There are many environmental reasons to use wiping rags made from recycled textiles. 

Let's differentiate between a few basic differences in wiping rags. The industry recognizes three fundamental types of wiping cloths.

1. Reclaimed wiping rags – are made from reclaimed textile materials. That's what we sell at Tiedemann Industrial Supply.

2. Non-woven and paper wiping rags – purpose-made, either wholly or in part, from paper and non-textile materials such as polypropylene or other synthetic materials

3. Rental wiping rags – purpose-made towels that are rented to the end user and washed and reused until they must be discarded.

There have been studies, one commissioned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and one commissioned by SMART (Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association). The results show a significant difference in the environmental impact of the three wiping products (reclaimed, non-woven and paper, and rental). The SMART study investigated the environmental impact in three areas: water use, energy use, and waste generated.

Reclaimed wiping rags have the least overall impact on the environment of all three wiping cloths. They use less energy and less water than the other two categories, and generate significantly less waste than laundered (rental) wiping rags. Non-woven/paper wiping rags generate the least waste of the three categories, but have the highest energy usage of the other two categories and the second highest water usage, using only slightly less than the rental wiping rags. Reusable wipers (rental wiping rags) have the greatest impact on the environment, in large part due to the large amount of sludge containing hazardous chemicals and other compounds that are discarded with the wash water. They also have the highest water usage of the three categories.