Washing machine not washing properly!

nikirushka

I have an Indesit, about 3 years old now that's stopped washing properly. The clothes smell and feel clean, but I can still make out dirt smudges from daily wear and no matter which one or how much I put in, the softener doesn't seem to reach the clothes at all - they are coming out like cardboard! It's horrible.

I've tried cleaning the machine with proper cleaner and also with harpic on a tip and it's made no difference. I also took the detergent drawer out a while back and gave it a thorough clean, which also made no difference. I've not pulled the filter out to look at it yet - I need some pliers to wrestle it open and I can't find them - but in every other respect the machine is working perfectly. Full cycles, drains properly etc.

Anyone got any ideas? I'm just about to do a long, hot cycle with soda crystals to see if that helps.

MrJones1

It seems that the line between the detergent drawer and drum has become clogged up with washing powder. So the detergent gets problem to reach the drum and that causes the situation where your clothes don't seem to be clean.

Alter_ego

MrJones1 wrote: »

It seems that the line between the detergent drawer and drum has become clogged up

That's the way water gets to the drum.

getmore4less

Which model and cycle are you using?
What dose and type of detergent?

If the hot wash does not work
DO a wash with the detergent in the drum.

Jonesya

Check the water in the machine is getting hot during the wash cycle - the heating element can fail and isn't always obvious they've gone.

Sicard

I'd do a long cycle empty but with a good amount of white vinegar.

poppy_w

What temperature do you wash your clothes at? If you are constantly washing at low temperatures then this may be the problem, and there could be a build up of things like limescale, bacteria and laundry detergent in the machine.

You can buy citric acid from Wilkinson and run a hot wash with some of that to descale the machine.

Do you live in a hard water area?

Also, the bearings in my old machine went and it started to leave dark marks on clothes, which gradually got worse.

macman

3 years for an Indesit isn't bad, that's probably approaching 1,000 cycles if it's used daily.

nikirushka

Sorry all, I forgot to check this thread!

Ok.

It gets used once a week at most - there's only me here.

I usually wash on either a 15 minute quick wash or more usually, a 2.5 hour intensive sport wash because I'm a dirt magnet and I have dogs Usually on a 40, or if I'm washing dog blankets it'll go on a 90. So it's having hot washes fairly often.

I use Surf powder and Tesco softener, as these got the best results before. 1.5 Vanish scoops of the Surf per wash and what would be about half a scoop of the softener.

I'll check mid-cycle to see if it's getting hot. The clothes are coming out smelling and feeling clean and Surf-y, but not actually properly washed or softened. So the stuff is getting in but for whatever reason, the machine is just not doing the job. I've also tried putting the softener directly in the drum but it hasn't helped. It's all a bit odd! I've tried other brands too but it makes no difference at all.

Hard water area, yes. The Harpic was done on a cool wash to descale the machine as I was told this works (and it certainly works on the toilet!).

Norman_Castle

Have you cleaned the filter yet?

EssexExile

nikirushka wrote: »

I've also tried putting the softener directly in the drum but it hasn't helped.

There's no point in that. The softener is used during the last rinse & if you put it in the drum it will all be gone by then.