Home bathroom and sanitaryWashing machine stinks moldy and lazy eggs

Washing machine stinks moldy and lazy eggs

  • Dirty washing machine "> Clean the washing machine
    • Clean the washing powder drawer
    • Clean the fluff filter
    • Wipe off seals
    • Special wash
  • Washing machine cleaner 3 in 1
    • Washing machine cleaner - this is how it works
    • Machine with automatic drum cleaning program

Over time, the freshly laundered laundry smells as well as the washing machine itself. This is mainly due to the low temperatures with which we wash our laundry today. The bacteria in the machine will not be killed by this. On the contrary, they are literally bred thanks to the low washing temperatures. These bacteria then cause the stink of rotten eggs.

Something is lazy in the state of Denmark or in your washing machine? Soap residues, dirt and fabric softener ferment together in the machine until finally a slippery, smelly mucus layer has taken root in all water-bearing parts of the machine. Of course this also affects your laundry. The machine should be cleaned just like the laundry at regular intervals. If the machine does not yet have an automatic drum cleaning program, the instructions below show you the possibilities for cleaning.

You need this:

  • microfiber cloth
  • cup brush
  • bottle brush
  • Tüllenbürste
  • bucket
  • lemon essence
  • chlorine cleaner
  • Washer cleaner
  • Dishwashing liquid
  • Geschirrspültabs

Dirty washing machine?

Many are still wondering about the moldy rotten smell that comes from a washing machine and of course also pulls it into the laundry. But the low washing temperatures we all like to use today clean the laundry, but not the machine. Those who rarely do the cooking cycle will have the problem more often and faster than someone who washes a lot of kitchen linen. Another point is the liquid detergents, which are very effective at these low temperatures, but also do not maintain the machine as it would otherwise.

Tip: Stay away from vinegar for washing machine cleaning. There are always tips in which a wash with vinegar is recommended when it smells in the washing machine. But just as vinegar damages your skin when you work with it without gloves, vinegar also damages the rubber seals and plastic tubing in the washing machine. However, instead of vinegar, you can use lemon essence, which has a similar effect in terms of odor removal, but is not quite as damaging.

You will have noticed that we have no natural or harmless products on the list at the top of the list of materials. This is due to the bacteria that have settled in each washing machine over time and the lime residues, which also provide a home to the dirt. Unfortunately, these things can not be solved with something harmless, such as a mother's home remedy.

Tip: Some older machines are bad at cooking without washing. Therefore, always carry out these cleaning runs at 60 degrees. Otherwise, the temperature sensor or the heat exchanger may be damaged. Then the machine stays cold during the next wash cycle. Even in modern machines, more and more sensitive sensors are installed, which do not appreciate extreme loads.

Clean the washing machine

First, you should prepare a bucket of lukewarm water and dish soap. This will allow you to complete some steps of the following instructions.

Clean the washing powder drawer

The washing powder drawer can be removed. Although hidden, there is certainly a small lever somewhere that releases the lock on the drawer. If you can not find it, is sure in the manual of the washing machine a note. On some devices, a sign is printed in the plastic of the drawer, which shows you the way. When the drawer is pulled out it should be thoroughly cleaned with the various brushes. In many cases, the drawer is very winding and you actually need the small spout brush to get into every corner.

detergent dispenser

Where the drawer is usually located, is certainly also a slightly foul mixture of washing powder and softener, which certainly stinks something already. Here you can get to every corner with a bottle brush. You may need to bend the brush into shape to really get into every corner.

Clean the fluff filter

How the lint filter is removed depends on the machine. There are very different types of openings. Put some old towels or muzzles in front of the opening as there is usually some water left in this area of ​​the machine. It is precisely these accumulations of water that make it stinky and rotten in the machine. Put the lint filter in your bucket of detergent water and brush it off thoroughly. Afterwards you should try to brush some of the slimy dirt behind the lint filter with the bottle or smaller nozzle brush. Wipe all parts you can get at once again with the microfibre cloth and the detergent mixture.

Clean the fluff filter
  • put old towels in front of lint filter
  • Open the lint filter and pull out the insert
  • Brush the lint filter thoroughly with a cup brush
  • clean other areas with a small brush
  • clean the entire area with a damp microfiber cloth
  • Insert lint filter again
Lint filter dirty

Wipe off seals

Whether top loader or front loader, the seals and rubber lips of the machine as well as the drum and the inner life accommodate many bacteria and residues of the washes. You should use a microfiber cloth with lukewarm water and some detergent to clean the rubber lips. Especially with a front loader, the large rubber seal is usually doubled and you must properly wipe with the hand and the microfibre cloth thoroughly between the two rubber lips. If you are disgusted by it or have an open wound on your hand, you should wear household gloves.

Clean seals

Tip: After the following special wash cycle, you should wipe out the rubber seal on the front loader one more time. The cleaning whirls up a lot of old dirt, which can settle right back in the seal.

Special wash

Once you have done this, you can do a 60 degree wash. You can either use diluted lemon essence if you would like to use the slightly more natural splint. Or you put a glass of water full of chlorine cleaner with the same amount of water in the machine. The third solution is the dishwasher tablets from the dishwasher. Two pieces are usually enough to stop the machine stinking.

Tip: If the clatter of dishwasher tabs in the machine takes your breath away, put the tabs in an old white sock that you no longer need. The sock will eventually carry holes, but dampens the noise and spares nerves and machine drum.

After this cleaning cycle, the machine should run again with clear water without any detergents. In this case, it is sufficient to use a 40 degree wash cycle.

Washing machine cleaner 3 in 1

Some detergent manufacturers have recognized the problem and offer special detergents designed to flush unpleasant odors out of the machine. This promotes hygiene freshness formulas and limescale removal. If you live in a region with very hard water, it makes sense to use a machine cleaner that simultaneously dissolves the limescale deposits. These cleaners work better times worse. That depends partly on the type of cleaner.

Maschinenentkalker

Tip: Do not use this washing machine cleaner in areas of hard water more than twice a year. The ingredients are very aggressive, which greatly adds to the many plastic parts that are used in a machine today.

  • powder
  • Liquid / gel
  • tabs

Powder cleaners have the same problem as the washing powder itself, because they adhere to calcified and roughened parts of the machine. The liquid or gel cleanser seem to have a little more effect because they can start right away. A kind of middle ground seems to be the tabs, which dissolve very effectively and bubbly when in contact with water. In this case, however, only the type of preparation is used as a middle course, because similar to the dishwasher or the toilet, the bubbling tabs are often significantly more effective than other washing machine cleaners.

Important: You should pay special attention to the ingredients of the chemical washing machine cleaner. Many are chlorine-based and truly kill off all bacteria and microbes. But this is exactly where the problem can lie if you have your own small sewage treatment plant in the garden and are not connected to the local sewage network. If you use such bacteria killers too often, the beneficial bacteria in your wastewater treatment plant will also be a problem, and you will have one if you have bi-annual plant control.

Washing machine cleaner - this is how it works

Before using a washing machine cleaner, you should of course also clean the washing powder drawer and the lint filter as described above.

  • Powder cleaner is usually added directly to the drum
  • Liquid cleaner can also be filled into the washing powder drawer
  • Put tabs directly in the drum
  • Carry out a wash without washing according to the instructions of the manufacturer of the cleaning agent
  • if not specified, wash at 60 degrees
  • always wash without detergent

If you have used a chemical cleaner in the machine, still do an empty wash. On the one hand, the loosened lime and the old soap residue are then washed away before they can settle again, and on the other hand could be left in these residues still a residue of chlorine or active oxygen. These residues would eventually discolour the laundry in your next wash. After this clear wash, your next wash load should be a cook cycle, then cleaning the machine will be even more effective as absolutely every bacterium will be killed by this double cure.

Machine with automatic drum cleaning program

Depending on how often you wash, you should run your machine's automatic program about once a month. You do not always have to use a cleaning agent. If you are struggling with very hard water, you can give some decalcification into this cleaning program about twice a year. However, you must use a real washing machine cleaner at most once a year if you regularly use the automatic drum cleaning program.

Tips for quick readers

  • Clean the outside of the machine gently with a microfibre cloth
  • Remove drawer for washing powder and clean
  • Remove residue behind the drawer
  • Remove lint filter and brush thoroughly
  • Clean with a nozzle behind the lint filter
  • Wipe rubber seals with microfibre cloth and detergent
  • Carry out a wash with a chlorine cleaner or dishwashing tab
  • Wash once without detergent
  • Use washing machine cleaner according to manufacturer's instructions
  • clean rinse afterwards
  • Dust rubber lip and rubber seal again
  • Use drum cleaning program on new machines
  • Once a year, add washing machine cleaner to the drum cleaning program
  • also wash with clear water here
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