What is the use of sponge side of scouring pad

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kenny1999

Senior Cook
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Jan 18, 2012
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most common scouring pads have two sides - green and yellow. Usually green side is abrasive while the yellow side is sponge. What is actually the use of the yellow sponge? I feel so good cleaning with the green side but not the yellow side. I think it is not very good at removing stains on the all kinds of dishes. What is actually designed for??
 

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The Scotch Brite side of it is abrasive, so you wouldn't want to use it on something you wouldn't want to scratch, like a NS pan. You could also the sponge part for rubbing things down with Barkeeper's Friend. I never use this kind, however - I use the kinds in which sponges are covered with a nylon mesh, for abrasiveness. Everyone has their preferences...

 
The sponge side makes it a bit softer on your skin when you are holding it to use the abrasive, green side. If you put a bit of water and dishwashing liquid on the yellow side, you can squeeze that through to the abrasive side.
 
I use the rough side when scrubbing something with soapy water like the stove or such. Then the sponge side to mop up the water and soap. Rinse and repeat.
 
The green part is a decent scrubber, and is safe with almost everything. Not to be confused with the gray ones I have in the basement - those are paint scrubbers for cars. Gaven to me at an auto body place. Those will take enamel off. But not those green ones.

Anyway, if you scrub up and leave it, look closely. You left runs of it off the scrubber, between threads or whatever that is. The sponge contacts the whole surface and cleans that off.

T
 
"Use caution with the scrubber side - not all materials/surfaces need an abrasive."

I should have put that in. I say it is good up to porcelain or whatever, but there are other things. Something like this I start with a low pressure on it and increase.

Another thing is this Mean Green cleaner. This stuff will get rid of almost anything. You get it at those dollar stores, and in fact they got refills. Do follow instructions, that means some water with you.

Anyway, those green things are available without the yellow part. I think we have some. They are thin, only maybe a little thicker than on those sponges.

T
 
The green part is a decent scrubber, and is safe with almost everything. Not to be confused with the gray ones I have in the basement - those are paint scrubbers for cars. Gaven to me at an auto body place. Those will take enamel off. But not those green ones.

Anyway, if you scrub up and leave it, look closely. You left runs of it off the scrubber, between threads or whatever that is. The sponge contacts the whole surface and cleans that off.

T

Is "green side" safe for most of the common dishware? Will it create tiny scratches on plastic or ceramic dishes and harbor bacteria in the long run? "Yellow side" is a lot softer but the problem is it's just not cleaning so well.
 
Is "green side" safe for most of the common dishware? Will it create tiny scratches on plastic or ceramic dishes and harbor bacteria in the long run? "Yellow side" is a lot softer but the problem is it's just not cleaning so well.

I wouldn't say that it is safe for most dishware. If I remember correctly, green is for pots and pans. I don't remember what colour is safe for dishes. I think it was white.
 
Hi Kenny, simply said, for most common dishware, yes, the green side is safe. But as with anything you will have to define common. Not knowing the plastic dishware you could be using, it may or may not create scratches. Ceramic dishes, although not unheard of, will probably not scratch.

The whole intent of washing dishes is to remove food residue that would ruin the taste and look of the next food served in/on it, and that can grow bacteria. Proper washing with soap and clean rinsing with water will get rid of that residue which could harbour bacteria.

Green side is to help remove stuck on residue. Yellow side is to hold and make the soap sudsy which helps lift and remove the residue you have loosened with the green side.
So if there are scratches created, whether or not by the sponge or any other agent or tool, the act of using soap and water is the purpose and reason for washing them, to get rid of whatever is left on them.

All of the above preferably done with the hottest water your hands can tolerate.
 
The same with mine, bucky.

Different manufacturers most likely use their own color combos. What I normally buy with a green side is rather abrasive. I would not use it on anything plastic, non-stick, or anything I would not want scratched..
 
Hi Kenny, simply said, for most common dishware, yes, the green side is safe. But as with anything you will have to define common. Not knowing the plastic dishware you could be using, it may or may not create scratches. Ceramic dishes, although not unheard of, will probably not scratch.

The whole intent of washing dishes is to remove food residue that would ruin the taste and look of the next food served in/on it, and that can grow bacteria. Proper washing with soap and clean rinsing with water will get rid of that residue which could harbour bacteria.

Green side is to help remove stuck on residue. Yellow side is to hold and make the soap sudsy which helps lift and remove the residue you have loosened with the green side.
So if there are scratches created, whether or not by the sponge or any other agent or tool, the act of using soap and water is the purpose and reason for washing them, to get rid of whatever is left on them.

All of the above preferably done with the hottest water your hands can tolerate.

Yes I always know that

Green side is to help remove stuck on residue. Yellow side is to hold and make the soap sudsy which helps lift and remove the residue

but the problem is the yellow side doesn't clean dishes very well, even without any stubborn stain, it's like not wanting to remove anything at all, I always need to use the green abrasive side for wiping and cleaning dishes, but it's said that green side would create tiny scratches possibly not seen by naked eyes and harbor bacteria, it sounds reasonable because many labels on these sponges suggest that you should not use the abrasive side on dishes and plates you care, but as I said many times before, the yellow non-abrasive side is just bad for cleaning.
 
Kenny, do you wash your dishes under running water or do you put them in a dish basin with hot soapy water? I often put the dishes in water so hot that I don't want to put my hands in it. Once the water has cooled a bit, to a more comfortable temperature, most of the food on the plates is easy to wipe off with something non-abrasive. Soaking the dishes loosens the stuck on food.
 

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