My Purchase of a High-Efficiency Washer and Dryer
About 10 years ago, I purchased my first front loader high efficiency (HE) washer machine and dryer. High-efficiency washer machines use less water and are more energy efficient making this a great purchase right?
Well yes and no… let me explain my struggles. I remember when I first brought my new washing machine home. I did my first load of laundry and thought something has to be wrong here.
First, it sounded like a plane was taking off in my laundry room! Second, there is no water or very little water at that when my clothes were washing! How can these clothes get clean?
So I called the manufacture and started to ask questions. This was normal and she assured me the clothes would get clean.
Why Aren’t My Clothes Getting Clean?
So over time I accepted the loud noises coming from my laundry room and learned to accept the really low water levels, but I do have to say that I was and am not impressed with how these HE washer machines clean my clothes.
I have to pretreat my stains and pretty much get the stain out before I put them in the wash or they just don’t get clean. Now I should put a disclaimer on this. I have always been the type of person who just throws my laundry in the wash, adds a bit of soap and expects them to come clean.
Laundry isn’t one of my favorite chores, to say the least. So maybe if I put a little more effort into pre-treating my clothes I might have better results in this department.
There is one challenge that I just couldn’t conquer however and that was the smell that was coming from my HE washer machine!
What is that horrible smell?
So over time, my washer machine began to smell. Not only did it smell moldy and musty but my clothes were starting to smell this way too.
I researched what to do about it and there was advise all over the place on what you should and should not do for bad smelling HE washer machines.
I hired someone to come out and clean and balance my machine. That worked for a little while but the smell came back in a few weeks. I kept my washing machine door open when not using it so it could dry out, but that didn’t fully work either. I purchased the expensive HE washer machine tablets to do on a monthly cycle but those failed very quickly.
Finally, in a last-ditch effort to have clean smelling clothes, I added this one ingredient and everything changed!
Add this one ingredient to every load for fresh smelling laundry & for a clean HE washer machine!
So just what is this ingredient I am talking about? Well, it will cost you about a $1.00 per gallon and can be found in any grocery store! Wait for it 🙂 ….alright, it is vinegar! Vinegar you ask…yep, that’s right vinegar! Now I use plain white vinegar and here is how I use it.
Just like you buy laundry detergent, I buy a gallon of vinegar and keep it right next to my washer machine. I load my HE washer machine up with clothes, add my soap and then in the bleach dispenser, I fill it all the way to the top with white vinegar.
The vinegar helps kill the bacteria that grows in your washer machine and kills the odor. Not only does it kill the odor, but it helps with cleaning my clothes too. If that wasn’t enough, it also softens your clothes naturally.
Is Vinegar The Answer To Everything?
So let’s take a look at this: vinegar cleans clothes, gets rid of nasty smells in laundry and in the machine and it softens your clothes too!
Wow, I would call vinegar my little miracle in the laundry room! Who knew one little ingredient could do so much!
So finally I have clean soft clothes and a washer machine that doesn’t smell. I still have a plane taking off in my laundry room, however, but I can live with that :)!
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Do you know if using white distilled vinegar works also?
Yep, sure does.
God yes, we had the same problem. I was overjoyed to get a set of these HE machines. They’re great and the list of options for washing and drying amazing, but alas after about a year I think the smell began. It’s not unlike as if a cat took a pee in your clothes, not only that no matter what softener you use the towels were the worst… rough and smelly. also tried a cleaning from a repair man and like you a couple of weeks and the smell was back. I will try your suggestion of vinegar and the added borax for cleaning cycles. This reminds me of a situation where I was learning airbrushing (form of art) and my teacher asked me why I was paying 13 bucks for a small bottle of cleaning fluid for the tool. He said it was just white or uncolored windexwindow washer fluid. So from then on that’s what I used lol. Thanks for the tip.
I had never heard of a HE washer and, after reading your comments, don’t think I’ll ever buy one. I appreciate the tip about the vinegar and will be trying that but I wonder how much vinegar to use in an old style top loading machine. I just today discovered your site and am liking it very much.
Doing the vinegar in my load at this time, crossing my fingers because I’m sooooo tired of that smell & having to wash my loads more than once ( up to 3 times with whites), ugggghhhh I’m with everyone against and soooo tired of my HE washer! & yes the minute it breaks down going back to top loader!!! FYI the only reason I don’t get rid of it now is to avoid the argument with my husband who told me repeatedly we didn’t need such expensive washer & dryer…
We always leave our door open, but mine has started to have that sour smell. I hate it. I will start trying the vinegar.
I just purchased my first house and it has a very old top loader which smells bad when you open it. I am presently running a 2nd treatment of Glisten Washer Magic as the 1st treatment did not cure it. If this does not work I am going to try baking soda. If you live in the country as I do you cannot use vinegar as it will destroy your septic tank. It dissolves the grout between the cement blocks.
Great suggestions! I will definitely try the vinegar. Fyi, I mix vinegar with water and wash my blueberries before putting them in my fridge. Never have moldy berries anymore. Vinegar has been found to be so useful in many ways. Thank you all for sharing your experiences with so many.
Mine is a top loader Whirlpool and it stinks. Seems that some soaps are worse than others. Pursil powder laundry soap is very very expensive, but works better but not good.
Is there any powder laundry soap still out there that are affordable?
I will try the vinegar in the wash. Have my fingers crossed.
thanks
I have a top loader ‘he’ that gets really stinky in the summer. I want to try adding vinegar to my loads but am concerned about putting that into my septic tank system. Has anyone researched if there is any problem with vinegar and septics? Thanks!
OMG thank you! Vinegar is my moms best friend…she uses it to get rid of fruit flies…ants…and now I will def be sharing this info with her 🙂 Our washing machine has a horrible odor and it leaves our clothes smelling icky. This article is a GOD SEND!
I use a 40 lb bag of dog food on the top of the washing machine to”keep the plane from taking off”/ vibrating washer.
great idea!
I heard using baking soda to shake in drum and add vinegar to the bleach dispenser would fix the prob. I also drain it monthly because I found out that I should have been doing this but I think the smell got 10x worse!!! I have ran it in sanitize, clean washer, cleaned the glass part and it has not helped. I have also ran a cycle with bleach but I think I need to try the borax. Has anyone had this prob.?
I am definitely going to have to try this out! I’ve done some research and across the board folks are mentioning white vinegar. I’ll be so glad when the smell is gone!
4 Rules to Make your Front Load Washer Work Better
Your front load clothes washing machine only uses about 25% of the water that would be used by a top-loading machine. This is a significant saving and probably one of the reasons you switched to a front loader. Unfortunately, it has also led to misunderstanding and confusion by consumers because manufacturers are not explaining the idiosyncrasies of these machines. Additionally, consumers are not educating themselves about their new style washer and the methods necessary to obtain a good quality wash. Most people are simply assuming that the methods used in their previous washer will apply. Therefore we offer the following article to explain the four most common misunderstandings.
1… Detergent Type
Due to the machines tumbling action a front load washing machine needs special detergent called high efficiency (h-e) detergent. It’s a low suds detergent that is necessary to allow a front loading washer to operate properly. When buying detergent look for the letters ‘h’ and ‘e’ inside a circle, it’s the universal logo for this type of detergent. Don’t be tempted to use standard laundry detergent because it’s less expensive. Using the wrong detergent can result not only in a poor quality wash but also, detergent left in clothing fibers, water leakage, bad odors, mildew, and unnecessary strain upon the machine. Using standard laundry detergent in a front loader will be a decision that can come back to haunt you.
2 … Detergent Quantity
How much detergent is required by a front loading washer? A good place to start is how much you used in your previous top-loader, and then half or quarter that amount. If after a couple of loads of washing you’re satisfied the clothes were cleaned then lower the quantity of detergent used still further. Try a quarter of a cup or less for the next few loads. Many of our customers who use liquid detergent report that they only use a tablespoon of detergent per wash.
Most front loaders come with a detergent dispensing drawer where your laundry detergent, fabric softener, or bleach is inserted prior to starting the cycle. Look inside the dispenser cups for a mark or line indicating a suggested amount to use. But even with these guidelines many consumers continue to grossly overfill the detergent dispenser. This is usually because consumers simply can’t believe how little detergent a front load washing machine uses. The detergent level markings seem so low many people think they are incorrect, or not to be taken seriously. They unwisely assume that such a small amount of detergent will result in a poor wash – this is untrue.
Additional confusion can result when comparing the amount indicated in the detergent dispenser with the recommendations on the detergent box. What many people don’t understand is that the box recommendations are general suggestions only. Suggestions that must encompass all makes and types of washing machine, all load types, all load sizes, fabric type, water temperatures, and the waters mineral content. The suggestions on the detergent box are in no way specific to front-loading washers, nor your particular needs. Even your water hardness affects the amount of detergent required. While harder water requires more detergent per load, a softer water needs less detergent per load. Additionally, detergent type affects the quantity needed per load. For example, since liquid detergents are more concentrated they require less per load than a powder type.
3 … Fabric Softener
Again, because of the small amount of water used by a front loader the amount of fabric softener required per load must be lowered significantly. In fact, it should never be used full strength in a front-loading washer. Don’t be tempted to pour it directly from its container into the fabric softener dispenser cup. Instead, the fabric softener must to be diluted with water before being added to the machine. A dilution ratio of 7 to 1 is suggested. That is: Seven parts of water to every one part of fabric softener. The easiest way to do this is to mix it in an alternate storage container. Something such as an old (clean) wide-mouthed juice container with a screw cap works well. Add one cup of fabric softener to the container followed by seven cups of water, secure the lid, and shake the bottle to mix. This will provide you with enough of the proper mixture for about fifty loads of washing.
4 … Water Temperature
Lastly, we suggest avoiding cold-water wash unless you are washing lingerie or delicate items. This is because the combination of low water volume and cold water during the wash section of the cycle may not wash away all the detergent from the clothing fibers. This can result in your clothes taking on a prematurely dull or worn appearance. Cold-water washing can also result in a deposit of detergent, fabric softener, and debris between the tubs that results in the production of very bad odors. Odors that may get so strong that they will even impregnate the clothes. Note, we said cold water ‘wash’ — not cold water rinse. Therefore, a hot wash followed by a cold rinse cycle is acceptable. Or a warm wash followed by a cold rinse is also okay. It’s only the cold wash and cold rinse combination that should be avoided. A worst-case scenario is when consumers combine a lot of cold water washing with excessive use of detergent, followed by full strength fabric softener. This can result in the machine starting to produce a mildew odor that will be almost impossible to eliminate.
Therefore as has been shown above even though the front loading clothes washer is an amazingly efficient piece of machinery it’s one that requires a slight adjustment in your way of washing. But in my opinion they are definitely worth the rethink. Putting into action the above methods will allow you to use this machine to its maximum, resulting not only in clean and sparkling clothes but at a substantial cost saving to you and your family.
Thank you!!! Can you use hair conditioner in a front loader as a softner