Wipe your bum and save the earth

While the 2008 Cloth Wipe Challenge is at a close, that doesn't mean you should stop using your cloth wipes. In fact, if you didn't participate during the challenge here are a few more tidbits that will help convince you to start wiping your bits with something other than toilet paper, or at the very least switch to a more environmentally friendly TP.

According to Charmin, consumers on average use 8.6 sheets per trip to the bathroom. That's a total of 57 sheets per day and an annual total of 20,805 sheets. There are 230 million adults in the U.S., each averaging a roll and a half per week. Since each roll of toilet paper averages about .5 a pound of paper, that's about 40 pounds of TP per year.

That equals 4,600,000 tons of TP used each year. And that's just from adults. To take the calculation even further, if all U.S. adults used only Charmin toilet paper or the like (aka "virgin fiber" with 0% recycled content or post-consumer waste), the environmental cost is approximately (not including the issues with Dioxin):

78.2 million trees

1.35 million tons of air pollution

32 trillion gallons of water

2.1 trillion gallons of oil

18.75 trillion Kilowatt hours of energy

Seems rather ridiculous, no? Just for wiping our butts. Fortunately, not all the toilet paper used is such an environmental disaster. Of course, the higher percentage of recycled paper you use in your toilet paper, the less environmental impact you make.

If you just can't make the switch to cloth toilet paper, at the very least switch to 100% recycled TP. And stay away from Charmin, Cottonelle, Angel Soft and other virgin fiber toilet papers out there.

For those of you who took the cloth challenge, how did it go? Will you continue to use cloth wipes? Did you run into any problems?

How do you wipe?

It's day two of the 2008 Cloth Wipe Challenge and I wanted to check in with y'all on how things are starting out. I suspect that, like last year, many of you started even before yesterday. It seems like once you get hit by cloth wipe fever, there's no stopping you!

Any questions come up yet? What kind of system are you using for storage and washing? How are you liking things so far? Do you think you'll make it until the 30th? Are you in cloth wipe heaven, hell or purgatory?

Just out of strange curiosity since we're discussing wiping and all, here's a poll that will provide much needed entertainment in these challenging times of political craziness, economic turmoil and end of days talk. What could be more fascinating than how you wipe?



I'm always intrigued by people's personal hygiene habits (in case that wasn't totally obvious by now) and not just from a scatological perspective. There's the cultural aspect of bathroom behavior, of course, but it all comes down to: how did you learn how to wipe? Does anyone ever even remember? Were you shown or did you just figure it out?

I imagine this post will get me some weird traffic. Again.

Potty Talk: Your cloth wipe questions answered

First off, I wanted to address a few questions that came up in regards to the upcoming Cloth Wipe Challenge at the end of the month. I'll be getting into some more nitty-gritty fun factoids in a later post.

The whole famdamily issue
If you are dubious about washing cloth wipes for six people in your household, then just try them yourself. No one said you had to drag family and friends into this. In our household, the kids don't use cloth wipes yet as they are too young and we would be spending far more in plumbing bills than we would be saving by having them use cloth.

Maybe when they are a little older and pay more attention to what should and shouldn't go in the toilet we'll have them use cloth. In the meantime, we risk just flushing the benefits down the toilet. So to speak. Anyway, just start small and see how it goes.

Shared bathrooms
If you live with other people who aren't as enthused about it as you, it's a little more difficult, but not undoable. You just need to be a bit more sneaky and run a covert cloth wipe operation. I would suggest going for #1 only - it will be easier to hide. Find a container of some sort and hide it under the sink somewhere. You can always go for some cammo patterned cloth remnants.

Even if someone asks you what it is, it won't be readily obvious what you're doing. Feel free to tell them, or just say you use them for cleaning your armpits or some other misdirection. It won't totally gross them out but it will keep them from fiddling with your wipes.

It's going to create too much laundry
Umm, unless you are repurposing ship's sails in their original size, you won't be generating much laundry. For #1 use for two people, we wash the "pee pads", as my mom calls them, a couple times a week. We just throw them in with the rest of the laundry and they don't take up any more space than a small t-shirt. The water usage and soap is negligible. You'll find you won't need a very big piece to do the job as cloth is way more absorbent than TP.

Why don't you try the "hand and water method"?
By gum, if you've got spunk enough to do that, be my guest. I just have a few words for you: fingernails and fecal matter. Someone brought up the whole drying after the rinse cycle issue and, unless you've got time to air dry, you're ending up using a cloth to dry, no?

Cloth Wipe Challenge 2008

Oh, it's that time of year again. Last year this time, I held a Cloth Wipe Challenge and a number of you faithful readers jumped on the bandwagon and pledged to change the way you wipe. Your butts.

Yes, folks, for those of you still not on the cloth wipe bandwagon, you've had a whole year to think about it. Now's your chance to join in with a group of intrepid wipers and make the switch.

And, once again, the rules are soooo simple.... it's as easy as wiping your, ummm, ass. You can choose to just use them for #1 or you can go all out and clean up for #2 as well.

I'll be going over the details again this time around but if you want to get a jump start on what to expect, you can read all the posts from the last challenge here.

I estimate that we've saved about $180 in toilet paper over the year since the challenge started (we normally get the Seventh Generation 100% recycled toilet paper so it's a tad more expensive). We only use it for #1 so the hassle is a lot less, it's a lot more comfortable than scratchy recycled TP and we're saving on tons of paper products.

This year's challenge will only be a week long, so you have no excuse to not give it a try. To sign up, just add yourself to the comments. I know this is a tough one for you guys - there are a lot of mental and cultural barriers to making the switch, but I guarantee if you just give it a try for #1, you'll be hooked!

If any of last year's participants/converts want to add your encouragement, please do!