Cleaning cloths, also known as industrial cleaning cloths or oil-cleaning cloths, are specialized cleaning fabrics for industrial use. They are mainly used to wipe machinery, workpieces, oil stains, cutting fluids, ink, glue, etc. in factories. In the textile industry, many cleaning cloths are directly made from leftover fabric edges, fabric scraps, and waste fabric through cutting and processing. They are downstream recycled products in the textile industry.
I. Raw Material Classification
Pure cotton cleaning cloths (mainstream): Best in oil absorption and water absorption, soft texture; available in new white fabric cutting style and old knitted/cotton woven fabric sorting cutting styles. Suitable for auto repair, molds, machines, printing, and high-end models are less likely to shed fibers.
Polyester-cotton (T/C) cleaning cloths: Strong, not prone to rot, weak in oil absorption, moderate price, suitable for general dust removal and water wiping.
All-polyester cleaning cloths: Do not absorb water, have poor oil absorption, cheap, generally only used for simple dust removal, not recommended for oil wiping.
Ultra-fine fiber cleaning cloths: No fiber shedding, fine texture, used for precise parts, optics, electronics wiping, high price.
Two major sources in the industry: ① New fabric cutting from leftover fabric edges of weaving factories; ② Sorting, removing buttons and prints, cutting and packaging of pure cotton clothing (mixed-color cleaning cloths)
II. Classification by Grade & Color
White cotton cleaning cloths (A-class premium): Pure white, bleached cotton, clean, no impurities, less color, suitable for wiping workpieces before painting, food equipment, precision processing, easy to see oil stains, no color fading.
Light cotton cleaning cloths: Light gray, light blue, etc., cost-effective models, suitable for general machine processing.
Flower cotton / mixed-color cleaning cloths: Mixed colors, lowest price, suitable for heavy oil stains, ships, heavy machinery, no requirements for base color.
Returned fibers (cotton fibers):纱头、碎棉絮， fast oil absorption， but prone to fiber shedding， can only be used for rough wiping， not for precise parts.
III. Core Features
✅ Pure cotton models： Fast oil and water absorption， large liquid absorption capacity， soft texture， less likely to scratch metal workpieces ✅ Can be repeatedly washed and reused (new fabric cutting models have better durability) ✅ Flexible specifications， can be cut into fixed sizes of 30×40cm， 40×60cm， etc.， also available in large pieces ❌ Ordinary recycled mixed fabrics are prone to fiber shedding， with thread ends， printed and adhesive points； prone to mold and have an unpleasant smell when damp.
IV. Applicable Industries
Mechanical processing factories， auto repair， mold factories， ships， steel structures， printing factories， furniture factories， injection molding factories， textile workshops， hardware processing， generator maintenance， etc.， used for wiping engine oil， grease， cutting fluids， dust， glue， paint residues.
V. Purchase Points (Relating to Fabric)
Prioritize distinction： New fabric cutting cleaning cloths vs. recycled clothing cleaning cloths. New fabric cutting models have stable quality， less impurities， and less fiber shedding； recycled models have low prices and varying quality.
Pay attention to： Fiber shedding， color fading， wet fastness， presence of sand and stones， zippers and buttons， rubber， printed adhesive points (hard objects can scratch the workpiece).
Choose as needed：
Painting， polishing， precise parts： Select pure white pure cotton， less fluff models
Heavy oil stains rough wiping： Mixed-color flower cotton， cost control
Electronics， optical parts： Ultra-fine fiber dust-free wiping cloth
