Friends washing machine makes clothes stink, sewage issue or temperature?

dekaspace

Not the same as my issue a few months ago, anyway friend got a used washing machine a few months back that seemed ok at first, I did use it a few times when I had problems with my own.

Did a wash at his and left it to hang overnight on line and by morning it stank badly of severe damp/mould.

Risking it I did it again a few weeks later and same issue, also noticing when I went round to visit after he did a wash his flat stank of that same damp mouldy smell.

He always uses a wash that is meant to be 40 degrees but not sure as the dial on the machine seems to be wonky.

My theories on that was maybe the water isn't getting hot enough, but the clothes are clean each time just smelly, but then his gas meter is out of credit so I assumed maybe only cold water goes in, but for that he had a modern machine which only has one connection so I would assume it heats it for him.

So maybe the thermostat is gone? As the person who he got it from cheap sold it as they said the clothes were coming out of the machine very hot (not scalding) to touch

The only other thing I think of is he uses a tiny amount of powder.

The final thing is his waste pipe is at a strange angle.

Just wanted some more experienced people to give some advice.

DevilsAdvocate1

I think the powder could be the issue. I used some eco balls for a while instead of powder. They were great at first but after a few months the machine started to smell. This then meant that the clothes stank, though they were clean.

I went back to conventional powder and the problem when away. I think your friend should do a couple of long cycle, empty washes with plenty of soap just to clean the washing machine out.

Norman_Castle

https://www.persil.com/uk/laundry/laundry-tips/washing-machine/clean-smelly-washing-machine.html

https://www.whitegoodshelp.co.uk/washing-machine-smells/

abankerbutnotafatcat

Run a couple of hot (60c) washes with towels or similar using c half a cup of laundry soda/soda crystals in the detergent drawer instead of detergent to clean the machine. Don't use fabric conditioner. Going forward regularly use a small amount - a heaped table spoon or so - in the detergent draw with the detergent. If you're in a hard water area it will mean you can use less detergent too as softens the water. Also use a bio detergent some of the time if you usually always use non-bio and cut back on the fabric conditioner.

Worked for our Bosch washer that had pretty much stopped working due to all our non-bio 30c washes. Now I use soda crystals with all but the delicate wash plus white vinegar instead of fabric conditioner.

Soda crystals and white vinegar can both be bought for £1 each in Wilkos.

another_casualty

Has the filter been emptied ?

Carrot007

abankerbutnotafatcat wrote: »

Run a couple of hot (60c) washes with towels or similar using c half a cup of laundry soda/soda crystals in the detergent drawer instead of detergent to clean the machine.

Better Still 90c!

iammumtoone

Does he use bio or non bio ?

I had this issue when using bio, I switched to non bio and the problem was solved.

JohnB47

Have you checked that the water is being heated?

Either try feeling the temperature of the glass window in the door or, if it has a solid door, look at your electricity meter after the machine has filled with water and is on the wash cycle.

My meter has a little red light that flashes to indicate the power being used. Flashes every three seconds or so would be appropriate for a washing machine heating water.

Your meter might not have a light but may have another way to indicate power being consumed.

thescouselander

iammumtoone wrote: »

Does he use bio or non bio ?

I had this issue when using bio, I switched to non bio and the problem was solved.

^^^^ in my experience its the opposite of this especially if the non-bio being used is of the liquid variety. Take a good look at the door seal - peel it right back, I bet there's all sorts of mould in there. Also check the soap drawer .
The solution would be to clean up as much of the mould as possible, run a few really hot washes (empty) and then use biological powder instead of non-bio.

We had this problem recently as the Mrs wanted to use non-bio but since we switched to bio the problem has disappeared.

dekaspace

Thanks for help, sorry for late reply been under the weather for past few days.