How to cure a stinky washing machne

[RSKY]

I have posted this before but lately have seen a couple of comments about people having trouble with smells from their front loading washer. Here is the cure.

Get rid of the liquid detergent. Use only powder HE and once you get your washer odor free it will take very little effort to keep it that way.

First drain the filter which all front loaders have. It is usually located on the front left of the machine. Next pull out the detergent dispenser tray and clean the mildew out of the inside of the machine. If you have been using liquid detergent for a while this area inside your machine WILL have mildew in it. (First time my wife pulled ours out after a years use it was black inside.) Put a couple cups of powder DISHWASHING detergent inside the drum. Close the door and fill all trays up with white vinegar. Run the machine on the hottest setting for the longest time. Clean the rubber seal behind the door with vinegar or bleach. Throw away the liquid detergent. The smell should be gone.

To keep the machine odor free keep the door open slightly when not in use. Also keep detergent tray pulled open an inch or so. Most newer washers have a catch that holds the door open an inch or so. Also at least once a month run a load that you use bleach with.

Main thing is get red of liquid detergent and use only powder.

I did not figure this out on my on. A repairman told me this and we haven't had any odor since.

RSKY

 

[murphy1244]

We leave the door and fill tray partly open when not in use and never had any issues with it. Heck, I didn't know you can use powdered stuff in it.

 

[oosik]

I clean mine monthly according to the manufacturers directions and have never had odor problems - I've always used liquid detergent. I, just now, pulled the detergent tray and there is no mold or mildew anywhere - the washer is six years old. I do leave the door open and wipe the door seal after a load. This mold/mildew situation may be due to the humidity in the area where you live. Here our average humidity runs 25-30% - semiarid/desert.

 

[dave1949]

Mine, a Bosch, has no filter to clean. The stink comes from 2-3 cups of water in a sediment trap that never gets emptied by the pump. It's not easy to clean that trap either, and if it was, it would start another pool of standing water on the next use anyways.

White vinegar and using some Boraxo helps some but not a total cure. Whatever detergent is used might help but the last water going through that area is always rinse water--the detergent is mostly gone at that point.

 

[HeLa]

i've heard that powdered detergents should never be used with septic systems, because they have plastic filler (to prevent caking/bridging) that never dissolves and can cause problems in the distribution field. true?

we do use powdered detergent in our dishwasher (it isn't used often) because the liquid stuff just doesn't get our dishes clean with the hard water in our area. the powdered detergent keeps the inside of the machine considerably cleaner, too!

our bosch washing machine gets a funky smell to it from time to time. i run baking soda through it and this generally clears things up. also, the door is always open when the machine is not in use.

 

[kcflhrc]

I think the key is to wipe the door and seal off and leave the door open, that's what we do and run a cleaner tab through it every now and then. Never any odor. We also use liquid, I don't think ours can do powder.

 

[Ford850]

Our washer is slowly on it's way out. A top load model. I was whinking of getting a front load this time, just as I thought about it the last time. This thread is a good reminder of the negative things the front load design offers. It seems crazy to have so much filth and smell in a washing machine.

 

[dave1949]

Our washer is slowly on it's way out. A top load model. I was whinking of getting a front load this time, just as I thought about it the last time. This thread is a good reminder of the negative things the front load design offers. It seems crazy to have so much filth and smell in a washing machine.

Ya can't win. :laughing: I was thinking we would go back to a top loader, some of the new models that have the limited agitator design look interesting. Then I read about some potential too stingy with the water problems in those: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/327329-what-appliances-these-days.html

 

[KennyG]

We have two different front loaders, a Meile and a Whirlpool. We use liquid detergent in both, leave the doors open and have had no problems.

 

[Oaktree]

This thread is a good reminder of the negative things the front load design offers. It seems crazy to have so much filth and smell in a washing machine.

The last washer we had was a front-loader. The upsides were low water use, and it would wring almost all the water out on the spin cycle. The downside was that the drum bearings were shot in 10 years. The horizontal drum supported only one one end put a lot of strain on them. It would have cost more to replace the bearing assembly than to replace the whole machine.

It was just the two of us...maybe 2-3 loads a week. Went back to a top-loader.

 

[turnkey4099]

There is a product that does an amazing job of cleaning Dishwashers and washing machines - Lemi Shine. I learned about it from my "fix-it" guy.

My dishwasher was total grunge, one treatment and it was showroom clean.

Wal Mart has it in the 'cleansers' area, small box and hard to spot.

Harry K

 

[KennyG]

The last washer we had was a front-loader. The upsides were low water use, and it would wring almost all the water out on the spin cycle. The downside was that the drum bearings were shot in 10 years. The horizontal drum supported only one one end put a lot of strain on them. It would have cost more to replace the bearing assembly than to replace the whole machine.

Was that an early (circa 2000) Kenmore? We had one of those and the bearings went in 5 or 6 years. Our Meile is about 10 years old and our Whirlpool about 7 years old and they are very solid.

 

[mbohuntr]

i've heard that powdered detergents should never be used with septic systems, because they have plastic filler (to prevent caking/bridging) that never dissolves and can cause problems in the distribution field. true?

we do use powdered detergent in our dishwasher (it isn't used often) because the liquid stuff just doesn't get our dishes clean with the hard water in our area. the powdered detergent keeps the inside of the machine considerably cleaner, too!

our bosch washing machine gets a funky smell to it from time to time. i run baking soda through it and this generally clears things up. also, the door is always open when the machine is not in use.

Yep, seen the plugged leach field myself. My neighbor was digging it up and swearing up a storm. The pipes were clogged with undissolved detergent.

 

[mddorange]

Was that an early (circa 2000) Kenmore? We had one of those and the bearings went in 5 or 6 years. Our Meile is about 10 years old and our Whirlpool about 7 years old and they are very solid.

All Kenmore washing machine, Front and Top load used to be made by Whirlpool until LG took over in 2009.

 

[Scooby074]

IMHO good detergent is key.

For us, its Persil powder. Both Dad and I use it. Both our places are on septics. Neither his (Miele) nor my (Bosch Euro) machines have any smells.

Not only does it keep the machines in top order, its a way easier on the skin and gets the clothes super clean (no residue). Tide feels like an oily, smelly mess by comparison. The wife thought she'd be cheap and slip in some tide when we ran out, needless to say that didnt last more than one load because I was all broke out, there really is that much a difference.

Its pretty expensive on a per box basis ($60) compared to tide, but we get 6 mths out of a large box, and thats with 2 kids, and a load of laundry a day. It only requires about 30ml maybe less of detergent per load, so on a per load basis its pretty cheap.

 

[Ford850]

Many people use way too much detergent. They think if a little works ok, then double that will be much better. A major part of how detergent works is additives to soften your water so it can clean the clothes. If you have soft water, or a water softener, you can cut your detergent use in half and it will clean the same. That's what we do now and it works great, and the cothes don't hold as much of the detergent fragrance.

 

[MacLawn]

We have maybe same Bosch as old dave49 (were ye also born in '49?), front loader. We NEVER close the door! Never had a smell problem - never close the door. I do have to wipe out the water holding place dave mentioned.

 

[dave1949]

We have maybe same Bosch as old dave49 (were ye also born in '49?), front loader. We NEVER close the door! Never had a smell problem - never close the door. I do have to wipe out the water holding place dave mentioned.

Yep, born in '49. Always a lot of Dave's, just tried to pick something to tack on.

We leave our door open too and I'm sure that helps in the drum and door seal area, but the stinky smell comes from that sediment trap. Mine isn't easy to just wipe out, first you have to spill the water setting in it all over the floor, then you can do something after cleaning that up. :laughing: According to the user's manual, there are no customer serviceable parts there.

Maybe I should put an injection port on it, squirt in some bleach now and then.

 

[Tollster]

I use humidifier cleaning solution and washing machine cleaning tablets I found at Lowes, and good stiff shot of white cleaning vinegar for good measure..hard water is also an issue.