Do you ever notice a foul, musty smell coming from your clothes or your washing machine, particularly when it is loaded up with laundry, or you’re transferring a load? If so, then it’s time that you show your washing machine some gentle love! Your washer works hard to clean your clothes, bed linens, and other home materials. Today, our Belleza’s Home Services domestic cleaning experts give you a four-step, time-tested guide to cleaning your washing machine like a pro from the comfort of your home.
Problems Caused by a Dirty Washing Machine:
Residual detergent, fabric softener, body soil, and dirt from each load can accumulate over time within your clothes washer to create an environment for developing mildew, mold, and foul odors. Effects are far more unpleasant than simply creating unpleasant odors: the leftover residue in the soap dispenser, mechanical parts, and drum can rub off onto your laundry, making them appear flat, grey, or streaked white on dark materials. Not to mention that this standing water promotes the growth of mold and mildew on the rubber door gasket, especially in front-load washers. To avoid all these, keeping your laundry clean-scented, you should, once a month, conduct a thorough washing machine cleaning exercise, with other simple steps that follow every wash load.
Does your clothes washer contribute to a bad smell? Learn how to eliminate and prevent the odor with these four easy cleaning steps from Belleza’s Home Services! 4 Simple Steps to a Clean Washing Machine
Collect materials:
Old toothbrush
4 cups distilled white vinegar 2 cups + 1 cup of bleach (in two different containers)
Mixing bowl
Cleaning Sponge
Microfiber rag
- Clean the Soap Drawer
Let’s start with the detergent drawer. Removing accumulated products of gunk and dirt will protect it from re-contaminating the rest of the machine in the following cleaning steps.
Remove the drawer and pull it apart according to the instructions from the washer’s user manual. Rinse each part of the drawer thoroughly with hot water. Use a soft toothbrush to scrub the dirt or residue from the sneaker gently. Once soapy and clean, dry the drawer with a clean cloth or let it air dry completely. Re-assemble the drawer and carefully reinsert it back into the machine.
- Clean the Gasket
Sometimes, it is caused by mildew and dirt that get trapped in the rubber gasket of your washing machine. Here’s what to do:
Mix one cup of bleach and warm water in a bowl. Dip the sponge in the solution and scrub in between the gasket again; make sure you pull the rubber part aside to clean that crevice. Give it a wait time of 10 minutes for the solution to dissolve all that moldy gunk. Wipe the bleach solution off with a wet, clean towel.
- Hot wash with vinegar
The acidity of vinegar is very strong and can be handy in dissolving hard water build-up in your washing machine.
Pour 2 cups of white distilled vinegar directly into the drum and the rest into the detergent drawer.
Run a hot wash in the hottest temperature setting of your washing machine, or use a self-clean cycle if available. Run through a few cycles to get rid of the vinegar smell.
- Run a hot cycle using bleach.
Vinegar breaks up the hard water deposits, but it does not necessarily kill all the bacteria growing on them, which cause mold and mildew; hence, you follow up with a bleach cycle.
Add 2 cups of bleach to the detergent section.
Operate one cycle on the highest temperature setting or the self-clean program offered.
Run an extra rinse to ensure no bleach residue remains in your washer.
Finally, use a wet towel and wipe clean the outside of the washing machine.
Important reminder: do not combine bleach and vinegar; it will produce toxic gas. When bleach is used, a good exhaust fan should be open or the windows left open for ventilation.
How to Prevent Your Washing Machine from Smelling Unpleasant
Bacteria, mold, mineral deposits, oil, dirt, and soap scum are all cleaned out from the drum and hoses of your washer by using bleach and vinegar in two separate hot water cycles. But here are some additional tips for preventing the onset of foul odors: Keep the machine door open after each use so the air can circulate easily to dry out any remaining moisture. This prevents musty smells could occurring. Promptly remove clean clothes when the cycle is finished to prevent them from smelling musty in the damp air.
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