Hows it going?
Im Terri and today on Gear Up with Greggs I'm gonna show you how to help clean up messes
and help save the environment all at the same time.
You guessed it, today we will be talking about the wonderful world of wiping rags!
Mechanics use them, janitors live by them, and manufactures swear by them.
Just about anyone who needs to clean, wipe, absorb or stain use a rag!
Yet, many people dont know where these wipers originate from, and just how beneficial to
our environment they are.
People all over Canada, are cleaning out their closets and looking through their basements,
determining what clothing they no longer need.
That person then donates those items to charity or recycles them with their local collection bin operator.
What you might not know, is that those charities only sell around ten to twenty percent of
the clothing donated, and the remaining material is sold to brokers to help generate additional
revenue and support the charities programs.
Donated clothing and textiles like towels, bedding and T-shirts are separated into 3 grades.
1) usable clothing
2) fiber conversion, which means they will
get turned into things like insulation or carpet padding and
3) material for wiping cloths and rags. which is where we come in.
Here at Greggs we carry a variety of rags in different quantities that are perfect for
tackling the big messes in your shop or businesses.
All rags are available in 10 and 20-pound boxes.
20-pound boxes are also available in a pre-scanned for metal option if that is something you
or your company requires.
Although all rags are visually scanned before they are packaged, due to the recycled nature
of these wiping rags, the risk of a foreign object such as a staple, clothes pin or stick
pin being present is rare but may exist in the non-scanned boxes.
Most varieties are also available in 20-pound, vacuum packed clear plastic bales, which are
compressed to save space.
The bales, compared to the boxes, are waterproof but both are stackable and easy to handle.
The first type of rag we are going to be talking about is the White Cotton rag.
These are one hundred percent cotton wipers and they are an excellent general-purpose
rag and are a top choice for automotive trades like, collision repair shops, and fibreglass shops.
As you can see in this chart, these rags are good at absorbing water, as well as grease and oil.
They also do a good job when staining because they offer low-lint properties.
Although you would not want to use these when polishing and buffing.
We also carry mixed color cotton rags, which are made from a variety of things like bed
sheets, pants and dress shirts.
They are either one hundred percent cotton, or a polyester/cotton mix with a higher percentage
being poly/cotton.
Again, these are a fantastic general-purpose wiper that would be great in any industry.
When looking at the chart, we can see that they absorb water, grease and oil, and are
good where low-lint applications are needed.
Since they are coloured they hide the dirt and grime but may not be the best in applications
where color transfer is a concern like staining, polishing or buffing.
Next up we have these White Fleece rags.
These offer excellent absorbency and are good for scenarios where large amounts of liquids
have to be absorbed or applied.
These are particularly useful for car washes and detail shops.
Again, the white fleece rags have great absorbency for picking up water, grease and oil but are
also great for polishing and buffing applications.
On the other hand though, they have such good absorbency characteristics you wouldn't want
to use these when staining or painting.
The fleece rags come in a mixed color option, offering the same quality as the white fleece
style but in mixed colours to hide all of the stains and dirt.
These are an excellent offering and are preferred by oil patch workers and service shops.
Like the white fleece rags, we wouldn't want to use these rags when staining but they are
very good at picking up water, oil and grease.
Next, we have the Mixed color Terry Rags.
These are made from a highly absorbent cotton towel material and are known as the most absorbent of all wipers.
They are a janitorial favourite!
As they're perfect for wiping and absorbing everything, leaving a streak-free, dry surface with no residue.
They are very strong, long lasting, and can take a lot of abuse.
Looking to do some wood staining?
Well we have the rag for you!
These white ganzie rags are made from a fine, white cotton material, usually collected from old t-shirts.
They are soft, absorbent, low-lint wipers that will not transfer any color.
They are a great choice for painters, auto body repair shops, furniture finishing or
just general cleaning applications.
This is because the lack of lint means there will be no residue left behind when you are
applying the perfect coat of stain to that gorgeous table you just hand crafted out of
rich mahogany that fills your house with the musty scent of wealth and opportunity!!
or doing the final detailing on a car.
We see here that the ganzie rag is really an all-purpose wiper, that does everything well,
though, it is not as absorbent as other types of wipers.
They also come in a mixed color option made from old t-shirts.
Hey, maybe one day you'll be wiping something up with your old shirt!
Again, a great general-purpose wiper that is excellent at picking up spills.
Lastly, we have the mixed color flannel rags.
The king of wipers!
They are soft and very absorbent like my beard.
An excellent choice in applications where a low-lint, very absorbent wiper is required.
They are also great for polishing and buffing.
Since they are so absorbent, they would not be the best option for staining and painting applications.
Something to note about the color flannel rags, is that they do not come in a 20-pound bag option.
As I stated at the beginning, all other varieties mentioned come in 20-pound bags or 10-pound
and 20-pound boxes with a pre-scanned option for the 20-pound boxes.
Well now that we have bored you to death with all these rag options, you can use the mixed
color terry rags to wipe your drool off of the floor.
Thanks for watching this episode of Gear Up with Greggs and remember for all your wiping
needs, always think 100% Canadian with Gregg Distributors.