I change it every time i finish tidying the kitchen, and wiping around ( sometimes 3 or 4 cloths daily) I once went on a food hygiene course :) Scares you for life! then they all go in a 90 wash (around 3 times a week) ........i have a lot of cloths :)

There isn't an option for 'when it starts to look or smell a bit manky' which is probably about once every 2 weeks. On the other hand I do use really hot washing water - if it's not scalding and I can wash up without waiting 5 mins for it to cool a bit then it isn't proper washing up.

Soak it in a weak disinfectant overnight. Easy.

I change my dishcloths at least twice a day. I once read that there was more bateria on dishcloths than toilet bowels.

That's true netschwester! If we over clean we cannot build up tolerance which is why soap and water is favoured over anti-bacterial sprays. I wonder what we all mean by dish cloths? I use a dishwasher so my cloth is actually a 'Spontex' sponge. I use different ones for different surfaces (of course!) I don't want an upset tummy!

I have been on advanced hygiene course, but am of an age where I think we do overclean with sanitisers etc. Having said that i put my dishcloths in a solution of bleach and liquid detergent overnight almost every night and throw them when they are no longer white or start disintegrating. I do rinse them thoroughly in the morning as I tend to get bleach spots on my clothes if I don't. We are very rarely ill in my house.

I change my cloth at least once a day, and when I'm baking or entertaining then I change it loads more - then I may get through 4 or 5 cloths. We are very very rarely ill in our family - my kids are healthy and i can't remember the last time we had a germ or bug in our house. Maybe it's due to washing my dishcloths?! I was genuinely shocked to see that some people obviously don't change their cloths very often! It has completely grossed me out!

I put mine in the wash with other stuff once a week. If the cloth is very discoloured or I've used it for something very messy, I soak in a weak bleach solution but this isn't very often. I can't remember the last time any member of the household got anything like gastro-enteritis (hope that isn't famous last words!).

Never use one. I have a dishwasher and anything that doesn't go in that drip dries on a rack on the draining board. If I need something urgently, I dry with kitchen roll. I think kitchen towels are riddled with germs, but its just my opinion, as I am very finicky about everything in my kitchen. Perhaps things would be different if I have a couple of kids and I was always washing and having to dry things in a hurry :)

Are we talking cloths or tea towels? Something may have got lost in translation!

Considering there are food particles on dishcloths and that bacteria and mold feed on these, I think it's prudent to change them every day. I liken it to leaving food out-to rot if left long enough.....and I make sure they are not buried in the wash before they have dried; that would increase the microbial count significantly and contaminate the surrounding items. When I'm ready to do wash, I microwave them on high (soaking wet in a bowl) then throw them in a hot wash in a lingerie bag. Same process for sponges.

Our homes are not operating theatres! Clean yes but some suggestions are a bit OTT methinks. Good night all, I'm off to disinfect stuff.

Hello Emmeline,

Well I don't do a lot of hand washing.. So I use a sponge on occasion. It is kept as dry as possible between uses to prevent bacteria. I really prefer the dishwasher.. When it's full it goes on and if not things wait, as it's a slimline it doesn't take too long to fill.... : ))

The mind boggles...

At least daily here. I changed to washable cloths (flannels) specifically so I could do this: it's very expensive to change a store bought cloth every day. I also change the tea towel and kitchen hand towel daily. They absolutely need it as well. The tea towel gets soaked several times/day.

It does depend on how large the household is and how much time is spent in the house though. If it's a single person or couple who both work outside the home, eat dinner out a lot etc, a weekly change is no big deal. I'm at home every day, with friends and family passing through all the time, so the kitchen is very heavily used.

I use a chux cloth and it goes into the wash daily, then i know it is done so start the day with a clean one.

when it smells

Daily..I open mine out on the top rack of the dishwasher & stick it through the wash.

Daily. It is an absolute must. Bacteria builds up in cloths and they must be changed daily. I can't see why people change them like every week or even more it is actually wrong to do this. Also they are so cheap to buy there is no reason not to wash them daily.

Lingerie harness??? 🤭

I change dishcloths and tea-towels every day, washing up sponges and hand towels every about twice a week, or more often if well-used. Dishcloths go in a bucket with stain remover and detergent, then they and everything else go in a hot wash with towels approx once per week. If not, they get stinky and disgusting.