It ensures that the laundry gets cleaned again - the washing machine. But this also needs to be cleaned; washing cycles alone are not enough.
Wash your dirty clothes, towels or bed linen regularly - this is already an everyday routine for many people. So that you can always take clean and well-smelling parts out of the machine, you should clean them every now and then. You don't have to approach your washing machine with chemicals - use these home remedies instead.
Why do I need to clean my washing machine?
Just as the shower doesn't get or stay clean when you shower, this doesn't happen when you wash it in the washing machine either. After every wash, water residue remains that can cause germs. You can often find these residues on the rubber seal. But residues of detergent, lint or animal hair can also get stuck in the hoses. This can cause germs and bacteria to form, and it also promotes the formation of mold.
You can find everything about household and garden tips in the regular living newsletter from our partner Merkur.de. Login here!
Use these home remedies to clean your washing machine
You can easily prevent a smelly washing machine by cleaning it regularly. The
Utopia.de
portal
recommends cleaning the lint filter and detergent compartment every month. To do this, remove the lint filter as described in the operating instructions. Use a cloth to remove any coarse dirt, then rinse it once with clean water. If you want to avoid bad smells, you can place it in a baking soda bath for a few minutes. To do this, mix some baking soda with water. You can also remove the detergent compartment and give it a rough cleaning. Then place the parts that you were able to remove in a hot vinegar bath. This has a limescale removing effect and bad smells are removed. Then rinse everything off briefly.
However, you shouldn't solve everything with the miracle weapon vinegar:
Attention, vinegar can attack hoses:
Vinegar dissolves limescale, disinfects and is biodegradable - but you should not use it to clean the washing drum, as seals and hoses can be attacked in the long term, informs the
Schoener-wohnen.de
portal .
You can also use baking soda to clean your washing machine. To do this, pour about 60 grams into the detergent compartment and let the machine run empty at 60 degrees. This allows you to fight bacteria, fungi and limescale.
If you have citric acid on hand, you can also use it to clean your washing machine. However, you should pay attention to the dosage. Take about five tablespoons of the citric acid, add it to the washing drum and set it to a maximum of 40 degrees when empty.
Simply clean laundry and washing machine at the same time with soda
If you want to do something good for your laundry and washing machine in one wash cycle, it's best to add two tablespoons of soda to the machine. You can throw the powder directly into the drum or add it to the detergent compartment. You can use this method as often as you want.