The cloth that started it all, the Norwex EnviroCloth®.
In 1994, a friend introduced Norwex Founder Bjørn Nicolaisen to some miraculous microfiber cloths that effectively cleaned his dirty windshield using only microfiber and water. He was so amazed that he decided to make it his life’s goal to get these clothes into as many homes as possible. I’m so glad he did.
The Norwex EnviroCloth is HANDS DOWN, my favorite Norwex product, and probably the most used Norwex product in our house.
If I were to rate this on a scale of 1-10, this handy little cloth would be a 100! I can’t adequately say how much I love it. If I had to choose just one Norwex product to use for the rest of my life, I would choose the EnviroCloth without hesitation.
This cloth cleans EVERYTHING in my house and has replaced all of the chemical cleaners I used to use ~ Every home should have one (well, probably more than one)! Here are some of the reasons why I love it so much:
1. The Norwex EnviroCloth GRABS & REMOVES dirt, soap scum and general grungies like nothing I’ve used before.
This is because the cloth is made of high-grade microfiber ~ each strand is a mere 1/200th the size of a human hair. Translated, this means that the Norwex microfiber cloth has a HUGE amount of surface area, grabbing the dirt from whatever you’re wiping, making it great for dry dusting and wet cleaning. One of my favorite uses for the Enviro Cloth is in my bathroom ~ the sink, bathtub and tub surround. Gone are those nasty chemical cleaners! This cloth cleans the ring-around-the-tub, soapy water spots on the tub walls, toothpaste spatter, hard water spots, and general grossness found in bathrooms, using minimal elbow grease. It leaves everything streak-free and eliminates the chemical residue other cleaners leave behind.
2. Densely woven, superfine Norwex Microfiber physically removes up to 99% of bacteria from a surface using only water when following the proper care and use instructions!
Norwex Microfiber picks up and holds onto the dirt and anything else on your surface, safely eliminating it from your house without using harmful chemicals. When you follow the proper care and use instructions, the densely woven, superfine Norwex Microfiber physically removes up to 99% of bacteria from a surface using only water. As I mentioned, I have stopped using chemical cleaners thanks to this amazing cloth because I don’t need them to clean things; the EnvirCloth takes care of it all.
Cleaning with cotton cloths, other natural fibers, and sponges is like trying to clean with a BEACH BALL – it just pushes the dirt around rather than picking it up and removing it.
Microfiber
Using Norwex® microfiber is like using a SHOVEL rather than a ball to pick up dirt, grease, and dust. Norwex® Microfiber can remove up to 99% of bacteria from a surface when following the proper care and use instructions.
3. The Norwex EnviroCloth is “self-purifying.”
The Norwex EnviroCloth® contains BacLock™. BacLock is an antimicrobial agent solely intended to protect and self-clean the cloth by inhibiting the growth of odor-causing bacteria, mold and mildew. One of the significant benefits of BacLock™ is that your cloth will resist that all too familiar, yucky smell!
4. The Norwex EnviroCloth® actually cleans better and faster. Period.
In my attempt to “go greener” in our home, I have tried other green cleaners, including the homemade ones using baking soda and vinegar. I am embarrassed to say that I always reverted to my bad habit of using toxic cleaners. The reason? I just didn’t find that the green methods cleaned as well.
Then my friend gave me the gift of a Norwex EnviroCloth®, and I skeptically started trying it in all the different rooms of my house. In all honesty, I was amazed. In every way, this little cloth surpassed my expectations.
Not only did it clean better, but to my great surprise, my house stayed clean longer. Chemical cleaners leave a sticky residue where they’ve cleaned. When dirt settles on this sticky residue, it essentially gets “glued” down, making cleaning more challenging. So, when I eliminated the chemicals, I also eliminated sticky chemical residue, which resulted in surfaces that no longer attracted dirt or encouraged the dirt to stick, which led to less cleaning and faster cleaning.
I have had many people ask me how the Norwex Microfiber cloth differs from the microfiber you can buy at the dollar store.
I explain to them that there are two major differences.
- Norwex microfiber is a MUCH higher quality microfiber than what you would find at any retail store. Each Norwex microfiber splits upwards of 200 times per thread (for superior ‘grabbing’ power). On the other hand, the store variety of microfiber thread splits as few as six times per thread. A dollar store microfiber cloth’s cleaning power significantly diminishes after a few washes. In contrast, Norwex microfiber cloths will last seven years or longer. Even after 500 washes, studies have found that an Enviro cloth is still just as effective at removing EVERYTHING from the surface being wiped as when it was brand new!
- Unlike the dollar store variety, which you can not put in the dryer after laundering, you can and should dry Norwex microfiber in the dryer, and the hotter the setting, the better! It may not seem like such a big deal until you try fishing them out of your wet laundry; it’s a hassle!
How To Use Your Norwex EnviroCloth®
Use it WET
Wet the cloth and wring out the excess water. Again, fold the cloth into quarters. Wipe the dirty surface, keeping the cloth flat against the surface rather than “bunching” up the cloth when wiping. The flat allows for maximum surface area contact, which means maximum cleaning. For spot removal, spray water on the dirty surface and then wipe with a damp EnviroCloth. When one side of the cloth gets dirty, simply flip the cloth over and use the other side, then unfold and use another quarter of the cloth, and so on, until all parts of the cloth have been used. Then, just rinse the cloth under warm/hot running water while rubbing the cloth against itself to release the dirt. Wring it out, and start again!
Use it DRY
Simply fold into quarters and wipe dusty surfaces. When finished, take the cloth and shake it outside to release the dust.
I encourage you to test this cloth! It continues to amaze me with its cleaning abilities! It will remove old stains from your carpets, take smells from the rim of your toilet (yuck), wipe grease and stuck on “stuff” from kitchen surfaces, and get soap scum and hard water scales off your bathtub and shower.
Oh, and if you want truly streak-free mirrors and windows, use a wet (and wrung-out) EnviroCloth to clean them, then dry them with your dry Window Cloth. You will NOT believe how clean and streak-free it will be!
Over the years, Norwex has developed a number of cleaning products that can be used with your EnviroCloth to help speed up your cleaning even more! Here are a few of my favorites:
- Descaler – removes soap scum, limescale, calcium and rust deposits
- Cleaning Paste – lovingly referred to as “elbow grease in a jar”. Cleans, protects, and polishes – all in one application. This is one of EnviroCloth’s best friends.
- Bathroom Cleaner – all-purpose bathroom cleaner provides deep cleaning without any strong fumes or corrosive ingredients. It also descales and eliminates sources of odors.
For more detailed information on how to take care of and properly wash your microfiber, you should read these posts:
Conclusion
As I stated at the beginning, the EnviroCloth is MY FAVORITE Norwex product, and it deserves all the stars that can be bestowed upon it. I can say with the utmost sincerity that if you buy one, you will love it, and almost certainly, you will purchase more, so I do recommend buying the Rainbow (Multi) Pack right off the bat.
I would love to hear all of your EnviroCloth love stories and how this one little cloth changed your cleaning life!
Thanks for stopping by ~Suzanne
Do the Norwex clothes kill the covid-19 virus?
No; Norwex has not done any testing with regard to viruses in general or COVID-19 specifically. I recommend following CDC guildines during this pandemic. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Tell me how to buy these cloths, please!
Hi Susan, you can purchase them here or here (a 4 pack at a discounted price)!
I have had my cleaning clothes for about 4 years, and there still going strong, they have been through everything and back, I have cleaned just about everything you can image, I can pickup the rags and find myself cleaning everything, and even cleaning other people’s windows, they think I am crazy, but I’m very pleased with the product
Jamie, your review of the Norwex Enviro Cloth TOTALLY made my day! Thank you for sharing!!!
I have a question. How many times is the Norwex microfiber split? There seems to be some confusion about “1/200th the size of a human hair” and the number of times a fiber is split. I keep reading that the fiber is split 200 times, and was just wondering if that is actually factual.
Tamara, the official answer from Norwex, is that the Norwex Microfiber is no thicker than 1/200th the size of a human hair. Does this help?
A friend of mine encouraged me to use your product. She ordered 2 cloths for me, and am a little confused about to how to use them. The girl she ordered them for sent me 2 purple cloth. Is one for for washing windows and mirrors (wet) and the other is suppose to be kept dry for polishing? There is nothing on the cloths that says one is a Window cloth, and the other a Enviro cloth. Thanks for your help.
Debbie, it sounds like you’ve received two window cloths, as only the polishing cloths come in purple. To clean a window, mirror or glasstop surface, you would need an enviro cloth, that you would use wet to wipe the surface, and then polish dry with your dry purple cloth.
Does the purple cloth ever become over used.? I loved it at first then I began seeing streaks in my windows. I have been watching several Norwex vides on washing windows. I am going out to try again. Possibly I was not holding my cloth properly.
Diane, do you wash your polishing cloth sometimes? I tend to throw mine in the wash after a few uses, or if I’ve used it to polish windows that had been really dirty (like washing the outside ones). I don’t hold or fold mine in any particular way. I’d recommend washing it and throwing it in the dryer to see if that helps!
We just bought a new kitchen table 1 week ago and I have been using the gray microfiber envirocloth to clean it and every time I use it there seems to be more and more scratches that are appearing. Any suggestions?
I should say it is the graphite Kitchen cloth. I turned my table around and started to wipe the other end with a normal cotton dish rag and so far there have been no scratches. Too scared to try the norwex cloth again.
Paula, I’ve never heard of the Norwex cloths scratching the finish of a kitchen table… I’m not quite sure what to say about that. Does anyone else have a suggestion?
I spilled a milkshake on my microfiber sofa and then tried the alcohol, sponge, and scrub brush, but I’ve had no luck. I tried using a store bought foam with a scrubbing head and I think It may have made it work. When you use the enviro-cloth and water, do you apply the water to the stain or to the cloth? Does it leave a water mark?
Alycia, for food stains on upholstery, you would get the Norwex Enviro Cloth wet, wring it out, and then rub the stained spot. If that doesn’t work, you should try the Norwex Carpet Stain Buster (my review of the product)… it’s amazing for stains on microfiber couches… I know because I’ve used it countless times on mine! Simply spray the stained spot, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and then gently rub the spot with your Enviro Cloth. If the stain isn’t completely removed, just repeat the application.
I am trying to convince my husband that Norwex is great. His only problem is this….
After cleaning the chicken covered surface, then rinsing the cloth in the sink, he says you still have to disinfect the sink, because the bacteria/protein, is now in the sink and the drain. How will this area get clean?
I am having a home party soon, and hope to have an answer soon.
Thank you ,
Katherine
Katherine, I am SO sorry for my late response… my other full time job (aka ‘mom’), has taken over for the last couple months! Typically when I’m cleaning up raw chicken mess, or anything else in my kitchen that could make my family sick, I slosh a little white vinegar in the sink and let it sit for a while, after rinsing out my Norwex Enviro Cloth. This is an easy and ‘green’ solution!
When the cloth is fully open, is there a right side or wrong side to use for cleaning?
There is no wrong side with the Norwex cloths – both can be used for cleaning!
Can you use oxygen bleach? peroxide cleaner to soak the stinky cloths.. or would you boil them instead?
Brenda, sorry for my late response! I had to check with the Norwex technical advisors regarding your question. Here is their answer:
When laundering cloths can bleach be used?
Thank you for you reply.
Gail, no, bleach can not be used when washing the Norwex microfiber cloths. Bleach degrades the fibers, and will quickly render them ineffective in doing what they’re supposed to.
Is this cloth safe for high polished granite?
Yes, the Norwex Enviro microfiber cloth is WONDERFUL for high polished granite – it cleans off everything… sticky fingerprints, grease, etc. I would highly recommend getting the Window Cloth as well. You would wash with the Enviro Cloth and then use the Window cloth to polish and “de-streak” your granite. You can purchase them together at a slight discount – it’s called the Norwex Basic Package.
Can you tell me how do I buy one of these to try out ?
Hi Jo, you can purchase them here or here (a 4 pack at a discounted price)!
Do you usually wet the cloth first, unless dusting? Then how often do you launder, after every deep clean? or will rinsing get the stuff out?
Yes, unless you’re dusting, the Enviro Cloth needs to be wet/damp for cleaning. I generally launder my cloths after every deep clean. If I’m just using it to wipe the bathroom counter and sink, I will often use it a few days in a row, and just hang it to dry in between the jobs. If you’re going to use the cloth multiple times before laundering, it’s important to rinse it out really well under warm running water (or wash it by hand with a little dish soap), and then hang it to dry so that the silver in the cloth can do it’s work of self sanitizing.
What color cloths for what job?
I get mixed up which cloths to use for what job..I do the blue for washing my windows and lavender to polish. I have the yellow, green and coral cloths also so whats the best uses for them? Love my windows!!
Hi Sheree! The different colored cloths can really be used wherever you would like, but yes, it’s nice to have different jobs color coded for peace of mind.
To refresh my Norwex cloths & the facecloths, do I boil for 10 or 20 minutes? Thankyou, Laura
Norwex does not recommend boiling any of their microfiber cloths. Instead you can deep cleaning your cloths using 1 of 2 methods:
1. Soak them in the Norwex Microfiber Cleaner Laundry Booster – it’s an enzyme-based microfiber wash detergent that removes tough stains and odors – it’s one of my favorite products!
2. Soak you Norwex cloths using 1 full scoop of Norwex Laundry Detergent in a sink of hot water.
Either of these methods will refresh your cloths!