Mould in washer and washing baby clothes in there

[sasscass]

Has anybody else got mould in their washing machine and washed their newborn/infant’s clothes in there?

I have managed to clean most of it out with bleach but there’s still bits. I’ve hand washed my baby’s clothes but I’m worried about placing them in the washer for next time. Am I over thinking this? I air dry them outside and give them a good shake so surely that would remove any mold spores in the clothes?

Have you run the machine at the highest temperature?

You could also get some soda crystals.

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Are you sure it's mould? It's often just discoloured old detergent (which can be sludgy if you use liquid detergents, and moreso if you use too much).

Do an empty boil wash on the longest cycle with no detergent to give the machine a good clean and then don't worry, your baby's clothes will be fine.

Thank you for your reply.

yeah, it’s definitely mould. It’s stubborn but letting bleach sit on it for several hours removes it.

i was worried if it would make my baby poorly. I’m probably just overthinking since our clothes have been washed in it every single day and we are fine, but then again, you never know with babies and their fragile immune systems

Where is it? In the drum where you can't see it?

Bleach doesn't actually kill mould. It will just regrow. Use white vinegar to kill it.

I would’ve used that but it says not to use white vinegar in the washing machine manual as it can cause leaks

@UWhatNow what temp should you wash on?

I use dishwasher tablets in my washing machine - two tablets in the drum then put on the longest, hottest cycle. Gives it an amazing clean.

If it is visible mould, you can just use a cloth dipped in a solution of white vinegar and warm water to wipe the areas down. Keep the lid open to air it after a wash. How is your machine if you leave the lid open all day? My mould smell went away just by doing that. If it is in the machine, it will also ruin the machine. So I don't think running a vinegar wash through it once will hurt.

Step by step instructions in this article

Yes start using bio powder instead, wash at 40. Use cotton wash not fast eco as that uses less water but doesn’t remove the powder properly from clothing, hence people think they are allergic to bio etc.

bio powder, 40, and all baby clothes stay white, even washable nappies.

I wash everything on 30°c and I use laundry sanitiser.
i use non bio powder now because of having the baby. Before we used liquid detergent and that’s probably why mould was susceptible, liquid detergent isn’t good for preventing mould I’ve found out lol.
The cotton wash setting on my washer runs for 2 hours whereas the eco spin lasts 1 hour 10.
I don’t know if it’s the same on all washers but the only difference on mine is that the cotton wash rinses more often than eco.

Yes you need the cotton rinse to rinse out the powder or liquid properly. On eco option all the time it will build up in machine and cause mould

you can use bio with a baby. I know because non bio only exists in the uk, so the rest of the world are using bio with babies and they are fine.

I use dettol washing machine cleaner every so often on the hottest wash which is very effective.

@tealandteal i have some of that. Do you run the washing machine on 60°c or 90°c when using the dettol cleaner? It says to do it on 60 on the bottle but I’m not sure