Washing machine cleaners

Many modern automatic washing machines are designed to operate without any technical issues for many years. However, users often don't even bother looking into the detergent dispenser or the drum, mechanically pouring in detergent and loading laundry without a second thought about the machine's technical condition. Then comes the day when the door seal and the inside of the drum become covered in dirt and mold, and the machine begins to smell like sewer water. In this case, a washing machine cleaner, which we'll discuss in this article, can help.

How often does the machine need to be cleaned?

A washing machine is a vital household item. Some housewives run their automatic washing machine almost every day, but often forget that their household appliance requires maintenance. Our specialists are often contacted by washing machine users complaining of some technical malfunction with their "home helper" and requesting a repairman to come to their home. The repairman arrives and can't hide his horror, as only a true barbarian could bring a washing machine to such a state.

1. There is a 5 cm piece of scale hanging on the cuff, and a “fringe” of black mold around it.
2. Black mold covered the inside of the drum.
3. The dust filter is completely clogged with tangled hair and dirt. Apparently, the owners were unaware of its existence, as they had never removed it in the 8 years they had been using the car.
4. A strong smell of sewage comes from the hatch.

A washing machine user complained about water draining slowly. A technician spent half an hour physically cleaning the hoses, pipes, and debris filter. I took out the heating element, cleaned it of scale and dirt, and then pulled about half a kilogram of dirt and foreign objects out of the tank through the hole under the heating element. After the physical cleaning, the technician decided to also perform a chemical cleaning using Dr. Beckmann.

If the washing machine is already heavily soiled, the problem can be solved by either physical cleaning combined with chemical cleaning, or repeated chemical cleaning using special cleaners.

After all these manipulations, the machine began draining and heating water normally. The strange odor almost disappeared, and most of the dirt and mold was removed. Ultimately, the technician advised the owners not to run the washing machine like that again. The recommendation was to dry clean the washing machine using Dr. Beckmann and other similar products, at least once every 6 months.

This example illustrates a situation where people are more than careless with their washing machine. A thrifty and careful housewife:

• After each wash, unscrew the dust filter, removing dirty water, hair and other nasty stuff;
• Every six months, give your washing machine a thorough dry cleaning using a special product;
• After each wash, leave the hatch open and the detergent drawer removed to dry the washing machine and prevent mold from developing;
• After each wash, use a cloth to wipe the cuff of the washing machine door, the inside of the powder tray, and the rubber around the dust filter;
• Once every two weeks, take out and wash the powder tray.

Washing machine cleaning products

If your washing machine isn't in very bad condition, there's no point in messing with its pipes, much less the tank. Cleaning it occasionally with special products will be sufficient.

What washing machine cleaning products are we talking about?

1. Dr. Ten. A multi-purpose powder that combats not only limescale but also other types of stains. It also removes detergent residue and partially eliminates unpleasant odors. Sold in 200-gram packages.
   
2. Mister DEZ. A relatively inexpensive yet effective washing machine cleaning powder for removing limescale and dirt. Test results showed good results, although it does leave a rather unpleasant odor, but the odor dissipates after the first wash with fabric softener.
   
3. Mashinenreiniger Clean. One of the best German washing machine cleaners. This product is recommended by leading automatic washing machine manufacturers such as Bosch, Siemens, and Gaggenau. This powder cleans and disinfects the interior surfaces of the washing machine, but it does not remove heavy dirt or thick layers of scale.
   
   
4. Filtero. A German cleaning gel that effectively removes dirt, limescale, and mold from the inside of your washing machine. After cleaning, the gel leaves a very pleasant scent. It's not cheap, but it's quite economical to use. Plus, you'll only need to use it once every six months, so it's not too expensive.
   
5. Dr. Beckmann. A relatively inexpensive and very effective cleaning product for automatic washing machines. It removes soap scum, detergent residue, mold, various dirt, and limescale equally well. Our technicians now use this product exclusively.
   

There are now many washing machine cleaners available that contain citric acid. These contain 99% citric acid and 1% fragrance. Whether or not you should buy regular citric acid at an exorbitant price is up to you; carefully read the ingredients of the cleaning product you buy.

Features of the use of funds

How do you use washing machine cleaner? It couldn't be simpler; instructions are usually printed on the packaging. If for some reason you don't have the packaging, here are summary instructions for most products.

1. Place about 200 g of the product into the powder container. If the product does not fit into the powder tray, you can pour some of the powder into the drum.
2. Check that there are no items in the drum.
3. Select a hot water wash program, preferably 95⁰C. In this case, you should never use the pre-wash mode.
4. Once the wash cycle is complete, set the rinse cycle to repeat and then you can wash your items with peace of mind.

To summarize, there are plenty of washing machine cleaning products on the market. However, don't buy cheap cleaning powders that contain nothing but citric acid. Why overpay for something you already have in your kitchen? clean the washing machine with citric acid, the effect will be the same.

   

Readers' comments