Urghhhhhh! You need to do this especially if you do maintenance washes!

[DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen]

I do an empty hot wash about every 8 weeks and get the drawer out and give it a clean and scrub.

I've been pretty busy I forgot and haven't done it for a while so I did it a couple of days ago, since then it has STUNK to high heaven , imagine rotting vermin mixed with eggs

So I have done 3 hot washes since with soda crystals as it's obviously dislodged some gunk in the pipes.

Then the fabric conditioner compartment got blocked and wouldn't drain so I googled and it said to take a toothbrush to the roof of the drawer compartment to dislodge any gunk.

So I did, dear God, it was black with mouldy gunk, all the bottom was fine but I'd never thought to look at the top of it

Please go and look at yours and tell me I'm not the only manky mare

I scrubbed my hand with Zoflora afterwards, ewwwwwww!

Can I ask, do you use loose powder or liquid? In the drawer itself or in a dose ball?

Just wondering if that has an impact.

I am ashamed to say I've never done a maintenance wash. I never have an opportunity to put the machine on when I don't need to have something in it!

I'm too afraid to check the fabric conditioner drawer. Although I rarely use fabric conditioner, so I might be OK!

I've always used powder and about 3 months ago I switched to liquid, it obviously makes a huge difference and I'll be going back to powder I can't believe it has only taken such a short while to get so revolting!

The roof bit is where the holes are that the water comes through for the wash cycle. It will get dirty whether you use powder or liquids. I use an old toothbrush and bleach spray.

Mine has never smelled this bad though!

Can I put bleach in the machine, do a few empty cycles and be sure it wouldn't ruin clothes afterwards?

Mine smells absolutely rotten but it's not the filter or the drawer. Is it the pipes?

I use laundry gel that goes in a cap in with the clothes, so nothing goes in the drawer and never gets manky ????

Don't put bleach in, use soda crystals or do the hottest cycle with bio powder. If it's rank you.l need to do it possible 2 or 3 times as I discovered.Oh and make sure you get all the rank water out of the drum seal too- you might want to wear a scarf over your mouth for that one

Awwww, it is rank!!!

Right, I'm going in...

If I'm not back in an hour... well, I'm guessing none of you will give a shit

I do mine with bleach - in one of those ball things - empty machine - hot wash.

Not had a problem with it ruining clothes!

Yay Forty, you are officially a member of the rank drawer club

It will take you best part of half an hour once you start, use kitchen roll so you can just dump it afterwards, then go in with a cloth and Fairy liquid and a toothbrush .

Good luck!!

Thanks

I'll report back if I make it...

I may need to leave work early to do this!

I did my first ever maintenance wash, with soda crystals, at the weekend, but am still getting a bad smell from the machine.

I also cleaned the filter and the door seal so perhaps it's the drawer.

It sounds like it might be one of those revolting but immensely satisfying jobs?

I pull the drawer out, give it a bit of a rub to get the worst of any gunk off then run it through the dishwasher

I remove the drawer after every wash. When it dries thoroughly the black stuff cannot grow.

Ditch the liquids, including FC. We use Fairy non-bio tablets and do a maintenance wash with vinegar every couple of months (hard water). I've just taken the drawer out for the first time in at least two years, the interior was spotless, the exterior and drawer compartment took about 3 squirts of Flash, two sheets of kitchen roll and about 30 seconds to be restored to fully clean.

I use Calgon in my machine every few months. We never get a gunked up machine but we do live in a very soft water area.

Thinking about it we live in a hard water area now, never got a yucky drawer when we lived in London.

Removing the drawer is not enough , I did that and it was lively and clean, you have to look at the roof of the machine- brace yourself

Hold on- talk me through this. My drawer doesn't come out I don't think...

Our washer does this and we always use powder. I think it's because modern washing machines are all cold fill only. With no hot water running through the inlet pipes, they get a bit gunky and mouldy over time.
I'm with everyone else, bleach spray and a tooth brush.

The drawer itself goes in the dishwasher but you can only do this if the drawer doesn't have any writing on it.

On the other hand, I've never once had to do a maintenance wash to clean the drum, but I do regular hot washes anyway so I don't need to.

You mean the roof of the drawer compartment? Ours really doesn't get gunky, and we have very hard water. Just now was probably the first time I've cleaned it in 4 years of having the machine and it wasn't very dirty at all.

luckiestgirlintheworld, it will do. What washing machine do you have? There's normally a release catch inside

I did mine yesterday, with one of those long handled scrubby brush things and bleach. We use lots of fabric conditioner, so despite cleaning it every month or so, it still gets all black and gunky.

Ah I'll look for a release catch.