Washing machine overflowing only when we wash towels

[Greatcheeser]

Every time we wash bath towels in aerial liquid the machine fills with fine suds that overflow. Doesn’t happen with other fabrics. Any ideas on why please?

I wonder if they are not rinsing or spinning properly and are still full of detergent at the next wash
You may be overloading the machine with towels, or the floor may not be level
You may need to use less liquid and or wash a smaller load, or mix the towels with the normal wash

Do you have hard or soft water?

Powder is more effective than liquids at cleaning and it has the added benefit of containing bleaching agents which clean the innards of the machine. Liquids create a build up of gunk which makes the machine less effective and encourages the growth of bacteria, making it smell. If you have soft water, use less detergent than the packet suggests. If the water is hard, use less and some soda crystals which will soften the water and help the detergent work more effectively.

The advice I read from Which? or Good Housekeeping years ago was to use only a little powder and a high temperature on a cottons programme for towels. Towels pick up the residue of shower gel which foams - washing detergents are designed not to foam as it clogs up the machine.

Try running your machine empty on its longest, hottest programme with some soda crystals or distilled vinegar to clean it out. If there is foam in the drum during this, then repeat the maintenance wash.

I'd then try washing your towels at 60 or 90 without detergent - they will still be clean, but detergent and soap residues will be removed.

shampoo or bath foam residue in the towels I expect.

Wash them in plain water

BTW a good way to kill foam in a washer is to tip in some fabsoft. Turn it off first of course because all the time it is churning it is making more foam.

It might also be that you are using a hot hot hot cotton wash, which dissolves the resident soap sludge from inside the drum. You can wash it away faster by adding Washing Soda Crystals and doing hot washes with NO ADDED SOAP POWDER.

Also ask your powder manufacturers to send you a powder measure and use only the recommended amount, not a bit extra for luck.

If you have a water softener or are in a soft water area you need less.

If you want to find out if it's detergent residue in the towels or in the machine, set it to do a hot hot hot wash with nothing in it.

too slow, didn't read earlier posts somehow.

The OP started two identical threads PJ

We have this problem sometimes when washing duvets. It's a 10kg machine with a duvet setting so not overloading the machine. It also happens when DH is washing his trainers.

Watching with interest.