With a busy lifestyle and much to do with less time to do it in, it is often hard to find the time for daily cleaning and maintenance chores, let alone finding the time for specialty cleaning; and that goes double for appliance maintenance. But like with everything that makes our home operate smoothly and efficiently, they too need a little tender love and care. It keeps them from early retirement, costly repairs and enhances their efficiency as well as their lifespan.
Southwest Appliance Repair would like to take the opportunity to pass along some tips for your washing machine.
Washing machines have a big responsibility in keeping our clothes smelling fresh, removing daily dirt and debris, along with stains. With that in mind, we will begin.
1. A Deep Clean of your Washing Machine. If you notice a peculiar odor resonating from your loads or the wash machine itself, or you notice your clothes still feel grimy after a cycle or two, it is time to perform a deep cleaning on your wash machine. To avoid the symptoms, do a deep clean once a month or so.
Here’s how to do a deep clean:
– Run a cycle empty on the hottest water setting with 1/2 cup vinegar, and either washing machine cleaner or laundry detergent.
– For a sanitizing cycle, run on the hottest setting with 3/4 cup bleach and 1 TBS powder laundry detergent. If your wash machine has the soak setting, use it and then run a rinse cycle.
2. Leave the Door Open During Washing Cycle. A step that most folks have never been taught. Leaving the door lid open helps the drum evaporate the water adequately to help prevent mildew odor and buildup.
3. Make Sure to Wipe up Surface Spills. A lot of people have a tendency to shrug off spills that occur on the surface of our washing machine unit with their need to get to the next project. But often spills not only harden and become difficult to clean later, but depending on the base of the liquid, it could cause erosion. Ammonia or bleach based liquids, or any other abrasive cleaners are guilty of causing such effects. Don’t forget to periodically wipe down the exterior and interior to remove and dust or sticky residues. Especially wipe down the drum to help prevent buildup. Include cleaning the rinse dispenser. Do not use detergent to clean the dispenser, but do follow manufacturer instructions from the manual to make sure it gets its turn and cleaned.
4. Washing Machine Hoses and Connections. It is always a good idea to routinely check the hoses and connections to your wash machine. You don’t want them to kink up, and like everything else, the hoses may need replacing. A cracked hose can result in a very big flooded mess.
