Do you leave your washing machine unsupervised?

SuzieSue

ripplyuk said:

lisyloo said:

Was the advice you were given some time ago?

My parents taught me that when I was young but also our local fire and rescue service repeated the same advice a few years ago when they were doing door to door visits after my neighbour died in a house fire. They said washing machines are one of the main causes they find. 

Yes, you should never run washing machines, dishwashers, tumble driers overnight.

Carrot007

Does it really make difference?

Modern washing machines take ages to get A++ certification by using less water with longer programmes. It is a pain. if I push quick wash on any programme on mine the temperate and more importantly spin speed are limited. Though do look at the options. Ignore what it says it's for. if the temp and time and spins speed are right use it!

And back to my point. My last washing machine died by leaking. I was in. Still ruined the floor.

As for them begin the main cause of fire. So? There is a lot more to it that the cause. Some people never never never ever clean there machines. Fill them too full. leave no ventilation. etc etc. Without clarification it was a washing machine means nothing.

If I go out i may sit one of my wifi cameras on it to keep an eye on it. Though I did when I was in and it leaked. Still did not get there in time!

Another_Level

No, dont do it 

ripplyuk

Carrot007 said:

Does it really make difference?

I think so. If my machine goes on fire and I’m only in the next room, I’ll likely smell smoke long before any major damage is done and it could hopefully be dealt with by a small household fire extinguisher. If I’m away from home for hours, the house could be destroyed in that time. 

I mentioned to the firemen that we leave fridges on permanently and they could catch fire too but he said it’s not as common as washing machines. 

ETA: It could leak even if someone is home but that isn’t as dangerous as fire. 

MalMonroe

Yes. I don't babysit my washer (never have) and I put my dishwasher on overnight - have done for the last twenty five years. (Different dishwashers, same principle.)

As others have said, your washing programme seems a bit long. I only use the one for 60 minutes at 60 degrees or the cold wash (0 degrees) at 30 minutes for a fast wash. 

My laundry is never dirty enough to need any more than that. What on earth are you doing with your things?

We have smoke alarms in the rooms where dishwasher and washer are located.

The only thing I would never leave on overnight or if we were out is the tumble dryer. Sometimes they have been known to spontaneously combust. 

neilmcl

I won't leave the tumble dryer on unattended but more often than not my washing machine and dishwasher are set to run overnight. Been dong that for decades without issue but then I don't have a machine with a poor reputation for fire risk.

Carrot007

MalMonroe said:

Sometimes they have been known to spontaneously combust. 

If they did it would not metter if they were on of off ;-)

But even with tumble dryer I do think in 99.9% the user is at fault (yes even in the recalled one).

Mine had 2 palces that need maintenance. One says after evey use. The other says monthly (for normal use when used). I suspect for many people the full clean is never done. And if the machine did not check and refuse to turn on these days I doubt the first would be done either. (only thing I forget to do it actually remove the last load dryed, but hey no harm there!)

But no I would still not leave it on if I go out. I'll be back, what needs drying so fast!

travis-powers

We had a small fire start at a socket (our fault) but since then we have never left them running unattended.
 God knows what would of happened if I didn’t smell the smoke!

SuzieSue

travis-powers said:

We had a small fire start at a socket (our fault) but since then we have never left them running unattended.
 God knows what would of happened if I didn’t smell the smoke!

Why was it your fault?

debsy42

We had a washing machine that literally blew up with a massive bang, had to get the door open as there was loads of smoke and steam inside. Would never leave either washing machine or tumble dryer unattended now after what happened.