Rotten egg odor inside washing machine when not in use. Want smell to stop.

As someone who has had a deep well drilled and found water, but water contaminated with iron and sulfur, I can tell you first hand about the rotten egg smell. The water softener will remove the iron that can turn clothes orange, but doesn't do anything to remove the rotten egg odor. You will need a charcoal (carbon) water filter to eliminate the sulfur smell.

Here's How:

1. Exterior
   Wipe down the exterior of the washing machine with vinegar or your favorite all-purpose cleaner.
   

   
   

2. Tub
   Pour two cups of vinegar or lemon juice into the tub, and run the washing machine through a complete cycle on the hottest setting to remove odors, stains and detergent build up.
   

   
   

3. Lid/Door
   Scrub around the edge of the lid/door with vinegar to remove mildew and detergent build up.
   

   
   

4. Bleach and Fabric Softener Dispensers
   Remove the bleach and fabric softener dispensers, and scrub them in the sink. Then, dry them thoroughly and return them to the machine.
   

   
   

Tips:

1. To prevent mildewing, leave the lid open after you finish a load to allow the washing machine to dry out.
2. Commerical fabric softeners leave build up in the machine. of choice, and the inside of your washing machine won't need to be cleaned as frequently - if at all.

If you have used a non HE detergent in your washer this smell will occur often. Even using HE detergents over a period of 1 year since new they can get this odor. There are products on the market like Affresh: http://www.affresh.com/#/home or Tide washing machine cleaner: http://www.tide.com/en-US/product/tide-washing-machine-cleaner.jspx?ms=true (select info)

What you can do is use a full cup of bleach and 1/4 cup powdered Dawn dish washing soap in your washer with some non greasy rags. Dump it straight into the tub (not via the dispenser) and run a HOT wash. You can also add a squeeze of lemon at the same time or lemon concentrate. If it has been a long time since a machine cleaning cycle you may have to do this 2 times. It is recommended you perform a machine cleaning cycle at least every 90 days.

Any feedback via a response here of your success or failure to get rid of the bad smell would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for using FixYa.

Kelly

There are several cleaners for front loading washers on the market, such as affresh, washer magic, smellywasher cleaner, whirlaway hot tub cleaner, and tide washer cleaner. Clean out the filter located behind the access door at the lower left front of the machine, then, if your model has a tub clean setting, use that with one of those cleaners, if not, use one of those cleaners with the longest, hottest cycle. If things were very bad, you may have to clean it twice. Now, after it is cleaned out,.....STOP USING SO MUCH SOAP ! Use only one tablespoon of HE laudry detergent per cycle, and only one teaspoon of fabric softener if you use that. (Note: Bath towels, used only to wipe off clean bodies, then tossed into the laundry are not dirty enough to require soap usage, and should never have softener used on them) The odors in your washer are caused by a build up of soap and fabric softeners on the inside of the washer's drum. Also, you may have a build up of soap or fabric softener on your clothes. Wash them again once with no soap or fab softener to rinse them out.

You have the beginning of a detergent and/or softener residue buildup on the inside of the plastic outer drum of your clothes washing machine. Mold and bacteria need a moist, dark environment and a food source to grow. This residue is the food source. This can be a major health concern. See: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5408971n

We can't change the environment of the washer but we can lessen the "food source" by reducing detergent and fabric softener use.
Do an internet search on "Smelly Washer Reviews" to see what you can do about the problem of mold odor in your washer, towels and clothing.
After your washer odor is gone you'll need to change washing habits so mold and bacteria don't return. Go to the blog page at smellywasher.com to read the featured posts on the left side of the page on the cause of the problem and what to do for extreme cases of washer mold odor.

Make sure the rubber door gasket is clean. Pull it back and clean under and around it. The gasket will collect dirt and begin to mildew causing various odors. Run the machine empty, boil a medium pot of water to almost boiling, then put it in the machine during the wash cycle. This will help clean the lines, during the rinse cycle place a 1/2 cup of vinegar in the unit. Make sure you are using HE detergent. 1-2 tablespoons will due. If your using liquid fabric softner, dilute it by half. These machine use less water than a typical top loader and can't dissolve regular detergent effectively. There by causing your lines to get clogged with gunk.

I had the same problem, except it wasn't just towels. It was everything. I did some research and found that this is a common problem and nothing a tech can fix. I was about to go out this weekend and spend $1000 on a new washer because I couldn't use this washer on my clothes anymore. I did one more search for a solution and THANK GOODNESS found a solution on another site. A woman had the same problem and, after much trouble, someone at Best Buy finally told her to never use liquid detergent in the machine, not even HE. So I cleaned the inside of my machine, around the door, the rubber seal, etc. I ran the tub clean cycle with bleach and vinegar. The smell was gone and I have been using powder Tide ever since, and the smell hasn't come back!!!!!

A solution from the internet: Make a boil wash (with no clothes and detergents) put into the powder drawer a cup of bicarbonate of soda. It should clean the machine and move out the bad smell. Another: I have a front loading machine also and am not willing to have to constantly clean out the machine; the soap and fabric softeners you use are building up between the inner and outer drums (and on the drum itself sometimes). Because the machines door is so tightly sealed (to prevent water leakage) the smell from this buildup is awful. I finally found the solution. MAGGIE'S SOAP NUTS -- they are all natural (grow on trees) and will remove the grime from your drum and also clean your clothes (you won't even need fabric softener anymore). Stop using commercial detergents and fabric softeners and start using Maggie's Soap Nuts. They are not very cheap but they work great -- I have found that making a liquid out of the soap nuts and storing it in a bottle works better than putting them in the sack cloth they come with (because front loaders do not agitate constantly like regular machines, the cloth bag sits on the clothes and sometimes leaves a stain -- the liquid will not leave a stain. YOU WILL SOLVE YOUR PROBLEM AND HAVE SOFTER CLOTHES TO BOOT (without fabric softener so you save some money there). They are also better for septic tanks, the environment and your health! I believe Whole Foods sells them and they are also on the internet at www.Maggiessoapnuts.com Note: Also go to www.newstarget.com -- they are going to buy these in bulk to cut the cost in half but don't have them yet. You should be able to buy them there soon. Note: Forgot to tell you to run some of this thru your machine with hot water before washing your clothing to clean out the buildup that is already in the machine.

A solution from the internet: Make a boil wash (with no clothes and detergents) put in the powder's drawer a cup of bicarbonate of soda. It should clean the machine and move out the bad smell. Another: I have a front loading machine also and am not willing to have to constantly clean out the machine -- the soap and fabric softeners you use are building up between the inner and outer drums (and on the drum itself sometimes). Because the machines door is so tightly sealed (to prevent water leakage) the smell from this buildup is awful. I finally found the solution. MAGGIE'S SOAP NUTS -- they are all natural (grow on trees) and will remove the grime from your drum and also clean your clothes (you won't even need fabric softener anymore). Stop using commercial detergents and fabric softeners and start using Maggie's Soap Nuts. They are not very cheap but they work great -- I have found that making a liquid out of the soap nuts and storing it in a bottle works better than putting them in the sack cloth they come with (because front loaders do not agitate constantly like regular machines, the cloth bag sits on the clothes and sometimes leaves a stain -- the liquid will not leave a stain. YOU WILL SOLVE YOUR PROBLEM AND HAVE SOFTER CLOTHES TO BOOT (without fabric softener so you save some money there). They are also better for septic tanks, the environment and your health! I believe Whole Foods sells them and they are also on the internet at www.Maggiessoapnuts.com Note: Also go to www.newstarget.com -- they are going to buy these in bulk to cut the cost in half but don't have them yet. You should be able to buy them there soon. Note: Forgot to tell you to run some of this thru your machine with hot water before washing your clothing to clean out the buildup that is already in the machine

This is a common problem. There is a build up of grime in the hidden crevices of the machine. To help resolve this problem, put a cup and a half of good dishwashing power in the machine and then place it on HOT full capacity. Then place fill the fabric softener with bleach. Run the unit half of the wash cycle and then stop it and allow it to soak for 15 minutes. Then allow it to finish the cycle. Repeat this process once a week for 3 weeks. Also you may want to stop using fabric softener if you are using it. The softener acts like a surfactant and adheres to the upper crevices of the machine. After a while bacteria starts to build. The bacteria varies in composition; but a very little known bacteria thrive in these humid areas and gives off the odor you described. The bacteria is commonly known as SRB’s. Here is some more information on this subject. http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/articles/QandA/OTsp00_Q_A.pdf
Best o Luck :?) DRRXR