In my ongoing journey to live more sustainably, some things have come easily. Switching to reusable grocery bags, for example, was a cinch. Cutting down on water use—pretty intuitive. Even composting my food waste has been surprisingly low-lift. Paper towels, though…man, I love paper towels. And for years I just couldn’t give them up.

I’m not alone in my love for the disposables, especially among my fellow Americans. The U.S. spends around $6 billion annually on paper towels, more than any other country. I never did a full audit of my paper towel usage, but I was probably among the 45.3 million Americans going through at least eight rolls a month. I was using paper towels in my home to wipe up every single mess. I would rip off a sheet, wipe, throw it out. A few minutes later, I’d realize I missed a spot, rip off another sheet, wipe, throw it out. Sometimes I would rip off two sheets, put one under each foot, and scoot around the floor to “mop.” On really lazy days, I’d eat a meal off a paper towel because I didn’t feel like washing a dish. Oh, and don’t get me started on drying my hands.

I knew I was being bad. I’d read the stat that the U.S. adds 3.8 million tons of paper tissue and towel trash to landfills a year. That number can feel too abstract to grasp, but try to imagine 30,000 blue whales, and you’ll get a sense of how massive that amount is. And all that waste releases methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that’s playing a major role in the climate crisis. Also, even though many brands use recycled paper and bamboo, the paper towel industry is still contributing to deforestation and water waste.

As a consumer, I am part of the paper towel industry, and I finally realized I had to make some changes to my personal habits if I really, truly believed in striving for a greener future. So I took some simple steps and realized that reusable rags are not the inconvenient, germ-ridden hassles I thought they would be. In fact, the switch has been pretty easy. Here’s what I did.

Step 1: Tell People in Your Household You Want to Cut Down on Paper Towel Usage

While my husband is a very conscientious person, I’ve always been a bit more passionate about sustainability matters. I needed to loop him in before I made the switch to reusable cloths. I explained my reasoning, and he came on board quickly. Have a conversation with your housemates, and you’ll likely have luck persuading them: Research shows that talking about a sustainability effort before enacting it influences people to be more eco-friendly, even if they initially hold “anti-sustainability views,” the study says.

Step 2: Stop Buying Paper Towels

Over the years, I had gone through several failed attempts to switch to reusable cloths. During those various efforts, I bought Swedish dishcloths and microfiber cloths, and I even cut up old cotton T-shirts to add to the rag pile. But I rarely used them. Why? Paper towels were always in my house and seemed so much more convenient!

Through brute mental strength, I managed to stop myself from adding a pack of paper towels to my grocery cart one week so I’d be forced to use the rags I already had. It worked. Once I eliminated access to paper towels, I realized rags were just as handy and much better at cleaning messes. No, I couldn’t just throw them into the trash, but I could walk three more steps to the laundry bag hanging by the basement door and throw them in there.

I was actually embarrassed to realize how easy the switch was, once I cut myself off from buying more disposables.

Step 3: Have One Roll on Hand for the Gross Stuff

About a week into my new and improved life as a reusable-rag person, my husband sheepishly told me that he had bought a package of paper towels because he needed some for his painting class. “I have one extra roll, and I’ll just put it right in here,” he said, tucking it into the cleaning closet.

This turned out to be a good thing. We have a 6-year-old daughter and two cats, and life gets disgusting. Jason Tetro, host of the Super Awesome Science Show and author of The Germ Code and The Germ Files, told me that reusable cloths do have the potential to spread pathogens, “so for bodily fluids and solids and raw meat juice, go with disposables.”

With just one roll on hand at any given time, I can use paper towels when absolutely necessary. This is better, in fact, than finding myself throwing out reusable rags, since textiles also require a lot of energy to produce. If I use one of the eco-friendly paper towel brands on the Natural Resources Defense Council’s list, I feel OK about being a (minimal) consumer.

Step 4: Learn How to Wash Reusable Rags Properly

Since I’m also trying to minimize my water usage, I typically just add my gently used rags to a load of towels and wash everything together in cold water, which is effective at removing light stains.

If you’re immunocompromised or want to be sure you’re getting all the germs out, take things a step further with Tetro’s advice: “Wash in hot water (above 140°F) and use an oxidizing bleach substitute. If you can’t wash in these conditions, give the towels a quick soak in a disinfectant, rinse well, and then put in the laundry.”

Step 5: Organize Your Rag Stash

I keep Swedish dishcloths (they’re the scrubbiest) in the kitchen, along with Oeko-Tex-certified cotton cloths for drying my hands and wiping up light messes. I also keep a bamboo rack out for drying the cloths after I rinse them. In my cleaning closet, I have microfiber cloths and my stash of cut-up cotton T-shirts in a bucket, which I can carry around the house. The big laundry bag hanging near my basement door is where the soiled cloths go.

If I can do it, you can do it! The next step in my journey is eliminating single-use plastic from my house. Wish me luck.