Knowing how to clean microfiber cleaning cloth will extend their usefulness. As one of the 10 basic cleaning tools everyone should own, microfiber cleaning cloth are indispensable at keeping your home clean. They do require proper care to work well, though.
How long do they last?
If properly cared for, your microfiber cleaning cloth should last over 100 washings. You’ll know when it’s time to replace them because they’ll lose their rough texture and start to feel more like washcloths.
Regardless of how you use them, eventually all microfiber cloths need to be laundered. To keep them in good condition, you need to understand a few things.
1. Don’t use vinegar, either. Although vinegar is a wonderful laundry aid, do not use it to launder microfiber cloths: its acidity will also erode the bristles.
2. Never use bleach or fabric softener. Both bleach and fabric softener will ruin your microfiber cloths. Bleach will erode those split fibers that give them such great cleaning power, while fabric-softener will act as a wax and cause the fibers to mat.
3. Wash them in a separate load. The bristles on microfiber will pick up lint from other types of fabric. Agitation with other fabrics will wear down the bristled fibers, too. So never wash microfiber cloths with other loads of laundry. That’s another reason why I buy several dozen at a time: so I have plenty of clean ones to use until I’ve got a good load of dirties to wash. (Crazy as it sounds, you can keep the used ones in a bag in the freezer so they don’t develop odors while you’re waiting to have a full load.)
4. Air dry them if you can. It’s best to air dry microfiber cloths and, fortunately, they dry very quickly. Hang them from the laundry line or drape them over the shower rod and they’ll dry within an hour. If you’re in a hurry and need to toss them in the dryer, use a low-heat setting and skip the fabric softener sheets.
5. Pretreat stains before washing. Use a drop or two of liquid dish or laundry detergent. Gently rub this in on both sides with your fingers and allow it to work for 5 minutes. Launder microfiber cloths in warm, not hot, water using a non-bleaching detergent.
If you’ve ever held a microfiber cleaning cloth in your bare hand, you’ve probably noticed that it’s more bristly and rough than a standard cloth. That’s due to the ultra-fine fibers which make up this synthetic fabric, which are woven and then split to increase surface area. You’ve probably also noticed that your microfiber upholstery doesn’t have the same roughness: that’s because its fibers aren’t split, so it remains a smooth, supple replacement for leather and suede.
The split fibers of a microfiber cleaning cloth are what makes them so great at picking up dust or powering away grime. Unfortunately, that same texture makes them harder to clean since the fibers grab onto dirt and other messes. While it’s tempting to think you can treat them like other fabrics, improper washing will wear away those split bristles and ruin their scrubbing power.
