How to clean washing machine?

[Midnightpony]

I'm moving into a house that needs a good clean. The toilets have that brown stain (not poo but not sure what it is!) so I'll bleach the hell out of them.

I have no idea what the inside of the washing machine or dishwasher look like and I'm not going to check, I'm just going to run them empty. Maybe twice!

I can't chuck bleach in them (or can I?) as I'd be worried it would damage subsequent clothes and leave a bleachy film on the plates...

So what to do?

Soda crystals on a very hot wash with a couple of old towels works really well.

You could follow that with a vinegar wash to get rid of any build up from fabric softeners

I love dettol laundry disinfectant so could add that for an extra germ killing boost

Enjoy the new house

I put bleach in then just dry it off after the wash with kitchen roll & leave it open for a few hours

Do u put the soda crystals in the drum or the powder drawer?

I used Dr Beckmanns machine wash stuff. I get it from Home Bargains.

Id put the soda crystalsin the powder drawer so it cleans thru

If the machines are grungy you will need to manually clean out filters and seals which is likely to be the worst job. I'd run a soda crystal wash afterwards.

Hope the house move goes well and you enjoy your new home.

Thanks everyone for the advice and good wishes

But 100% like scale remover for the loo
Leave it overnight for a few days

Not sure if it helps but I once had a washing machine repair man tell me to use a dishwasher tablet in the empty machine once a week on a boil load. Maybe chuck a few in or do a few empty boil loads with them and wipe the rubber seals over with bleach?

As an aside he also recommended using a quarter of the amount of detergent that the manufacturers put on the instructions as it is overkill (just means you go through it more quickly and buy more frequently) and it minimises the detergent residue in the machine. Tried it and the clothes are just as clean.

a bicarb and vinegar wash works wonders. I use a full box of bicarb in the powder drawer and follow with a bottle of white vinegar. it is ahhhhhhmazing! get all the grime and sludge out of the machine and deodorises it, the vinegar gets rid of any residue from old fabric softener and powder.

for the loo, limescale remover overnight, get the marigolds on and scrub it all off. :-)

A total fan of white vinegar here - I use half the liquid detergent that is advised & top up with white vinegar on every wash I do.

Keeps the pipes free from smells.

Also pull out the wee drawer and clean it, plus the area of the machine where the drawer fits may well be mouldy and need a scrub.