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jlosc

Affresh vs Smelly Washer products

jlosc
13 years ago

I've had the mold smell in my washing machine Maytag Neptune for over 5 yrs. I don't know WHY these manufacturers can't make washing machines that don't have this obnoxious mold smell, because the older washing machines never had this problem. I currently have a top loader.

My Mother is in Europe and they've been using front loaders for YEARS and never had a mold problem, it seems in just the last 10 yrs that mold odor has been a problem in washing machines. I don't see why we should have to spend top dollar on a washing machine, and have to buy MORE products to get rid of that smell. I used Affresh, it did not work. I was told to use the product called SMELLY WASHER for towels and it does work, but if you don't use it, the smell returns.

I am totally disgusted with all the appliance manufacturers charging top dollar and making inferior products. Hmmmmm..... come to think of it, I WONDER if the fact that the appliances are made in China have anything to do with these smells. Remember the sheetrock that was causing all kinds of problems in peoples homes? That was made in China.

If we never had the mold smell in the older model machines (which were made in the US), then why are we having mold smell problems with the machines in the last 10 or so years? Strange.

Comments (13)

  • fordtech
    13 years ago

    There were 3 different machines called Neptune 5 years ago some with multiple models, so it may help if you specified which.

    If it is a rear panel machine like the 5500,6500,7500 etc I can tell you I have been using mine for the past 5 years and it has NO smelly washer issue and hasnt since new.

    My prior Neptune, a 4000 did. It did until I learned how to use the machine in a manner to prevent this problem. I wash at least one hot load each week, one whites load hot with liquid bleach, and use powdered detergent. I do not use more than two scoops for heavy loads or one scoop for regular washes. No liquid softener, we use dryer sheets

    That is all. No leaving the door open, no taking the bulb out, no other tricks and no smelly washer.

    I cant say what the conditions are with your machine but I had a badly contaminated model 4000 because we only used cold water, used liquid detergent,used excessive amounts, and used liquid softner. As a result I had to dismantle the machine and thoroughly clean out the slimey buildup from all components and start all over again. For the nearly 2 years I used it from there it never had a smelly load again after modifying washing habits described above.

    I did get the machine mentioned in the first paragraph above because it was a super price slashed new in box 7500 touch screen model and my old one was the old mechanical push button model. So in the 5 years since getting it, that machine too has been odor free, buildup free, and I have been thoroughly happy with it. So thats 7 years past now in a row without odors from buildup in the machines.

    Taking the machine apart only takes about an hour or less and a manual to take it apart is avaliable online with a little google search. Or you can hire someone to do it for you. But I am fairly certain no matter what machine you purchase, that unless you have modified your washing habits that you will continue to have problems or you may have a horrible hard water issue to address. IMHO and no intentions to insult or injure, just facts that I had to learn the hard way myself with my prior Neptune.

  • jakvis
    13 years ago

    Fordtech speaks the truth.
    As to your Mothers washer... European washers are and have been built with on board heaters for years and years. In Europe they only hook washers to cold water then heat the water to the proper temp based on the cycle selected. Europeans also realize they need to wash in hot water and do so for their whites, bed linens, etc
    By using more hot and very hot washes the washers don't get scrud built up on the insides of the washer that is typical of washing in only cold and warm water washes.

    Scrud is what we in service call the build up of detergent, fabric softener, body oils, skin cells, dirt, etc. Once it has built up from improper washer use it can be difficult to get rid of. You can go the extreme route of fordtech and disassemble then clean or you can try a the smelly washer treatment again.
    This time fill the washer with hot water, put in the treatment and then add about 3 more gallons of water. Let the washer agitate for a few minutes then let it sit overnight.

    If your washer has a big build up you may need to repeat this treatment 2 more times to get a complete clean out. Once it is done you will be able to use your washer without the smell but only if you change your washing habits as outlined by fordtech

  • livebetter
    13 years ago

    I witnessed a few people succeed in solving their smell problems with Smelly Washer.

    Even though I've never had a problem, I started using is about a year ago to do a once a month clean of my machine. 9 years and I have never experienced and issue with mold or smell (I do not have an on board heater).

    I went through a âÂÂcoldâ wash phase but returned to doing warm/hot washes. Only truly hot water and good detergent gets things like white socks somewhat back to original.

  • sshrivastava
    13 years ago

    The facts are pretty simple. In Europe they wash at a much higher temperature, thereby significantly lowering the risk of mold/mildew development. They have also been designing and building washing machines in Europe for decades. Front load washers are a recent phenomenon in this country, designed by companies without a successful track record of producing such machines, and built in countries where labor is cheap and product quality is mediocre. If you look at the European brands, most of them are probably designed and built in Europe by manufacturers that have been doing so for many years.

    On the issue of quality, "American" products are going up in price while the cost of production is going down due to outsourcing of jobs and manufacturing to third world countries. Volkswagen makes cars in Mexico, most washing machines sold domestically are made in China or other parts of Asia where labor is incredibly cheap. This means bigger profits for the manufacturers which translate into bigger bonuses for CFOs and CEOs who already make far more than any human being should be allowed to make. Everyone in this country should be enraged by what's happening, but sadly we have an apathetic voting population that is more concerned with what type of underwear Britney Spears is wearing, if she's wearing any, rather than the substantive issues which are causing our population major strife.

    We all need to wake up and smell the coffee we drink each morning thanks to the practically slave labor that produces it.

  • livebetter
    13 years ago

    @sshrivastava, this is becoming a post of a different nature :)

    I agree totally about quality. Unfortunately you have a nation obsessed with "bang for the buck". How do we think Walmart got so big (Grandma and Grandpa didnâÂÂt have Wal-Mart)?

    Everyone wants to pay less and less for things and then can't understand why things are not made like they used to be.

    Sure things cost more today but itâÂÂs a matter of percentages. We spend less (as a percentage of our income) on food today than we did 50 years ago yet everyone complains how expensive things are.

    Consumers vote with their $$$. No film illustrated this better than Food Inc. If you havenâÂÂt seen it, I suggest you give it a watch ⦠very informational. While it specifically relates to food and the agricultural industry you can see how the theories relate to other areas. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eKYyD14d_0

    On a similar (but different) note. Watch the trailer for Waiting For Superman (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKTfaro96dg). Very powerful information. How long can the US maintain its status of a âÂÂsuper powerâ when its children are growing up more illiterate than many other nations? The US ranks #25 on worldwide Math stats (Canada is #5).

  • sshrivastava
    13 years ago

    The country where I was born - Czechoslovakia, now known as the Czech Republic - was a Communist Soviet-bloc country for decades. The Czechs did not come out from under Soviet rule until the 1990s. It was invaded by the Soviet Union after the Prague Spring of 1968 - one year before my birth. Now it ranks #11 in education in the world compared to the US at #25. We can't even compete with those "eastern bloc" countries which we criticized just 20 years ago for lacking the basic freedoms and human rights.

    I didn't intend to post something of a political nature, but it's part of my daily life as a talk show host here in Phoenix so it's difficult to separate at times. Although my show revolves around real estate, the devastating impacts of our political and economic philosophies affect me every single day. I live in the land of WalMart and strip malls where people want cheap and convenient, but where few people still possess critical thinking skills that are especially important today.

    Washing machines are just one example of our country gone wrong. Quality has taken a back seat to corporate profits. Our demand for the inexpensive has resulted in outsourcing of jobs and manufacturing to other countries. What do we make in the USA anymore? And you know what? We have only ourselves to blame. Corporate salaries and bonuses continue to go unchecked and we continue to demand products at the lowest possible cost. Did you know that US companies actually receive incentives and tax breaks to ship jobs overseas? Did you know that products made in the USA are subject to trade tariffs, yet we don't levy any tariffs on products we import from other countries? The USA is quickly becoming a third world country, and it's largely thanks to the people who live here that tolerate it and enable this to happen.

    We are already at the point where the top five banking institutions in the US own 50% of our country's GDP. The top 5% of our population owns 90% of our country's wealth. Continuing this trend is a recipe for disaster, and nothing is going to improve until we take the money out of politics. It's that simple.

    If we stop demanding things to be cheap and purchase our products more strategically according to where they are made and the philosophies of the companies who make them, we may have a shot at improving things. It's okay to spend more money on something that is sold by a socially responsible company who pays good benefits and living wages to its employees. This is exactly why I refuse to ever set foot in a WalMart or Sam's Club, yet all my neighbors can see are the numbers on the price tags. So while my neighbors complain that there are so few mom and pop shops in town, they give their business to the one company that has put the mom and pops out of business.

  • livebetter
    13 years ago

    @sshrivastava, "shivers" up my spine ... you are spot on ;)

    Unfortunately, people just don't listen and/or understand.

    Why should they pay more for free trade when the can get a super "deal" at Sam's or Wal-Mart? I really question what our countries will be like in another 50 years.

  • mara_2008
    13 years ago

    Back to the OT: :)

    I have owned Maytag Bravos for 2 1/2 years, and I haven't had any problem at all with odor, mold, or mildew.

    Bravos is an HE toploader, and I do leave the lid open when it's not in use (as I've always done).

    I use both liquid and powder detergents (not together, of course) and I also use liquid fabric softener in some loads, always mixed half-and-half with white vinegar. For some loads I only use the vinegar.

    I wash white towels and white cottons (socks, undies, T-shirts) in true hot water by using the internal water heater. Sometimes, but not always, I wash white sheets this way.

    I've used Affresh or bleach (not both) with the Clean Washer cycle two times in this period of time.

  • mrsrv
    13 years ago

    My guess is that cheaper machines have plastic past which may or may not have contact with water and detergent, but in humid environment of the machine have a medium on which to grow mold and bacteria. In the past year I read a research paper which documents the growth of ecoli on washing machine drums, likely from forgoing the use of hot water and bleach!!! Back to the way laundry was done with soap, before the days of detergent.

  • dadoes
    13 years ago

    Trust me on this (I worked for an appliance dealer for several years 30 years ago, and have continued to do repairs for family & friends), "old" toploaders often had mold/scrud/scum/residue under the inner basket, under the agitator, inside the outer tub, and in the pumps and hoses ... no substantial difference from machines nowadays, although the move to cooler temperatures does worsen the problem.

  • chelliep
    13 years ago

    I have the LG top loader WT5001 and it doesn't have a heater.. I have been washing every load using the HOT/COLD cycle as the water only gets what I call pretty warm so I don't know how I could get rid of the mold smell if I ever get it. As far as the Affresh...what.. $10 for 3 tablets ?? Does it really work that much better than using Bleach ?? I did read an article on Consumer World saying that a Whirlpool agent says that bleach only lasts about 6 months and then should be replaced.. Anybody have any experience with this ?

  • CharterOps
    10 years ago

    Not to stray off topic too far again but as far as machines being built elsewhere. I have the Electrolux IQ and plate clearly states: Electrolux Products, Augusta, GA; then Made in Mexico!

    I'm generally pleased with the overall results and have never had mold or smelly issues. I do use the Tub Clean cycle when it displays and I use about 4oz of Cascade dishwasher powder in the clean cycle and boy does it really make a difference!

  • DianV
    9 years ago

    The bleach method is a good one "IF" you are not on a septic system, if on a septic system bleach is a huge no no. It kills the good bacteria that makes the septic work.