Got a smelly washing machine? Here is our tried and tested technique on how to clean a washing machine effectively and environmentally friendly, without the use of harsh chemicals. Not only will it banish bad smells, but it will reduce limescale and mould too.
Why Do We Need To Clean The Washing Machine?
The thing is, it’s good practice to regularly give your machine a good old-fashioned deep clean. This is because cleaning your washing machine prolongs the life of your washing machine. And prolonging the life of a hulking great piece of machinery saves carbon as you’ll have to replace it less frequently.
Cleaning your washing machine also makes your washing machine more efficient, meaning you lower the likelihood of having to re-wash clothes because they haven’t come out particularly clean. Saving carbon and water.
If the thought of helping the environment doesn’t make you want to clean your washing machine, then would talk of mould build up in your washing machine, that distributes mould over the very clothes you want to clean encourage you? Yup, thought it might.
How To Clean A Washing Machine
1. Tackle The Detergent Drawer
First off, remove your drawer from your washing machine. You may have to consult your washing machine’s instruction manual on how to do this if you haven’t done this before.
Next, fill a sink with hot soapy water and give the drawer a good wash. An old toothbrush is great at getting into the nooks and crannies of the drawer. Once you’ve got all the gunk off, rinse it off, and give it a dry.
Before you pop the clean, dry drawer back in, if the drawer was mouldy when you pulled it out, then it’s best to give the cavity a good wipe down to help remove any mould in there. To do this, spray a cloth with a vinegar cleaning sprat and wipe as much as I can possibly reach.
Aim to do this every three months, or more frequently if you use laundry liquid and/or conventional fabric conditioner.
2. How To Clean The Filter
Cleaning the filter of your washing machine is the part of the cleaning a washing machine process that I hate the most. However, it’s a pretty important part as the filter catches hair, lint, and any objects that got left in pockets before they went in the wash. As a result, bacteria can grow here, causing bad smells.
For Newer Washing Machines
Your washing machine filter is normally accessed via a flap on the front of your washing machine – near the very bottom. Open up the door. If your machine is a newer model then you’ll likely see a little hose with a cap on it. Pop a towel down, put down a bowl, and remove the cap from the hose. Pro tip – place the cap somewhere sensible where you will find it again afterwards. Voice of experience here!
Once you’ve removed the cap, drain as much water out of your machine as possible. You may have to empty your bowl several times during the drainage process, so unfortunately this isn’t a job you can walk away from.
Once drained, keep the towel down because even though you think you’ve drained your washing machine of every single last drop of water, I promise that your washing machine will be tenacious and there will be more!
Next, unscrew the cap of the filter, prepare for a small gush of water, and remove the filter. Remove any lint, hair, or objects from your filter.
For Older Washing Machines
If your washing machine is older and doesn’t have a hose, then you will need ALL the towels. Put these on the floor and be prepared for a large gush of water. The only consolidation is that once you are done cleaning your washing machine, you can wash your towels, and they’ll be cleaner than ever before!
Again, remove any lint, hair or objects from your filter.
For All Machines
Next, pop the filter into the kitchen sink and give it a good clean in warm soapy water. Again, your toothbrush will come in really handy for this job. Once clean, before popping the filter back in, give the filter cavity a good clean. I spray some of my vinegar cleaning solution onto the toothbrush and give the cavity a good scrub.
Once done, make sure you screw the filter back on tight. Then make sure you replace the cap of your hose, if you have one.
3. How To Clean The Drum of Your Washing Machine
There are lots of places in your washing machine’s drum for dirt, bacteria and mould to harbour. Thankfully, it’s a really easy job to clean, without any effort.
To clean mould, bacteria, grease and soap scum, from your washing machine drum, simply pour 500g of soda crystals into the drum of your washing machine and run a hot wash (at least 60°C). The soda crystals help dissolve any lingering soap scum that can harbour dirt, bacteria, mould and bad smells.
If you have never cleaned your machine before, and especially if you have been an avid user of laundry liquid and/or of conventional fabric conditioner, you may have to repeat this step again.
To help beat limescale, once every 8 weeks or so, pour around 500 ml of vinegar into the drum of your machine and run it on a hot wash (again, at least 60°C).
It’s really tempting to kill two birds with one stone and do a wash with soda crystals AND vinegar combined. Don’t do that! Vinegar is an acid, and soda crystals are a base. They’ll react and cancel each other out, producing weak salty water - weak salty water will not clean a washing machine particularly well.
4. Don’t Forget the Seals
If you have a smelly washing machine, then the chances are it’s coming from the seal of your washing machine. You see, the seal of your washing machine can harbour some nasty smells, as well as lint, bacteria, dirt and pocket detritus.
The good news is that this is also an easy clean. Simply wet a cloth with vinegar, and wipe around the seal, making sure you work your way all around the fold. The vinegar will kill any mould on the seal. This method has the added benefit that it won’t harm your clothes if any residue has been left, as bleach would do.
To help prevent nasty smells in the future, leave your washing machine door ajar after every use to allow air to circulate.
5. Finally, The Body
Lastly, you may need to give the body of your washing machine a good wipe down. If you use laundry liquid or fabric conditioner, it can spill and run down the machine. If your washing machine is next to your dishwasher, it might get food splatters. Muddy sports clothes or kid clothes can leave marks as you put these in the machine. There are loads of reasons why the body can get dirty – we don’t judge!
It’s incredibly easy to clean the outside of your machine. Using a vinegar-based spray, or an all-purpose natural cleaning spray and a damp cloth, simply give the body a wipe down. If dirt has gathered in any crevices, use your old pal, the toothbrush, to give these areas gentle scrub.
And voila, job done! You can now bask in the glow of lovely clean clothes that will now come out of your machine, and the fact that you’re helping the environment too.
Alternatively - did you know we can also clean washing machines for you? Just get in touch with the team and we will do all the hard work whilst you sit back and enjoy a nice cuppa!
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