Whirlpool Gold Washer Mildew Problem

[scrubflex]

Has anyone with a Whirlpool washer experience a problem with clothes, specifically jeans, that become mildew after the wash. I've tried cleaning the washer with "SMELLEY WASHER" mold and mildew remover often but, it continues to return. I use the liquid Tide with bleach detergent. I'm wondering if I need to change to powder and affraid I'll have to throw the washer away. Any suggestions and solutions?

 

[runematic]

Wp built washers do tend to build up "gak" inside over the years. What you should really do, if mechanically inclined, is to remove the inner wash basket and clean the outside of the basket & the inside of the outer tub.

To do this: First unplug the washer & remove the two console screws that hold the console onto the top of the washer. Now pull it slightly forward & tilt up to keep out of the way. Next, disconnect the lid switch plug. Now, take a screwdriver and release the two big spring clips. Now you can remove the entire cabinet. Next, if you have a softner disp, remove it. Now remove the cap inside the agitator. Take a 7/16" socket on and extension & rachet and remove the bolt holding in the agitator. Lift out agitator (if it is a two piece agitator, try not to separate the pieces to save some swearing time). Now you need to remove the c piece & the white piece on that goes around tranny shaft (oh boy. THE TRANSMISSION is what I meant). Now you can take a chisel or some good object (we have a spanner wrench built for this purpose) & loosen the tub nut and remove. You can now take out the inner basket. The drive block may come out with it, but it is easy to put back on.

You'll see that the tubs are going to be gunked up. Clean the tubs and reinstall reversing the steps.

After you're done, it would be wise to do a quick hot water washe with a big cup of bleach. Sometimes gunk gets in the tub to pump hose, the pump, and the drain hose.

We do this to every wp built washer that comes in when we are getting them ready to resale. It makes a hell of a difference.

If you do not feel comfortable doing this, don't. If you want to tackle it, it'll make a difference for you.

 

[yogitunes]

First of all...are you washing any loads in warm or hot water?....my SIL only washes in cold, and theres always a film of sludge (lint, grease, suds, detergent) built up between the inner and outter tub at the top, about 6 inches around, and I have to disassemble the base from the machine, take off the tub cover and scrub with a brush and hot water to get rid of it, also the dual action agitator is taken out and apart to clean out, TILEX DEEP ROOT spray works best on all of this, also remove the balance ring and clean under that too....

after that is all clean, rinsed and replaced, I fill the machine with HOT water and a full gallon of bleach(you may have to hold the reset button of the water level to fill as much as possible)...let agitate and soak for about 2 hours, then let it finish the cycle....while soaking, move and tilt the tub assembly to get water and bleach under the tub where the air is trapped, also drain the machine for a few seconds to get the bleached water into the pump and hoses, then refill

this should take care of this for a while.....keep the lid open when not in use to dry out

Super Clean Purple is also a great degreaser for this task, you can find it at Walmart, or any Auto Parts store!

Hope this helps you

 

[toggleswitch2]

Stop using softener.

It is mold FOOD!

 

[runematic]

You wouldn't believe the stuff the builds up under the outer tub that you can only get to by removing the outer tub. A lot the of models have outer tubs that have a plastic piece across the bottom of the tub that holds in stuff that'll cake up like clay. We just remove that piece as the newer washers don't have this piece. Disgusting, absolutely disgusting.

 

[whirlcool]

We had off smells on our WP Electronic top set.
We fixed it by running a few empty loads in super hot water with 1 cup Cascade Complete, then run a warm rinse cycle. Then we ran another hot load with 2 cups of Clorox bleach and hot water and let it agitate then sit overnight. Agitated it more in the morning and ran a warm rinse.
This greatly improved things. We switched to powdered detergent (FOCA & Gain W/Baking Soda). The odor hasn't come back yet.

I believe that liquid laundry products are the cause of this. Stay away from them and you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[laundromat]

muratic acid-

All the washers I restore,once they're running,I pour a full gallon of MA with a super hot full tub wash cycle.It not only eats up any residue left by fabric softner addicts but also thoroughly gets rid of any mold,mildew and rust.Very hot(190F)water wash and warm rinse.No clothes just an empty tub.Wear a mask and rubber gloves.

 

[scrubflex]

muratic acid...

My water doesn't get that (190F) hot. What about the plastic outer tub, will it be effected in any way?

 

[laundromat]

Yes,it will be like new.No corosion,just removal of all the debres and gook.

 

[scrubflex]

Will it work as well if the water is not very hot?

 

[appnut]

My water doesn't get that (190F) hot.

If your water doesn't get very hot, then this is a typo. What's the real temp you were trying to type. If hot water is indeed 190, I'm surprised anything gets moldy, unless you only wash in cold.

 

[toggleswitch2]

~My water doesn't get that (190F) hot.

Boil water in the largest pot or two you have (6+ quarts [6L+]) on the stove. Add to a hot wash, when the machine already has some water in it.

Use chlorine bleach and detergent. Wash with or without clothes (whites, duh!). Should help.

If you are doing a whites wash I say pre-wash them first with detergent then rewash as described above. Your water will be brown/black!

 

[alr2903]

Togs, you are right all of the DC maytags i have bought had been owned by people with ESA "extreme softner abuse", you the dual actions were total clogged, Hot washes with bleach and a small bottle brush will get the most of it. The center dial machine with the large barrel flex fin, pretty much fixed it's self. Nasty & waxey and foul. alr2903

 

[toggleswitch2]

Harry,

If your are in a larger apartment building, 99% of them in our area produce hot water via a tankless instantaneous (pipe)coil in the boiler.

When the steam heat is on, one tends to get hotter water at the taps. Is this the case for you?

Good luck!

 

[scrubflex]

Hi Toggle, I'm in an apartment house. When the steam heat is on, the water gets pretty hot but, I'll still boil water for it to be hotter. I normally wash clothes in warm or cool water. The white clothes, water not completely hot.

 

[toggleswitch2]

BTW bleach detergent (contains oxygen bleach) and Clorox (chlorine bleach) cancel each other out. One shoud use REGULAR detergent when using chloring bleach.....

 

[zanussi_lover]

Forget Bleach

Get a bottle of distilled Clear White Vinegar and add 2 or 3 cups and run it through on the hottest wash without any clothes, that should remove the smell in your machine and also descale it, and to clean the seal spray some diluted vinegar on it, and wipe with a damp cloth

also remember to leave the door ajar in between washes to air the machine out and keep it smelling fresh.

 

[toggleswitch2]

Ye old vinegar and water trick, eh?

Vinegar is not recommended in machines with a porcelain basket or outer tub. It will eat the finish.