kristina Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I have searched previous posts as I'm sure this has been mentioned before but can't find anything! At present we have towel dispensers in the toilet but I am getting through hundreds of them a week!! Obviously we talk to the children about use but this makes no difference!! I know you can't use hand towels due to cross infection etc just wondered what everyone else used? Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 We use face cloths as mini hand towels. There's a pile of them beside the sink, children use them then throw them in the wash bin. I take them home and hot wash them with an ioniser ball thingy and tumble dry using those dryer balls, so no expense with powder or softener. If they may be contaminated with something else, they get washed with powder though. It seems a half way solution between towels at home and disposable paper at school. We've done it for years and I have well over a hundred of them, sufficient to keep going if I'm off ill!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristina Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 I had thought of this way Cait only thing is we run 2 sessions a day with 26 children in each session so that's 52 towels a day (and that's if they only wash hands once!!). Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inge Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 we had a half size dispenser and towels... The Consortium have them as do System hygiene... (dispenser ) cannot remember the company we used though.. (they gave me the dispensers when I first ordered ) if I do remember will return! Had them for years.. at least cut down the amount used by half! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devondaisy Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 We have exactly the same problem - we do have hand driers as well but the children don't like using them. I found that taking the paper towels out of the dispenser and putting them in a tray helped cut down on usage enormously. We encourage the children to use just one, and this is much easier for them now - with the dispenser they often pulled out a clump all together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 we do the same as inge...half size so half waste! i would love to wash and use but no way i can fit that into my time schedule my hat goes off to you cait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pimms o'clock? Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I'm with Cait and use white flannels. I bought 200 when Tesco had them for 20p. We have a storage box with lid to contain the main stock, in the bathroom, and on top is a basket with a pile of individually rolled up flannels; one use and in the mini lidded bin ready for the wash. I do have a machine at work, so no carrying back and forth for me, they get pegged out to dry when weather permits - something the children like to do themselves as we used a rotary drier that lost the bottom of its pole through rust and chopped it down and cemented it in the ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Ours are different colours, sourced whenever I see them on offer. I have a stack of white ones I use when tootbrushing as the Milton used to clean the brushes after use was bleaching the coloured facecloths and spoiling them (Perhaps some over-vigorous shaking the excess off was going on) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gezabel Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I think part of the problem is that some children find it difficult to only take one paper towel from the dispenser, they tend to 'grab' and end up with a handful! Like someone else has said, taking some out and leaving them 'individually available' may reduce the amount used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsbat Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 we have this problem too but with 2 sessions a day with 26 children in each session, so even the bare minimum would be 3 or 4 towels per child per session (allowing 1 after the toilet - which we all know in reality they will use the loo a few times lol, 1 wash before snack, 1 wash after paint/messy play - again I would say each child washes their hands at least 3 times after this and 1 wash if having lunch) That's between 78 and 180ish towels per session so up to 360 towels a day! omg that is scarey Paper towels cost us a fortune and would dearly love to use flannels etc but above shows we'd have to have a massive stockpile of them Can I just check actually does everyone use single use towels after messy play/painting etc? or just after toileting or before meals? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoneyPancakes Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Ours are different colours, sourced whenever I see them on offer. I have a stack of white ones I use when tootbrushing as the Milton used to clean the brushes after use was bleaching the coloured facecloths and spoiling them (Perhaps some over-vigorous shaking the excess off was going on) I am going to start another thread rather than hijack Kristina's. Want to know about Cait's toothbrushing routine. Honey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inge Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 (edited) the half size ones do only come out one at a time, well ours did, we did try putting them on the side... they picked the whole pile up ! Individual ones on the side meant someone was constantly having to replenish so effectively took a staff member out of the session. we used to use a towel after messy play etc but were informed that it is no longer allowed.. so had to resort to the half size towels... Edited June 19, 2011 by Inge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumperrabbit Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 We are paper towels too, but left on the side not in a dispenser. Used to be a towel after messy play, but not anymore, paper towels it is again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emmawill Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 We have just ordered the new dispensers that only dispense 1 sheet, they are in the KCS catalogue, the towel are a bit more expensive but in the long run you will save on all of those wasted ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panders Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 We use blue "C" fold paper towels, left to the side, not in a machine. Our children have been very good, bar the odd misuse, so don't see any reason to change. Landlord has installed machines in the toilets which are battery driven - you wave your hand in front of the sensor and one sheet is dispensed. It's incredibly noisy, but we are now used to it, but it does frighten newbies as the sensor is very sensitive and can go off quite easily. Some of the older children can just about reach up high enough if they are on a step to activate it, only problem is they tend to tear pieces of the towel off, rather than a whole sheet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anju Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 when we got new building last summer i had hand driers installed. expensive one-off but no more in the long run i don't thiink and far less waste. we have nearly 50 children on roll and only 2 don't like them so they use paper towels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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