Have you ever noticed a sour smell coming from your washing machine*? Used to be that I only had the sour/musty smell in the summer when the humidity was high. Lately, it's plagued me year round. What gives? I Googled the problem and came up with a pretty cheap solution:
STOP USING SO MUCH DETERGENT!!
Turns out, when it came to laundry, I was GIVING IT MY All ... detergent, that is. Ever since they started manufacturing clear lids on detergent bottles, I've had a problem finding those pesky lines that are supposedly molded into the lid. So, I'd guess at how much liquid to use.
Guess I've been guessing it wrong!
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Google gave me thousands of sites to read up on the problem. Almost all of them suggested putting VINEGAR in the machine and running a full cycle, with no clothes, to get rid of the build-up of detergent which was causing the sour smell. I did that and was astonished at the suds that appeared. I ran another full cycle and got more suds. I had to run a third cycle before the wash water and rinse water were clear. Whew!
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The washer now smelled wonderfully neutral. How to keep it that way? I got out the old trusty SHARPIE and drew a line on the outside of all the detergent measuring caps we own. Senior Citizens need all the help we can get when it comes to fine print, in this case, clear print on a clear lid!
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Guess I've been guessing it wrong!
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Google gave me thousands of sites to read up on the problem. Almost all of them suggested putting VINEGAR in the machine and running a full cycle, with no clothes, to get rid of the build-up of detergent which was causing the sour smell. I did that and was astonished at the suds that appeared. I ran another full cycle and got more suds. I had to run a third cycle before the wash water and rinse water were clear. Whew!
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The washer now smelled wonderfully neutral. How to keep it that way? I got out the old trusty SHARPIE and drew a line on the outside of all the detergent measuring caps we own. Senior Citizens need all the help we can get when it comes to fine print, in this case, clear print on a clear lid!
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-Forget the new expensive products being sold to clean your washer. Just buy cheap vinegar instead. One Google site suggested pouring one cup of vinegar into the machine and running it through a normal cycle, without clothes, once a month to keep ahead of any build-up of detergent in the drum or hoses. Buy a gallon of white vinegar and keep it in the laundry room. My Aunt Sue always added vinegar to her rinse cycle. She felt it cut down on lint and kept colors brighter.
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Since I was taking some pictures in our laundry room, I thought I'd include the cuter part -- some of Jim's Coke collection. We got rid of a lot of Coca Cola things before we moved 2 years ago, but you can still find something Coke in almost every room of the house!
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* I'm talking top-loader washing machines. From what I hear, the front loaders have their own set of odor problems. My suggestion? Google "front loader washing machine odor" and see where that takes you! --
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...and one more thing......
uh, I'll get back to you when I remember it.
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The Cheap Senior Citizen is a Guest Writer who occasionally shares helpful hints she has learned through her experience.
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uh, I'll get back to you when I remember it.
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The Cheap Senior Citizen is a Guest Writer who occasionally shares helpful hints she has learned through her experience.
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