This is a pretty common thing that we service guys encounter, the customer complains of a bad odour from the washing machine or washer dryer.

First let’s start with a simple fact, there’s no component that can fail to cause a bad odour from inside a washer. Sorry, but it’s not a fault with the machine and it will undoubtedly be from some form of external source.

There are two major factors that can cause the problem though that you should check before calling any service department.

Do you use liquid detergent?

If the answer is yes then this is most likely the problem as there is no chlorine bleaching agents in liquid powder and it has a tendency to smell a bit ripe after a while. It is also VERY easy and prone to over-dosing, which can lead to a congealed mass of goo in, or on, the drum which, in extreme cases can actually corrode the aluminium drum shaft.

Shown in the photograph to the right is a badly corroded alloy drum support spider from just such treatment and this is, by far, not the worst that we’ve seen. In some really bad cases the support almost disintegrates.

Sorry soap powder manufacturers, but we see this in the field after several years.

The cure is to use powder (real stuff from a big box) and wash through a boil or hot wash with the machine empty, this is known as a maintenance wash. Or you can cheat and use dishwasher cleaner or bicarbonate of soda, both are very effective at cleaning this.

Ariel tablets are also okay as they dissolve just as fast as powder and can be used in the drawer unlike any others.

Backfilling From The House Waste

Often we will see appliances incorrectly installed allowing dirty water from your drain to come back into the appliance. If you see the appliance slowly filling when it’s switched off it is almost certain that this is the problem and you will need a plumber and not an appliance engineer.

You can also try the cleaning tip as detailed above but it will not stop the problem re-occurring at some stage.

More information on backfilling from this link

Maintenance Cleaning

For now the only option we have to recommend as a maintenance wash is to do a full “boil” wash program (as hot as you can get basically) with a bleach containing detergent. The best option there that we would recommend is using Ariel (from the green packs) as it also contains components that deal with limescale and many other bits of dirt that you don’t want there. We know that Ariel is a little more expensive than some, but it’s also a lot better in our opinion and our own testing bears that out.

Doing this on a regular basis, once a month or so, can actually stop the problem occurring in the first place and is recommended by most service engineers as well as others within the industry and is often detailed in the manufacturer’s instructions.

Also make sure that you clean out the soap box thoroughly, all of them come out somehow and it’s usually in the instruction book how you do this. Pay particular attention to the softener section (if you use it) and make sure that bit is cleaned regularly or you can get a build up of not very nice gunk as well as possible leaks from there.

If you get the soap drawer out and look up above it you’ll see a series of jets, this is where the water comes in to disperse into the drawer, make sure that is also clean, we find it best to use an old toothbrush dipped in a little bleach to get them clean, especially if they are a bit mouldy. Any black “stuff” you see in there is mould, it’s a build up of bacteria who just love the wet environment to breed in. it is best to do this before a maintenance wash to ensure that any bleach or other cleaning products are removed and do not then affect the next load that you wash.

We have a whole article on how to do this that you can find using this link

Drying out can also help massively, this is why many people advise that the door of the machine is left slightly ajar. If you are having problems with mould or an odour doing this, whilst unpleasant at first, will help in the longer term with the above advice.

Finally, A Cleaner To Solve This Problem!

This article was originally posted in 2004 and, since then we’ve been searching for a cleaner that can solve this odour problem for people, we have in 2008 finally found one!

Affresh Washing Machine Cleaner has been specifically developed to combat the problem of smelly or foul smelling washing machine and is available in the online store along with it’s sister product Glisten Dishwasher Cleaner.

Is short, Affresh attacks the residue itself, breaking it up and sending it down the drain and, regular use can stop it from happening again. The great thing about this is that it’s not stupidly expensive either, it’s actually quite cheap.

We get asked all the time on the best way to solve the problem and, especially if it is fairly bad, maintenance washes can take a long time to clear the odours but it still won’t remove all the scum that’s left, Affresh will as it is specifically designed to break these residues up.

More Information

You can find our top pick of the best cleaning products in this downloadable PDF brochure which also has more information about Affresh.

You can find more, as well as related, information on the effects of not carrying out a maintenance wash from the following articles:

Door Seal Mildew Or Black Marks why it happens and what to do when you get this

Washing Machine Soap Drawers how to clean them to avoid smells and bacteria build ups

Whiter Whites, Brighter Colours how to use detergents correctly.

Washing Machines, Detergent & Skin Irritation does detergent really cause skin irritation?

From “The Art Of Laundry” issued by Procter & Gamble:

APPEARANCE

On occasions there can be a build up of residue on the inside of the washing machine which may transfer to garments. The deposits can be caused by dirt, grease, lint or hard water salts. Unpleasant odours may also arise from the residues. Higher temperature washes and bleach containing detergents can help prevent these residues.

TREATMENT

Do a ‘maintenance wash’ – (hot wash of at least 60°C or above with no load in the machine) using a heavy duty bleach containing detergent such as Ariel powder or tablets. In extreme cases more than one maintenance wash may be needed.

CAUSE & PREVENTION

CAUSE Insufficient detergent used on a regular basis, so dirt is not properly dealt with

PREVENTION Always use the recommended amount of detergent appropriate to the amount of dirt, water hardness and load size.

CAUSE Detergents without bleach are consistently used

PREVENTION Carry out a monthly maintenance wash using a bleach containing detergent such as Ariel powder or tablets.

The best way to pull a washing machine out, is to open the door and get hold of the door opening at the top of the door seal. Then lift the washing machine up and pull it forward. Before trying to do this, make sure the feet haven’t stuck to the floor by tilting the washing machine back slightly.
Don’t attempt it if you have back trouble though.
If the door wont open due to a fault, then you may be able to get some purchase by taking the soap drawer out or by lifting from the underneath the front of the machine and pulling it forward. But without access to the door opening it can be tricky – especially if the washing machine is also full of washing and water. In this scenario, if you can take out the drain hose, you should be able to siphon the water out using the procedure here The washing machine won’t pump water out
If the washing machine is underneath a kitchen work top, once it is out a foot or so, make sure the back feet don’t catch under the floor covering if it wasn’t fitted all the way underneath the washing machine (which is extremely common) If they are going underneath the floor covering, try tilting the machine forward onto its front feet or it will rip the floor covering.
Also, make sure the fill hoses are long enough to allow the washing machine to come out.
Tips:
Avoid damage to the flooring by using on old towel under the feet. This also helps the machine slide around easier. Some people like to put their washing machine (or other appliance) on trolley wheels (as long as there is enough height available to raise the washing machine)
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