Smelly Washing!

[MrsSecker]

Looking for some ideas.. I have a fairly new washing machine, I use good detergents and fabric softeners however my washing sometimes comes out of the machine smelling worse than when it went in. I have cleaned all the cleanable bits, drawer, filter etc, tried the washing machine cleaning sachets, white vinegar on 90 degree was etc and the waste pipe at the back is hooked on so I assume no waste water is getting sucked back into the machine. I am at a total loss as to what is causing it. It's not with every load either. Any ideas?

Have you tried pulling the seal and getting right behind to give it a clean. I find a grey sludge buds up behind mine.

*builds

Are you using liquids? If so, try switching to powder. Liquids don't have any bleaching agents in them so can leave the machine smelly.

Silly question but are you removing the clothing as soon as it's finished or leaving it for a while?

If it's some washes but not others, can you notice any kind of pattern? I find certain fabrics (DH's black t-shirts especially) seem to hold onto a musty smell whereas others are easily cleaned. The ones which hold onto the smell (you can identify by sniffing each item as you go to hang it up) I normally collect them all up and stick them in on a 60C wash with some stain remover stuff or vinegar instead of fabric softener - similar to how you'd "strip" cloth nappies. Then they're better for a while.

I was also finding that the underarms of some of my tops really held onto sweat/deodorant smells but with consistent use of anti-sweat spray (I think this is just citric acid) and having changed deodorant I don't have the problem any more.

Using bio powder, instead of liquid or liquitabs (esp non-bio) got rid of my longstanding musty washing smell!

Lidl's is a Which best buy & very reasonable. It's a bit messy but I'd rather have that than the smell. (I tend to use possibly a bit more than I should but I have an 8kg machine & it doesn't give a precise amount)

That's great thanks everyone. I have been using liquid or liqui-tabs for as long as I can remember so I'll definitely change to powder now. I'll also try the soda crystals to give the machine a wash through. Thanks!

It might be worth pulling out the powder drawer and cleaning the space where it was iyswim. If you haven't already

YY to using powder - I had this and it took me AGES to work out why it smelt, and I even got,a new washing machine at one point. Since switching to powder it hasn't happened since.

No advice I'm afraid... I misread the thread title and came to have a look because I thought it was going to be about Welly Smashing.

Also, clean your filter. I did this a while ago. It was filled with crap and a hair grip!

We discovered that ours had been incorrectly plumbed in thanks DH and so the pipe thing from the dishwasher was somehow connected. You're not getting back-flow from the sink or dishwasher?

I found powder caused more gunk to build up