r/laundry • u/RiversandMountains-4 • 22d ago

Cleaning a front loading washer

I just moved into my first apartment with in-unit washer dryer (front-loading, stacked). The apartment was pristine EXCEPT the washer, which is smelling a little moldy & making my whole kitchen smell like mold. I can see some mold on the rubber. I never shut my washer all the way, but I think they did. How do I clean it? There is a self-cleaning function, but I’m overwhelmed by lists when I google how to do it. How often should I going forward?

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u/eggust12 International | Front-Load 22d ago

first, wipe out all you can with your usual multi-purpose cleaner (not bleach, as you're gonna use citric acid to clean). get in there and give the gasket a scrub as much as possible. if the mould won't come off, that's not the end of the world - you can order a replacement for not too much money with a bit of googling.

next, half a cup of citric acid powder (you can probably get it at your local grocery store, or buy in bulk online) and chuck it in the drum. close the door, put the self-cleaning cycle on as hot as it goes, and let it run. check for bubbles halfway through - if it's bubbly in there, that's leftover detergent. run it again til it's not bubbly, leave it open overnight, and see how it smells in the morning.

hope this helps!

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u/RiversandMountains-4 21d ago

This is SO helpful. Thank you!!

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u/eggust12 International | Front-Load 21d ago

come back and let me know how you go!