If you buy wiping supplies for a plant, a machine shop or a body shop, you've probably been offered two kinds of product: recycled (or "reclaimed") rags sold by the pound, and new cloths or disposable wipers sold by the box, roll or case. Both wipe up oil and grease. They're made differently, they're bought differently, and they suit different jobs.

Here's a plain comparison to help you decide what belongs in your shop, and where it makes sense to keep both.

What "recycled" or "reclaimed" rags are

Recycled rags start life as something else: T-shirts, bed sheets, towels, thermal fabric or huck towels. That textile is collected, sorted and cut into rag-sized pieces. At Quick Rags Supply we process rags at our own facility at 470 Hollenbeck St in Rochester, NY.

What you get depends on the source fabric:

• Color T-shirt rags are soft, absorbent cotton for everyday wiping of oil, grease and liquids. See our Color Cotton T-Shirt Rags.
• White knit rags come from both bed sheets and T-shirts. They're soft, stretchy pieces that conform to surfaces, good for polishing and wipe-downs. See our White Knit T-Shirt Rags and Reclaimed White Knit Rags.
• Huck rags are 100% pre-washed cotton towels, about 8 to 10 pieces per pound, a long-time favorite for glass and general cleaning. See Reclaimed Huck Rags.
• Sheeting rags are lightweight, smooth white cotton cut from bed sheets, used for polishing, staining and general wiping. See Reclaimed White Sheeting Rags.
• Thermal cloths are thick, heavy-duty wipers made from recycled thermal fabric. See Reclaimed Thermal Wiping Cloths.
• Half terry towels are thick, looped cotton for soaking up spills. See Reclaimed White Half Terry Towel Rags.

Most of these are sold by the pound in 10, 25 and 50 lb boxes. You can browse them together in our reclaimed rags collection.

What "new" rags and wipers are

"New" usually means one of two things:

1. New cloth made to be a rag. It's cut and packed for wiping, not reused from another product. Every piece is the same size, color and material.
2. Disposable wipers and shop towels. These are made-for-purpose paper or nonwoven wipers sold in boxes and rolls. Quick Rags Supply carries several:
   • Blue Shop Towels: 55 sheets per roll, six rolls per pack, four packs per case, made for grease, oil, dirt and spills.
   • Extra Thick Disposable White Rags: 200 sheets per box, six boxes per case, for grease, oil, spills and paint.
   • WaterWeave Wipers: no-lint, solvent-compatible wipers that work wet or dry, in boxed and roll formats.

You'll find the full range in our paper products collection.

The main differences

Consistency. New wipers are uniform: same size, same weight, same color every sheet. Reclaimed rags are graded by fabric type, but pieces vary in size and shape, and color rags come in mixed colors. If your process needs identical sheets, for a dispenser or a measured wipe-down, new wipers are easier.

Durability and reuse. Cotton rags such as huck, terry, T-shirt and thermal are woven or knit fabric, so they hold together under heavy wiping and scrubbing. Disposable wipers are built for one job and then go in the trash. Try both on your own heaviest jobs before you decide which fits.

How you buy. Reclaimed rags come by weight: a box of 10, 25 or 50 lb. Disposable wipers come by count: sheets per roll or box, rolls or boxes per case. That makes disposables easier to count, while rags are easier to stock in bulk.

Cleanliness and convenience. A fresh shop towel is clean every time and easy to grab at a front counter, in a service truck or at a workstation. Rags take a little sorting by job: keep prep rags, glass rags and grease rags in separate bins.

Waste. Recycled rags give textiles that would otherwise be thrown out a second working life. Disposable wipers are single-use by design. If your company tracks waste reduction, that's worth noting. Either way, used rags and wipers soaked with oil or solvent should go in a closed metal container made for oily waste, and you should follow your local disposal rules.

Which one fits your shop?

If you use both, here's a practical way to split them by industry:

• Manufacturing plants: reclaimed T-shirt or thermal rags for general machine and floor wipe-down; no-lint WaterWeave wipers where a clean, solvent-compatible, uniform wiper is needed at a workstation.
• Machine shops: cotton rags for coolant, cutting oil and chips on machines and benches; shop towels at inspection or assembly stations. More detail is on our machine shop rags page.
• Auto body and repair shops: T-shirt or thermal rags in the bays, white knit or sheeting rags kept separate for prep and detail work, and blue shop towels at the counter and in road vehicles.
• Fleet shops: rags by the pound for the garage, plus boxed disposables that ride well in service trucks.
• HVAC contractors: a box of rags at the shop and a few packs of shop towels or wipers on each van for coil, drain pan and unit wipe-downs.

For spills bigger than a rag should handle, add absorbent pads. Our Reclaimed Absorbent Pads come in a 50 lb box and are made for oil, grease, coolants, solvents and water-based spills.

Buying from Quick Rags Supply

We serve plants and shops across New York State and Connecticut, and we ship anywhere in the USA with free shipping, so reordering online doesn't mean a drive. If you're near Rochester, walk-in pickup is available at our facility at 470 Hollenbeck St, Rochester, NY 14621. Prices for every box size are listed on each product page at quickragsupply.com.

Try a free sample

Not sure whether reclaimed rags or new wipers suit your work? Ask us for a free sample and test it on your own machines, parts and spills before you buy in bulk. To get one, call (585) 786-7401 or email office@quickragsupply.com and tell us what you're wiping. We'll suggest a rag to try.