What's happening to my washing

[NoseyNooNoo]

It seems that the washing, specifically my clothes, are coming out of the washing machine dirtier than when they went in.

I use an Ariel Acti-lift tablet, Comfort Pure (or Vinegar depending on what's in the wash), Oxy-clean powder and a water softener.

Can anyone see what I'm doing wrong or is the 7 year machine on its last legs?

It sounds as if the dirty water is flowing back into your machine. Is the outlet blocked? Is the pump working?

That's a lot of stuff used!

Have you run the machine empty on it's hottest wash to clean it out lately?

Milliways - I did a 95 degree wash on Friday.

I have to use a few items - the Oxyclean because Ariel isn't working and the water softener because we live in a hard water area.

3littlefrogs - where would the outlet be (sorry!) and how would I know if the pump is working?

Half a bag of soda crystals in a very hot wash once a month.

have you cleaned the rubber seal, the door, the dispenser drawer and the unit the drawer goes into? Also clean out the filter to make sure it isnt blocked (I need to remove a kick plate at the bottom of the machine and then there is a filter cover to be unscrewed to clean it out)

sure there isn't a blue sock trapped somewhere discolouring everything?

That happened at uni, repair man pulled out a gold bangle and a blue sock that had both been missing for months! Think they had been stuck in the pump.

The rubber seal, door, dispenser drawer and its unit are all spotless. I'm not sure about the filter.

The washing isn't coming out grey but with additional stains e.g. a white top had some pink splotches on it and a purple top had what looked like a grease spot.

I'm going to get the manual out to investigate the pump/filter.

Is your drain blocked? Is the water coming back up into the machine? How do they smell?

It smells fine to be honest.

There was an article about a washing machine doing this on Watchdog a couple of months ago. Maybe look to see if there are any reviews on your brand if washing machine wrt this problem.

I did see that report but it's nothing like that - in fact that report made me feel queasy!