As Earth Day rolls around each year, it leads to discussions about ways to live a greener life. In todays post, Im focusing on one small thing I do to conserve: washing and reusing plastic ziploc-type bags.
Plastic bags are both a blessing and a curse. Wow, are they convenient. I use them in so many ways, especially for freezing food. But, once used and discarded they are such a problem in our landfills, oceans, and environment in general. Plastic bags take over 400 years to biodegrade. Tons of carbon emissions are produced each year from manufacturing them. There are many reasons they are hurting our Earth.
It can be overwhelming to consider the magnitude of environmental issues like this, and its easy to feel defeated and powerless to make a difference. But small efforts can add up. I find inspiration in quotes from some famous people to motivate me to try, in whatever small ways, to do my part for Mother Earth.
Im pretty sure that Mr. Billionaire Buffet was talking more about business goals (he should know!) than environmental ones. But, that philosophy applies to any attempt to achieve something big. Take baby steps over those 1 foot bars, take on tasks that are doable, and eventually and collectively we can accomplish bigger goals and make a difference.
The one foot bar that Ive stepped over has been to wash and reuse plastic ziploc bags. Doesnt sound like a big deal. I know. But, its a small thing I can do to conserve. My mom and sister have been washing their plastic bags for years, and Im following their example.
Were encouraged to Reduce, Recycle, and Reuse. Im doing all 3 of those with plastic ziploc bags.
A task isnt sustainable for me unless theres a routine, easy system in place. It took me awhile to figure out one for dealing with my plastic bags. I didnt have a good way to dry them or store them. They tended to pile up in a dirty mess; or after I got around to washing them, they were clean but still in a messy pile. But, Ive got a system figured out now that makes it very easy and routine to manage cleaning, storing, and reusing plastic bags. Heres what I do.
I usually turn my bags inside out before I wash them. Its easier to get them clean that way. That may not be necessary if the bag isnt very dirty.
Fill the sink with an inch or two of sudsy water. It doesnt take much. Immerse the plastic bag, let some of the water seep inside through the opening, rub it around between your two hands. Rinse under running water.
This method is what made cleaning plastic bags easier and more routine for me. Its what I usually do. The bags must be turned inside out first so that the jets of water hit the dirty surfaces of the bag. Place them in the top rack of your dishwasher.
Move some of the other items in the diswasher around so that they anchor the bags. This keep the bags from flying around when the water is jetting through. You want to leave as much of the bags exposed as possible, while still holding them in place. Also, you dont want the bags to block the dishes from getting cleaned. After a try or two, youll figure it out. My bags get really clean this way.
Some water may get inside the bags (which is really the outside of the bag, since its been turned inside out); remove them carefully so the water doesnt end up all over the dishes or floor.
There are lots of gizmos out there you can buy for drying plastic bags like this. They work well, but arent necessary. Its likely that you have what you need to make a quick drying gizmo of your own. Heres what I use:
Stick the skewers into the gravel. Thats it. I can use as many as I need, depending on how many bags Im drying.
In addition to the skewers shown above, you can substitue anything that is long and thin, like chopsticks, bamboo skewers, wooden spoons, wooden dowels, etc.
I place the jar on a dish drying mat (or use a towel) and remove the wet bags directly from the dishwasher to the skewers.
If Im drying the taller, 2 gallon size bags, I put the jar on top of an inverted bowl to lift it up and get better air flow underneath the bags. This speeds up the drying time considerably.
When Im not drying bags, I gather the skewers together in the center and store the jar under my sink. That way its handy for drying bags, or I can pull out the skewers to use on the grill.
An Earth Day project for the kids! Putting together one of these bag drying jars could be a fun Earth Day activity to do with kids, grandkids, or in a classroom. The jars could be decorated, too. Paint them, tie them with ribbon, make a stained glass effect with pieces of colored tissue paper and glue. Click here for more jar decorating ideas. You can also use colored aquarium gravel to add some variety. Wooden dowels are available at craft or hardware store that can be used in place of the skewers, if you prefer.
All credit goes to Grammy (aka my mom) for this clever idea. Before when I had washed my ziplocs, I was left with a pile of bags of misc. sizes that lay flat in my drawer. It was a hassle to find the right bag when I needed it. I copied Grammys way of storing the bags using the cardboard tubes from paper towel and toilet paper rolls. Not only is this a totally awesome way to organize my used ziplocs, but it is also reusing those cardboard tubes. Another way to conserve. LOVE IT!
It may not be the prettiest thing, but it is so efficient. Label the tubes for whatever bag sizes you use. Then there is an obvious place for them to go.
Once your washed bags have dried, roll them one at a time. Roll tightly from the bottom towards the open end. This will push any air out as you roll to make them tighter and take up less space.
Insert the individually rolled bags into the cardboard tubes. Its easy to pull out a single bag when you need it, while leaving the rest of them intact inside the tube.
The tubes can be stored upright in a wide-mouth container. These are in a glass vase, but a large coffee can would work just fine, too. The whole container can be stored on a cabinet shelf for easy removal when needed.
Or, you can lay them down flat in a drawer. Thats what I do. When I need a bag, I first check my tubes for a used bag before taking a new one. Its an efficient system thats easy to maintain.
Thats the 1 ft. bar that I have stepped over. A small step, but a step nevertheless, to waste less and be kinder to our beautiful Earth.
Have you taken any small steps to conserve in your home? Tell me what youre doing.
Wipe down the inside and outside of the bags with a lint-free microfiber cloth to prevent water spots. Invert the reusable sandwich bags over a drying rack to finish air-drying. It’s important to store the sandwich bags the right way; never store damp bags.
Robynn: We wash them and then air dry on a mitten rack. I found it yeears ago in some crazy catalog and thought it would be perfect for bags. It makes me crazy to have them dry on the cooking utensils since they always seem to be in the way. We can get 10 bags (or 5 pairs of mittens!) on the rack!
Shanda: I reuse mine over and over. I rarely wash them, though. If it’s merely a little moisture from the produce, I just dry them on the fridge with magnets. I only wash if the produce goes bad, or if the bags contained meat.
Tammy: yup, turn inside out, wash and they stay up alone, drying on the counter. dont buy anything, just turn inside out and wash”
I posted a link to this article on my Facebook page and, what do you know, so many of my friends are willing to admit they, too, wash their plastic bags and dry them. There were so many different ways of drying the bags, I had to share them here. Check this out:
David: Liesl, bit mundane – decline plastic bags when offered but stuff used bags into my back pocket for picking up dog shit later [not sure about the energy cost to me or the planet of washing and drying] the trash hereabouts is incinerated and turned into heat and, as far as I know, toxin-free compost.
I place the jar on a dish drying mat (or use a towel) and remove the wet bags directly from the dishwasher to the skewers.
Stick the skewers into the gravel. Thats it. I can use as many as I need, depending on how many bags Im drying.
Insert the individually rolled bags into the cardboard tubes. Its easy to pull out a single bag when you need it, while leaving the rest of them intact inside the tube.
An Earth Day project for the kids! Putting together one of these bag drying jars could be a fun Earth Day activity to do with kids, grandkids, or in a classroom. The jars could be decorated, too. Paint them, tie them with ribbon, make a stained glass effect with pieces of colored tissue paper and glue. Click here for more jar decorating ideas. You can also use colored aquarium gravel to add some variety. Wooden dowels are available at craft or hardware store that can be used in place of the skewers, if you prefer.
It may not be the prettiest thing, but it is so efficient. Label the tubes for whatever bag sizes you use. Then there is an obvious place for them to go.
RECYCLE! EZ Dry of Rewashed ZipLoc® Bags
FAQ
Can you put reusable bags in the dryer?
How do you dry baggies?
How do you wash reusable Ziplock bags in the dishwasher?
How do you recycle Ziploc bags?
One step at a time. Reuse. Before recycling my ziploc bags, I wash and reuse them until they get holes and are too worn out to be useful. If I use my ziplocs twice, I’ve cut my ziploc consumption in half. I usually can wash and reuse them 4 or 5 times before they’re worn out.
How do you clean a zip-top bag?
The company suggests adding some warm water and a drop of antibacterial dish soap to the bag, zipping it shut, and sloshing the water around inside. The company does not recommend turning the bags inside out during cleaning because this might rip the seams. Start by hand-washing the zip-top bag in warm, soapy water.
Are ziploc bags reusable?
Make certain you clean and dry them well. A spokesperson for Ziploc told us that Ziploc brand bags are reusable if they have not stored raw meat, fish, eggs, or any foods that can trigger allergies. The company suggests adding some warm water and a drop of antibacterial dish soap to the bag, zipping it shut, and sloshing the water around inside.
Can you put Ziploc Endurables reusable bags in the dishwasher?
For example, you can wash and dry Ziploc Endurables reusable sandwich and freezer bags in either the top or bottom rack of the dishwasher, but not all silicone bags can go on the bottom rack. Fill a sink or small tub with hot water and add a few drops of a good dishwashing liquid that contains a degreaser.