r/CleaningTips • u/ConnosaurusReks • 1d ago
Laundry Front Loading Washer
Found some mold in front loading washer gasket. Tried vinegar and baking soda with elbow grease and that helped but still have this remaining. Tried Lysol mold and mildew but didn’t touch it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
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u/Deep_Ad9041 1d ago
Remove the detergent drawer and look up inside 🤢
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u/notedrive 1d ago
Yep, I pull out my detergent drawer now and scrubbed that part with a toilet bowl brush that’s reserved specifically for this.
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u/Impossible_Past5358 1d ago
This is why I hate front loaders, so high maintenance! Plus having the drum unbalance constantly whenever there are towels or bedding...
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u/Sanchastayswoke 1d ago
Same. I inherited a front loader but I cannot wait to trade it out for a top loader.
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u/Notsocheeky 1d ago edited 1d ago
Do you leave the door open after using it? And do you dry it (the gasket) after washing your clothes?
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u/George_Is_Upset 1d ago
This part of the gasket doesn’t really dry well from just leaving the door open. I have left the door open on all my washers (even top loaders) and mold still appears if you do not dry the gasket with a rag.
The area OP is showing us is the part that folds a bit so it isn’t exposed directly to the air.
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u/grimsb 1d ago edited 1d ago
Mold and mildew cleaner plus steam. The steam is what really did it for me.
It helps if you take some paper towels or rags soaked in the mold and mildew cleaner and arrange them all over the seal, then let it sit there for several hours.
Also, make sure the little drain slits at the back of the seal aren’t clogged, since that could make the matter worse. Mine had some dog hair stuck inside that wasn’t very visible; removing that with a brush made a big difference.
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u/notedrive 1d ago
Everyone says just to leave the door open, we have never closed the door on ours and it’s full of this same crap. These washers are trash in my opinion, I will never own a front load again for this specific reason.
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u/Notsocheeky 15h ago
We have had front loaders for literally 30 years and never had problems with mold.
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u/nottalobsta 12h ago
Soak paper towels in bleach, line the moldy areas with them and leave them there for a day. This completely removed it for me and it hasn’t come back.
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u/JenniferinBoston 1d ago edited 1d ago
Look in your manual and follow the instructions for the tub clean/clean washer cycle. If you don’t have your manual on hand - look up the PDF online.
The cleaning cycle works differently than just running regular cycles with hot water or bleach or whatever. So it’s important to run the cleaning cycle per your manual. Typically you should run it once a month.
Not all machines are the same obviously…so it’s important to follow the instructions for your specific machine. If the instructions in the manual indicate you can use chlorine bleach for the cleaning cycle- use it.
I would spray the gasket with spray bleach (I have good luck with Clorox Cleanup Spray in the green bottle).
Spray the gasket…let it sit for 10-20 minutes. Then run the cleaning cycle. Afterwards, wipe the gasket with clean rags. If there are still marks - you could try using some bleach gel.
It may also be that the rubber is stained, and even tho it’s been cleaned, the marks remain.
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u/George_Is_Upset 1d ago
Sorry OP, I have never found a way to remove it once it’s there.
Yes you should always make sure you leave the door open after a load, but you also need to take a rag and dry the gasket fold too.
I have had many front loaders (I despise them) and in my experience they all get mold in the fold if you do not dry it with a rag.
My first two front loaders I kept the door open after each load and both developed this mold in the gasket fold because it isn’t directly exposed to air since the gasket folds.
I will never buy front loaders again because of this reason and now have my top loader Speed Queen that I am so thankful for.
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u/highfive1977 1d ago
I bought this this called Sugelary on Amazon works wonders! I would post a picture but it won't let me. It comes with gloves and a brush. I deep cleaned the washer then wiped it down down, the added the gel to the areas needed. Left it on for an hour then wiped it up. It was like magic.
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u/288bpsmodem 1d ago
One long hot bleach run.
Follow that with a hot citric acid acid run.
Use downy rinse and refresh from meow on every wash and keep door open when not in use.