Bowl holders
 

What type of batting should be used when making the microwable bowl holders?

only 100% cotton, no scrim, etc.

There is a batting called "Warm and Plush" which replaced the "Warm Tater". It is designed to go in the microwave.

I use a product called Wrap & Zap by Pellon.

The Warm Company does make Warm and Plush, but it is not for the microwave. In fact on their web site they say that they do not recommend that any batting products be used in the microwave. Any of them can catch fire if they reach the right temperature. This is the statement from their web site:

The Warm Company does not recommend cotton batting, polyester batting or blended batting for microwave use. Cotton batting, cotton fabric and cotton threads are flammable. Patterns recommending the use of Warm & Natural, Warm & White or Warm & Plush for microwave use are doing so without the consent of The Warm Company.

Wrap and Zap....I get it at Walmart,

i tell people to only nuke for aminute. ck, then put in again.

I made several for Christmas gifts and use wrap and zap.

I use Wrap and Zap. I had read somewhere not to nuke longer than 3 minutes. If it has to be longer, take it out of the microwave and turn the cozy to the other side and then nuke.

When I made one for my daughter I told her it can be used in the microwave but no longer than 1.5 minutes that it can catch fire. So what she does is use hot pads to remove the food from the microwave and then puts it into the cloth bowl.

Recommendation-so why bother making these, I thought the purpose was to prevent heat from penetrating to hands , like a hot pad---- I did not nor will I make these things for myself or others(who really would not heed instructions- I would not want to be responsible for a tragedy). When tato cookers for micro were popular, I was given one as a gift---then the problems were made known, mine went in the garbage-actually only used once or twice, saw no difference!

I made a whole bunch for Christmas presents and told everyone they could not go in the microwave (even tho the batting says they could!) I'm not taking responsibility for someone not paying attention to a time limit and having it catch on fire - and they then said, but you said it could go in the microwave LOL No one seemed to mind that they couldn't go in the microwave .. they all liked them and we even used them on Christmas day - used oven mitts to take out of the oven / microwave, place in holder and bring over to table ... not hard and no fire!

I actually use mine for grabbing the hot bowl out of the microwave

Prior to Christmas I did quite a bit of research into this before I made many for gifts (which everyone loved and use regularly - including a set for myself). Here's the criteria: EVERYTHING, repeat: EVERYTHING must be 100% cotton and nothing but. Then there are no fire, overheating, etc. issues. Anything at all with poly, etc. will melt or catch fire in the micro.

EVERYTHING means BATTING with no scrim (I ordered specifically-labeled micro batting from Joann's), of course your FABRIC which, if you're in doubt perform a fabric burn test (google for info), and most overlooked, the THREAD! Make sure the THREAD is 100% cotton; most "cotton" are poly-wrapped and it will present microwave problems. I set up a special area for my microwaveable stuff and plan to make many more as part of housewarming, welcoming, etc. gifts.

Hope this clarifies a bit. Enjoy your gift-giving including a set for yourself.

Wrap n zap is a batting specifically for microwave projects. I get mine either online or at joanns with a coupon. And everything above that Jo Belmont said. It’s easy to forget cotton bobbin thread.

What brand thread do you use?

I agree with Geri B. Rather than wasting my time making something that could be potentially dangerous to use, I simply put my bowl on a paper plate before microwaving, then use the paper plate to lift the hot bowl out. And the paper plate can be reused.

I don't put mine in the microwave but transfer the hot bowl into it. Many times contents boil over in the microwave and then you'd have a mess in the fabric bowl. Easier to clean up the glass tray. And I'm not risking a fire either.

You can use the more expensive ones (wrap and zap) that are marketed specifically to use in microwave or use regular cotton batting that does not have scrim. We have been making and selling the soup cozy holders for years and have never had a problem. We do include a tag that states they are for reheating food and should not be used for more than 3 minutes. We have sold hundreds of sets and not had one person complain to us. Just be sure your fabric, batting AND thread are all 100% cotton.

Wrap and Zap is available at JoAnns.

This is inaccurate. Using all cotton will reduce the risk, but it will not eliminate it.

To find out if something might catch fire in the microwave, do this simple test: take the object (or materials you want to make it out of) and hold a lit match to it. If it can burn, it can also burn in the microwave.

This isn't a perfect test, of course... I had a rice bag char quite thoroughly even though I made it myself from 100% cotton fabric and thread, no batting, with 90sec in the microwave. The problem started in the rice, even though it would pass the match test. The fabric was getting ready to burn when I pulled it out.

There is no way to make a non-flammable bowl holder. The question is what level of risk you're willing to take. You can do it with lower risk using all cotton, or somewhat higher risk using other materials. The only way to have no fire issues is not to put flammable things in the microwave.