When it comes to getting stinky, top load washing machines can suffer just as much as front load machines. If you have a top load machine with a musty problem, the good news some simple remedies can rid your machine of the stink. Before learning how to clean your smelly washing machine, it’s important to know what is causing your top load to have a problem.
This article looks at several reasons why your top loader has the musty stink of washing machine mold and what you can do to eliminate it so your clothes and home smell clean and fresh again.
Not Using Your Machine Regularly
A great way to prevent having a smelly washing machine is to use your top loader regularly. Every time you use your machine, a small amount of water stays behind that does not drain. If you don’t use your machine regularly, that water sits at the bottom of the tub becoming musty washing machine mold and mildew.
By using your top load machine regularly, you prevent that small amount of water left behind from turning into a stinky mess. This is why you should always clean your machine fully if you do not plan to use it regularly.
Overusing Detergent
When using detergent to wash your clothes, you clean the sweat and smells from them. With today’s advanced concentrated detergents, you really don’t need to use an excessive amount of detergent as achieving the necessary chemical reaction with water only takes a small amount of detergent.
When overusing detergent, too many soapsuds form, contributing to the development of washing machine mold and mildew. These extra soapsuds can’t all exit the machine during the rinse cycle and as they remain in the tub, they cause a smelly washing machine by providing food for mold spores to grow.
Cleaning Your Top Load Machine
These instructions are for cleaning a top load machine, not for cleaning a front load washing machine. Ridding a top load machine of washing machine mold presents a special problem because dirty water and soapsuds splash to the top of the outer tub, leaving a residue behind that can cause a smelly washing machine as it forms washing machine mold and mildew.
Begin by running your top load washing machine through its first cycle with hot water and a good washer cleaner. When the tub fills completely with hot water, stop your machine. Fill a couple of buckets with hot water from your sink and add the hot water until you have filled the tub above the splash line.
Let the hot water soak in the tub to dissolve the built up residue. The longer you soak in water and washer cleaner, the better results you’ll have. Even overnight soaks may be necessary for more extreme cases of washing machine mold. After a good soaking, turn the top load machine back on to run the remainder of the cycle.
It’s that easy. The important thing is that you clean your top load machine at the first sign of odor or washing machine mold and mildew. Getting rid of the musty stink of your smelly washing machine will keep your clothes and your home smelling clean and fresh.
Posted under What Causes Washing Machine Odor
This post was written by smellywasher on June 17, 2009
While I didn’t initially have anything against front load washers, I now realize the enviro-politico movement behind them. IE green marketing by the green machine.
It’s front loaders that stink, not top ones. While FL’s might save a small amount of water, is it worth it for a 60+ minute cycle time? My TL will do a full load in 15 min. It’ll be dry in another 15 min.
FL washers are outrageously expensive to boot. All for making a political statement. 1,100 ga of water runs me $3.70. So what’s the payback period for water savings, given the above rate, when buying a $1,000 FL washer? I’ll be dead before it occurs!
Hold On,
The payback is 45 gallons of water used by old top loaders compared to 15 - 20 gallons used by HE washers. Because of “energy star” government requirements, washers that use too much water are being phased out. It’s necessary to use less water.