Washing Your Sponges

[Fat Guy]

I was told the other day, by a guest who saw me put a sponge in the dishwasher, that I'm crazy. Am I the only person who does this? I mean, sponges are pretty disgusting when you think about it, as are rags. When I'm in restaurants, I'm often amazed when a busser goes from one table to another with the same dirty rag or sponge, a process that can do nothing but evenly distribute bacteria all over the restaurant. So I'm a pretty frequent washer of rags and sponges. The rags go in the clothes washer, and the sponges go in the dishwasher. Am I nuts? Really, I'm not one of those people who washes my hands 25 times a day or anything. I just think sponges should be cleaned.

[Liza]

If you're nuts, call me crazy, too. A toss in the dishwasher really wakes up a sponge, too. We're dishwasher-less in our new place so ...sigh...we're forced to throw them out too soon..

[tommy]

i've always considered sponges to be, umm, disposable.  maybe i'll give it a shot.  if anything it will save me from digging around under the sink to find a new one every couple of days.

[macrosan]

Quote: from Fat Guy on 3:52 am on Jan. 3, 2002

Am I nuts?

Yeah, I think so, Steven.

The essence of use of a sponge is that you suck the liquid you're mopping up, and the bacteria and dirt that are contained therein, into the centre of the sponge. No way can this be extracted by a washing machine OR a dishwasher. All you're doing is cleaning the outside, so the dirt that oozes out of the centre after you've removed it from the dishwasher has a nice clean surface to adhere to :)

If you're talking about plastic sponges, I'd throw them away. If they're real sponges, I'd leave them in running hot water for a while, squeeze them out very hard, and repeat that a few times. Of course, using real sponges isn't very eco-friendly....

[smithi]

OK Macrosan...how about putting the sponges in the dishwasher AND THEN in the microwave for 30 seconds???  That should result in a relatively bacteria-free sponge - don't you think?

Seriously, the temperature in the dishwasher gets pretty high, and i would think that all that water sloshing around would penetrate the sponge and kill off some bacteria in the center.

[tommy]

Quote: from smithi on 12:38 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

Seriously, the temperature in the dishwasher gets pretty high, and i would think that all that water sloshing around would penetrate the sponge and kill off some bacteria in the center.

i was going to bring up the same point.  but then i re-read marcrosan's claims, and realized that although bacteria was mentioned, it wasn't suggested that the bacteria would remain after washing.   only that the "dirt that oozes" out of the center would remain.  this might be accuarate! :)

but if rinsing and squeezing works for real sponges, as suggested by macrosan, wouldn't dishwashing and squeezing work for the fake ones?  hmmm.  ok ok, i'll start a thread on sponge washing.  ;)

[yvonne johnson]

Interesting that this topic is under "Cooking" because that's what I do to them. I take a very big pan and boil sponges and dish-towels on the stove top. Care is needed in choosing detergent, as it must be non-sudsey. "Top job" or dishwasher powder works. And the smell? The apartment ends up smelling like my granny's house used to. But it's well worth it!

[Fat Guy]

I've pretty much converted over to the dishwasher for sterilizing most household items (sponges, dog toys, etc.), because several knowledgeable people have told me that the temperatures reached in the dishwasher are sufficient to kill all the relevant germs. It's so much more convenient than anything else.

[Rosie]

I go to Costco and buy a dozen sponges and throw them out when I think I need a new one. Steven--how often do you get sick? I mean--do you get sick from old sponges? What about bathroom glasses? How often do you wash them?  

[tommy]

Quote: from Fat Guy on 2:35 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

I've pretty much converted over to the dishwasher for sterilizing most household items (sponges, dog toys, etc.), because several knowledgeable people have told me that the temperatures reached in the dishwasher are sufficient to kill all the relevant germs.

there is certainly some scientific validity to that.  boiling water (that in a pot) reaches 212 degrees, give or take a degree.  that's about all you get.  the dishwasher produces water at higher temps (steam is a factor i'd imagine).  although, i'm not sure if any germs survive in 212 degree temps.  maybe dog germs.  and i certainly wouldn't "cook" my dog toys with my dish towels. ;)

regardless, i think i'll retract my earlier statement:  i am going to continue throwing out my disposable sponges...at least until i get a dog.  

[yvonne johnson]

Quote: from Rosie on 2:44 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

What about bathroom glasses? How often do you wash them?  

There's a very funny skit (maybe French & Saunders) in which 2 chambermaids clean a hotel bathroom. Yes, you've got it, they scrub and wipe everything in there then, woops, nearly forget to clean the bathroom glasses. Same rags in hands, they wipe them last!

[Fat Guy]

I rarely get sick, except for the occasional common cold. But there's no shame in succeeding through prevention.

I throw the sponges in the dishwasher every time we run the dishwasher, which is pretty much every day. I'm not in the mood to buy 12 sponges every 12 days, and it also seems wasteful even to a waste-a-holic like me. I mean, at that point I'd just switch to paper towels for everything.

Bathroom glasses? No such thing in my house. If I need to drink in the bathroom, I use my hand.

[OB]

Either my wife  and I are very old fashioned or very new age...I'm not sure....

I don't have a use for a "real" sponge...I do dishes with a sponge  on a handle...and the handle is filled with dishsoap...*anti-bacterial* dishsoap...

I also have a brush contraption that fits in the palm of my hand with ... yep ... a resevoir for soap in the top and a little squeeze button to dispense soap...the same anti bacterial soap...It's not the best scouring tool, but pretty darn good for most pans

I usually replace the sponge when my knives slice it to shreds or just gets old looking...The brush doesn't retain any water at all...

I think the antibacterial dishsoap keeps me sleeping good at night :)

Tom

(Edited by OB at 3:07 pm on Jan. 3, 2002)

[tommy]

Quote: from OB on 3:38 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

I don't have a use for a "real" sponge...I do dishes with a sponge  on a handle...and the handle is filled with dishsoap...*anti-baterial* dishsoap...

i use the sponge-on-a-stick(handle) too.  works great on glasses and dishes.  but what about the countertops and sink?  i think that's what were talking about when we say how disgusting the sponge gets.

[OB]

Well, I didn't think of that ...probably because I don't use a sponge for that....

The countertops I use a rag that gets tossed into the laundry every night along with multiple towels that I've managed to get dirty... I probably end up rinsing the rag numerous times throughout the prep and cleanup...

I use the sponge on a stick for the sink...works well for me...although my sink is porcelain on cast iron...it might not work so good on St. Steel....

I never really thought about it, but I don't think we own a regular  sponge  ... we may not be the norm

[OB]

Also, on another side note...I've been told that the dishwasher can adequately sterilize most stuff...we have twin boys <8 mos. old> and if we had to hand wash or boil all the nipples bottles etc...ugh...that would be unpleasant...the pediatrician absolutely said dishwasher is the most sanitary way to go

[mamster]

Quote: from OB on 4:49 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

I've been told that the dishwasher can adequately sterilize most stuff...we have twin boys <8 mos. old>

Boy, there's a mental image for you.

[macrosan]

Only at eGullet could 8 allegedly grown-up people post 16 messages on the subject of washing sponges. No wonder this site ranks #52 in the Chef2Chef poll. No wonder we kicked the butt of the Jerky-of-the-Month Club.

[smithi]

Forget the bacteria-in-the-sponge even if you use the dishwasher problem.  

Something that supposedly harbors a ton of bacteria that I will never ever give up is a wooden cutting board.  Although I wash mine (by hand only), my mom uses one and I can't say I ever really saw her wash it with the intention of killing bacteria (scary, but at least she doesn't cut meat on it).  We all grew up very healthy (must have been the raw egg yolk w/ sugar concoction she fed us - no joke).  

[Rosie]

Quote: from OB on 3:38 pm on Jan. 3, 2002

 

I think the antibacterial dishsoap keeps me sleeping good at night :)

Tom

You need to keep antibacterial soap on your hand for 3 minutes in order for it to be effective.

[Jinmyo]

Spunjiz? We don't need no steenkin' spunjiz!

So I just use dish clothes, those weird green scrubby pads I get in Chinatown which I throw out after a few days. Do they decompose? Is supermarket Polish sausage Polish? Probably not.

[OB]

Thanks for the info Rosie...I didn't know that...

As a side note...

Was egullet.com down for most of the day?   I couldn't access it all day from the office or at home....

If there is a notice of some sort on here, I'm sure I'll find it soon enough...

[Bux]

All this talk of sterilization and antibacterial soap reminds me of the recent studies linking alergies with insufficient interaction with dirt as a kid. I think that if you keep you house sterile enough you don't build up immunities. Shaw, we throw our sponges in the dishwasher and I suspect we don't do it often enough.

Wooden cutting boards are probably more sanitary than the plastic ones. They don't harbor germs. Of course you should scrub the wooden boards and remove all food particles, but studies have shown the bacteria tends to die off on a wooden board and grow on a washed plastic one. This won't stop health official from demanding that restaurants use plastic boards.

[TL]

Are you using sponges on food you intend to eat raw?

If you're talking about cleaning a pan with a sponge and worrying about bacteria in the sponge being transferred to the pan, won't the bacteria die the same death when the pan is heated as it would in the dishwasher?

[Wilfrid]

I have never washed a sponge in my life.  I throw them away when they get dirty.  As has been said elsewhere, there is something about this community which is not representative of the community at large.  I would be amazed if cleaning sponges in  dishwashers is anything but a very minority pursuit.  Maybe I'm wrong.