First, what is microfiber?
It is a textile made from super-fine synthetic yarns split into millions of microscopic fibers that are up to 100 times finer than a human hair. This gives it an enormous amount of surface area and makes it highly absorbent — a microfiber cloth can hold seven times its weight in water.
Most of these cloths are made of a blend of polyester and nylon. These two plastics are forced through an incredibly tiny pipe, and the fibers that come out the other side are woven together and split apart into microfibers up to 20 times smaller.
Microfiber vs. cotton: What’s the difference?
The primary difference is that microfiber is a synthetic fabric, while cotton is a natural material.
Although cotton has its own negative effect on the environment, overall, it’s greener and has less environmental impact, but it’s not nearly as effective at cleaning — or as soft on your skin.
Microfiber vs. cotton for furniture and clothes
Microfiber sheets, clothing, and upholstery are softer than cotton, but they’re not as breathable. They resist pilling better, but they wear — and sleep — warmer. It also doesn’t shrink or wrinkle like cotton does, and it’s more durable and affordable.
If you have sensitive skin or often overheat, microfiber clothes and sheets may be uncomfortable for you.
Brushed microfiber, which is especially popular for sheets, couches, and blankets, is more velvety, thanks to the brushing that lifts the fibers to make them softer and fluffier.
Microfiber vs. cotton for cleaning
Cotton cleaning cloths are less expensive, but they don’t pick up and hold onto dirt — mostly, cotton just pushes dirt around. Since cotton cloths are made with organic rather than synthetic materials, they harbor odors and bacteria.
Cotton dries slower and leaves lint behind too, which is a special kind of drag when you’re cleaning glass.
Microfiber has a longer cleaning life than cotton — and a much longer lifespan in general, since it’s made from plastics that can take centuries to biodegrade.
Check out Dane from The Rag Company explaining microfiber — with graphics!
Prevent cross-contamination with color coding
Microfiber cleaning cloths often come in multicolor packs. Assign different colors to different tasks so you’re not washing your dishes with the cloth you clean the bathroom with.
Why is microfiber so good at cleaning?
Microfibers are so small that they can glom onto the teeniest, tiniest dust particles. If you could shrink down enough to clearly see a single fiber, you’d observe that the dirt is literally stuck to it. But how?
Ever see a gecko on the ceiling? He’s there because his little reptilian feet are packed with microscopic hairs held fast against the ceiling by the van der Waals force. This very weak electromagnetic attraction becomes pretty powerful when multiplied across millions of hairs. That little lizard isn’t going anywhere until someone knocks him down with a broom.
The dirt trapped in your cloth is stuck there in the same way. It’s only released when you rinse the cloth under hot water, which relaxes the microfibers, breaks the van der Waals force, and releases the dirt.
GROVE FACT
Is microfiber anti-microbial?
Microbes like bacteria, fungi, and some viruses are no match for microfiber. But it’s the size of the fibers in your cleaning cloth that determines the size of microbes it’ll pick up. Microbes are measured in microns — the diameter of an average human hair is 70 microns.
The fibers in an average microfiber cleaning cloth range in diameter from around 3–5 microns and will pick up pollen, most typical bacteria, and anything larger — including dust mites and their highly allergenic poop.
The best cloths — including E-Cloths — have fibers that measure around 0.33 microns — roughly 1/200th of the width of a human hair. These cloths remove more than 99 percent of bacteria and some viruses, which typically range from 0.1 to 0.5 microns in size.
What are the benefits of microfiber?
No chemicals needed
Microfiber is more effective than any other cloth at removing dirt, most bacteria, and some viruses from surfaces around the house, including your dishes — and it doesn’t require any chemical disinfectants or harsh cleaning solutions to do it.
In fact, soaps and detergents reduce the effectiveness of it. All it needs to do its job is water, and not that much of it.
Lint-free
It’s also lint-free, which makes it ideal for cleaning glass stovetops, cleaning windows, mirrors, and the housings of your electronics.
Typical microfiber cloths aren’t static-free, though, so don’t use them inside your electrical devices — unless you purchase a special, static-free cloth for that specific purpose.
