A washing machine, no matter what type you own, should be given much care and attention. A washing machine gives you service selflessly so it is only proper that you return that service by maintaining a regular cleanup or, if necessary, a repair session.
While the front load machine has gained much popularity recently, I understand that there are still so many homes who are using the more more traditional top loader. Many reviews say how the front loader is so much better as compared to its top loading. However, if your top load laundry machine is still working great, I do not see any reason for you to get rid of it and replace it with the other model.
You do need to take care of your top load laundry appliance. Be it new or old, cheap or expensive, name-brand or not. Do not wait for the day when you are getting ready for the big laundry day and you suddenly find out that a brood of spiders has already taken possession of the tub and the drain hose. Quite a gruesome picture, right?
You do not need to be an expert when it comes to fixing furniture and appliances to do the job. Not only your washer but also your clothes will thank you. To effectively clean your top load washer, here are some easy tips.
White vinegar to clean the tub
Turn the machine on but do not leave any clothing or garment inside the tub. Make sure the tub is empty and devoid of any foreign materials. Yes, that includes the candy wrapper. Once you are ready, set the machine to hot water cycle, better if you can also operate it on the largest load setting, and let it run.
When the tub is already full and is beginning to agitate, add three to four cups of white vinegar to the water inside the tub. Let the vinegar mix well with the water and then add a half cup of baking soda. Allow the machine to continue agitating. After around a minute or so, turn the machine off and let the water mixture sit for a minimum of thirty minutes to around one hour.
After one hour, restart the machine and allow it to complete the wash cycle. While draining the tub, do not stop the machine and instead, advance it to the spin cycle. So as the water drains, the tub continues spinning; This helps in removing stubborn dirt and lime residues. Then turn the machine off.
After turning it off, wipe the tub and all the other parts inside the washing machine with a cloth soaked in half hot water and half white vinegar. Wipe all through the inside of the tub including the agitator. If you want, you can use a brush to reach the narrows areas.
Why do we use hot water, baking soda and vinegar? First, hot water will dissolve the other two substitutes more efficiently and quickly. Vinegar is effective in removing dirt and even lime deposits that can be found in the laundry machine's water passes. These lime deposits are usually caused by the tap water you use in washing. On the other hand, baking soda deodorizes the tub and gets rid of the sour taste left by the vinegar.
Bleach to remove unwanted odor
This follows pretty much the same steps as the vinegar and baking soda technique. Before you start pouring in the cleaning materials, make sure your tub is empty. Remove all things that may be damaged specifically garments. So first, fill the tub with hot water and let it run on the largest load setting.
After the tub has been filled, let the water agitate. Then, add three to four cups of your trusted chlorine bleach. Let the chlorine bleach mix thoroughly with the water and then turn it off. Let the mixture sit for about one hour. After one hour, restart the machine and let it run a full wash cycle. To make sure there is no odor left, you may repeat the process using baking soda this time. Also, if chlorine bleach is not readily available, you may use baking soda all through.
Use less detergent
Okay so this is not exactly a cleaning tip. This is however, a good tip for you to avoid serious buildups inside your washing machine. You may not know it but you can use half the amount of detergent that you usually use and still be able to clean clothes. Rinse the clothes thoroughly and make sure no suds are left to harden inside the washing machine. This is also true for fabric softeners and other substances that you use for laundry.