Rags to Riches

[RamFishTruck]

OK, still working on the "riches" part...Let me hear about your rag system you use.

Do you use designated rags for specific jobs? If you clean and reuse them do you wash them only with like rags? Do you wash them with your clothing etc? What types of rags are best for each job...certainly not all rags were created equal? I can see my rag supply quickly expanding as I'm sure even though the rag may get washed there will be some carry over from the previous product. How do you keep them all straight?

[Setec Astronomy]

The first thing is, we don't call them "rags" here. That makes us self-conscious about the amount of money we have spent on our microfiber towel collections. So we call them "towels" or "mf's" (that's "micro fibers", not an insult), or for instance "WW's" which would be "waffle-weaves", not to be confused with "waterless wash".

Yes, many of us have detailed wash regimens, which have been espoused in numerous threads. I don't know of anyone who washes their MF towels with other clothes; the main reason is you don't want to clog your microfibers with the lint from conventional textiles.

[vobro]

I have dedicated towels for every task and wash separate from clothes, main reason is to keep my mf towels free of lint as much as possible. All my towels are microfiber except I have a few cotton towels for interior tasks like cleaning pedals,cup holders and around the hinges of door. I agree with the term "rag" which are reserved for crap work like oil changes or wiping up my garage floor of garbage,when you have a collection of towels it requires time to keep them nice,clean and organized

[rlmccarty2000]

Starting from scratch I would color code my towels and only use certain colors for certain duties. At this time I have tons of towels and a multitude of colors, but I only use my black towels for wheels, door jambs, and engine cleaning, and wash those separately.

[AJS]

Once my mf's get too gunked up or far gone I use them for maintenence jobs. Wiping up grease, motor oil, etc.

I have started to try an use specific colors for jobs. White on glass, brown for leather conditioning.
As for washing I just ran them a few times in he washer. I know theres better ways, but it got the job done

[RamFishTruck]

Starting from scratch I would color code my towels and only use certain colors for certain duties.

I like this idea a lot! But...what happens if you have your eye on a particular type of "towel" (I'm a quick learner ) and it isn't the right color... I do like the idea of color coding though and going to have the wife stop putting all my rags in with other laundry. I have a funny feeling that my crappy glass results are partly because of residues left in from previous work with other products.

[BigPoppa]

The only color coding I do is black towels for wheels & tires.


Other towels are "coded" by softness. Have a ton of general purpose towels bought at HD & Costco used for interiors, rubber trim, and glass. The plush towels and waffle weaves I've gotten from here and Autopia are the only things that touch paint.

[asap2stacks]

Yup interior,exterior, General purpose,Windows, and drying towels

[asap2stacks]

GP towels are basically used for wheels and door jams

[SKorch630]

I like this idea a lot! But...what happens if you have your eye on a particular type of "towel" (I'm a quick learner ) and it isn't the right color... I do like the idea of color coding though and going to have the wife stop putting all my rags in with other laundry. I have a funny feeling that my crappy glass results are partly because of residues left in from previous work with other products.

Permanent marker in the corner would work. IE: "I" for Interior. "E" for exterior. "W" for Wheels. Etc. Just another thought if you don't color code them already. I color code mine, and the blues are interior, yellows are exterior. Grey's are for wheels, and dark grey are for emblems and exhausts.