowelscanbegood

Oh shoot! It's cotton!

I have both tea and hand towels and dishwasher too so mostly use tea towels to dry bottoms of cups, glasses etc from machine.
I put the dishcloth in the dishwasher from time to time otherwise it soaks in bleach most nights.

You and me both triciaf, I'm admitting nothing!!!

I have all three, t towels, hand towel and paper roll and I agree that dishes left to dry are probably the most hygienic but I have cats and cats climb on the draining board so I can be sure they have not been on the draining board near the dishes therefore I dry them in a clean towel used each time I wash. They are well trained cats and I never see them on the bench but I don't trust them.

I have towel and tea towel on the back of the pantry door and try to use them separately but inevitably they get mixed up. I have kitchen roll which I use to clean down the worktops every time we are about to eat of cook as I also have cats one of which is always up on the worktops. I have two separate dishcloths - one for kitchen use and the other to wash the cats dishes after breakfast every day - I can't bear to see their dishes dirty. We have a dishwasher but there are always pots or glasses I can't put in so usually have some to dry. All get washed/steeped in bleach on a regular basis.

We don't have a hand towel in the kitchen (can I hear gasps of horror from other posters?!).
However, anyone washing their hands in my kitchen sink would get short shrift - we have a utility room with a sink, soap and a frequently changed hand towel, a cloakroom near the kitchen with soap and frequently changed hand towel. If I wash my hands after preparing food I dry them on a paper towel, and use those thin vinyl gloves to prepare meat and dirty veg then throw them away (probably not that ecologically friendly but my immune system is not good).
The dishcloth goes in the dishwasher and also gets bleached, saucepans are left to drain and the tea towel is changed daily anyway.

Alright Duck could be hung up and not used as a tea towel!

I have a collection of linen tea towels inherited from MIL, old but brand new, never used, with such things as 'New Decimal Coinage' and 'Views of Jersey' on them . I just don't want to use them, how daft is that?

The Decimal Currency Board tea towel is £10 on ebay!

I use a draining board for dishes and cutlery to drain, and dry naturally in air. Sure that I read somewhere that that is more hygienic. Believe it is likely to be. As when people use a tea towel to dry dishes etc :- some unfortunately leave damp tea towel in kitchen, why :- as do they plan to use it again?

Apparently bacteria like moisture, heat and food. That is why I do not leave a damp tea towel in kitchen. I try to keep areas dry etc.