Bathroom rugs are a few items in a bathroom that tend to get dirty most often. The bathroom rug can build up bacteria quickly between the showers every morning and night. People will often wash rugs and towels at the same time. Is this a good idea?
Bathroom rugs should not be washed with towels. Do not mix towels or clothes into the washer with the bathroom rug. If you have a bathroom mat with rubber backing, wash it and hang it dry.
Cleaning the bathroom rug shouldn’t be a hassle. It’s not an item that needs to be hand-washed, as it can be thrown in the washer and dryer and out within an hour.
To save time, washing bathroom items in one load is common for many homeowners. We will look at the best method to wash bathroom rugs, especially with bath towels.
Can You Wash Bathroom Rugs With Towels?
Before we start, let’s first understand what a bathroom rug is made out of. Typically bathroom rugs are made out of absorbent cotton with a rubber backing that acts as the grip on the floor.
Aside from cotton, newer bathroom rugs are also made with absorbent microfibers.
Bathroom rugs are almost always machine washable, especially with towels.
However, we recommend that you wash the bathroom rug itself the first time in case there’s any color bleeding.
After the first wash, we still recommend that you do not wash your bathroom rugs with your towels.
Bathroom rugs are often filled with bacteria and urine and toilet water backsplash. Mixing these fluids in with your towels is not a great idea.
We recommend keeping two separate loads of laundry for the two types of materials.
Double-check with either the package instructions or the tag to see the best option to wash a machine rug.
If you don’t mind the mix and bacteria overlap, there’s nothing wrong with washing both of them. However, we highly recommend against it.
Typically, washing bathroom rugs is done with cold water and drying with a light tumble on low. This will yield the best results in thoroughly cleaning the bathroom rug. Wash your bathroom rugs 2-3 times monthly for the best results.
Machine Washing Bathroom Rugs & Towels
Towels, being machine washable, will help homeowners save time while doing a load of laundry. When washing bathroom rugs, we recommend you leave the towels out of the mix.
Bathroom rugs are typically machine washable. It’s important to advise the instructions or the tag on the bathroom rug to ensure it’s machine washable.
When purchasing a bathroom rug, it’s important to understand what material is on the bottom, just as equally as on the top.
Frequent washes with a rubber backing can cause the rubber piece to come loose and ultimately disassemble with frequent dries.
Newer rugs with microfiber technology are machine washable and can be cleaned with other bathroom rugs.
We will show you alternate solutions to the traditional cotton bathroom rug, which may save you in the distant future.
Which Bathroom Rugs Are The Best For Washing?
When purchasing a bathroom rug, three things should be sought: the rug’s comfort, style, and stickiness.
Comfort on the feet is essential after a long day of work. The style needs to match the bathroom decor.
Finally, the stickiness of the rug needs to grip the tile or whatever flooring you may have.
A slippery rug may cause accidents, especially after a hot shower.
Many types of bathroom rugs/mats are available for purchase. We will highlight the rugs that have worked best for us and cover all three listed items.
As technology evolves, especially in interior design, we’ve been introduced to memory foam bathroom rugs, which are great on tiled floors.
Clara Clark Memory Foam Bathroom Mat
Memory foam mats may not appear as the typical bathroom rug, but it has a safe effect as a traditional bathroom rug.
These rugs are 100% soft microfiber, filled with soft memory foam cushioning. Stepping out of a warm shower never felt so comfortable!
The microfiber is great and absorbs just as well as a traditional rug but feels like a cloud on the feet.
The microfiber fabric is antibacterial and is great for those with allergies or sensitivity to the material.
If you’re interested in memory foam bathroom rugs, we recommend checking out these made by Clara Clark.
Gorilla Grip Mat
What’s one of the worst things about bathroom rugs or mats? It’s constantly slipping.
The Gorilla Grip Mat is one of our favorites because of its comfort on the feet and because it would slip and slide when you step on it.
Especially if you have one of these four tiled floors, having a nonslip bathroom mat is essential.
With over 35 different customizations, this mat can match any bathroom style.
It’s also dryer-friendly, which can help with the cleaning process, as you don’t have to wait for it to air dry.
Chardin Home – Pure Cotton
If you’re looking for a pure cotton solution, the Chardin Home bathroom rug is great.
The Chardin Home pure cotton bathroom mat is a traditional rug that requires washing with cold water and tumble drying on low. The plush cotton is soft to the touch and highly absorbent.
Available in two different styles, this rug is great for those looking for a consistent, easy-style rug to add to their bathroom.
Conclusion
We recommend updating and purchasing the memory foam bathroom rugs instead of those made from soft cotton and rubber backing.
As mentioned above, the rubber backing, due to the dryer’s tumbling, will come loose and be more susceptible to disengaging from the cotton.
If you’re still using your cotton-based rug, we recommend washing it with cold water and tumbling it low. Also, to reinforce, make sure the first wash is by itself in case of color bleeding.
Other than that, bathroom rugs can be washed with towels after the first initial wash.
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For over a decade, Robin has been a real estate agent, interior design specialist, and mother. Through her trials and tribulations, she wanted to create the perfect website to help you save money and make your home look beautiful.