Which dish brushes, sponges and scrubbers contain no plastic at all?
This category is being vetted. Nothing here is a recommendation yet.
Where plastic hides in cleaning tools
The plastic hides in the working end. A wooden dish brush is often fitted with nylon bristles, and a "natural" sponge can be a cellulose block bound with synthetic glue or sewn with polyester thread. Scrub pads are usually nylon or polyester, and chainmail scrubbers tend to come with a silicone handle. Every wash sheds a little of whatever the brush or sponge is made of into your sink.
What to check before you buy
- Bristles: coconut, sisal, tampico or plant fiber, or nylon dressed up as natural?
- How the head is held: stainless wire and a wooden plug, or glue and a plastic insert?
- Handle finish: bare or oiled wood, or a lacquer or paint that is itself a plastic?
- Sponges: what binds the cellulose, what stitches the loofah, and what dyes the pad?
- Scrub pads and chainmail: steel, copper or cotton, or a silicone or nylon grip?
- Packaging: paper and card, or a plastic sleeve?