Share your best tips for keeping your washing machine in tip-top shape with Fairy Non Bio - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Keeping your washing machine in good condition is vital step to having fresh, clean clothes...who knew?! Fairy Non Bio would like you to share all your methods and tips on how you keep your washing machine clean and in tip-top shape.

Here’s what Fairy have to say: “With the amount of washing we all do, we need to keep our faithful machines in tip top condition to keep it running for the long haul. Whether it is running a powder wash or a hot cycle every now and again, we would love to know your tips!”

Perhaps you give everything in the machine a wipe down after every wash? Do you have a schedule for how often you do an empty load? Or maybe you have some home remedies that you turn to that you think work brilliantly?

Whatever your methods are, share them on the thread below and you will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck.

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

leave the door open and give the inside rim a good clean.

Make sure you air the machine after use and wipe out the rubber seal area.

vinegar and lemon juice on a hot wash, makes it smell fresh and get's it clean

I do an empty hot wash every now and then. I leave the door open after a wash to let it dry out and it can get some fresh air in there x

I wipe my washing machine down after every use and take out the filter and powder draw once a week and give them a soak/wash. I use a washing machine cleaner every couple of months and run that through on a hot wash to clean the machine out.

To be honest I despair of my washing machine despite it being brand new it's stank within weeks of the first wash. I regularly do a hot wash, wipe seals , clean detergent tray and still it stinks.

I'm supposed to do things to keep my washing machine going? Apart from wiping the seal and fishing out the gunk when it gets messy, I can't say I do anything at all.

I always wipe around the inside of the door and rubber after every wash. I leave the door open so that it can air dry after a wash and I do a hot wash with powder a few times a year.

Leave door open after wash
Use soda crystals in each wash and periodically do boil wash with descaler
Take drawers out and immerse in water to get dried on soap residue off of them
It diesnt have a way of clearing the filter, so that is one job I no longer do
Remind teenage dd to actually take her laundry out of the machine ... otherwise she will put a wash on and think the laundry fairy will organise the rest

My machine doesn't know it's supposed to be looked after and I'm keeping it that way. Works perfectly, no smells

I try and run the machine on the hottest temperature with soda crystals in the detergent drawer and with it empty.

Seems to work for me every couple of months! xx

I leave the door and drawer open after a wash, to enable the machine to dry out. I also find washing at low temperatures most of the time doesn't keep the machine clean, so the occasional hot wash for whites also kills any remaining bugs in the machine.

I do a boil wash with a machine cleaning tablet from time to time. Gets rid of any grime or smells!

I do a hot wash with Ace bleach about once a month.

I leave the door open, and use liquid rather than powder.

I leave the door open after a wash and regularly de-gunk the drawer but don't do any of the other stuff mentioned on here. hangs head in slovenly shame

Leave the door open to dry the machine when I'm done

Give it a rest between loads. Running it back to back when the motor is warm will wear the motor out much faster.

I always use calgon with every wash. i wipe down the drum after each use and make sure i leave the door open a while. one a month i undo the bit at the bottom to drain the water out and remove any thing in there

Just replaced my 17 year old faithful machine which never had any problems from the day I brought it home until a week before it was retired when the fault would have cost too much to repair. How did it last this long? Not from any special care from me. I never used a commercial cleaner but I always wash towels and bedding on a hot wash which I feel compensates for all the other washes that are done on a 30-40 degree setting. Oh, and I clean the gunk out of the dispenser when it gets so bad I notice!

i keep the powder/conditioner compartments clean of any mould or mildew and every couple of months I pour a cup of white vinegar on the drum and run it on a hot wash to get rid of any limescale

I make sure I don't use more washing powder than I need so it doesn't build up. I also run the self-clean cycle every now and then.

I leave the door open for a bit after washing so it can dry out nicely and also use limescale tablets and the occasional descaler treatment.

I do an empty drum hot wash and sometimes do one with some milton

Wash at hottest temp with baking soda and vinegar