Why does my washing machine smell like a sewer?

Getting rid of a bad smell in your washing machine is necessary, but first you need to find out the reason your washing machine stinks. 

Washing machines have one purpose, and that’s to clean clothes. So when a machine has a funky smell to it, it seems unlikely that it will clean your clothes.

So you smell something foul coming from your washing machine.

• Have you considered that the smell may not actually be coming from your actual washing machine, but from something close by? Try looking all around, and maybe even underneath your machine to locate the culprit.

With all the dirty, stinky stuff we put in washing machines on a regular basis, it’s pretty incredible that they don’t smell all the time.

• One thing to do regularly to help prevent lingering smells is to keep the door or lid of your washing machine open when you are not using it to keep it free of moisture.

Moisture causes mould, and mould smells. Keeping a lid open while a washing machine is not in use is something easy you can do to help keep your machine hygienic and stench-free.

• Try running an empty wash with baking soda, vinegar or lemon juice.
• This might help remove any lingering smells and sanitize the inside of your machine.

If this doesn’t work, you may need to spend some money on having your washing machine repaired.

There are people whose only job is to assess and repair washing machines. It’s often a good idea to leave this work to people who know what they’re doing.

• If you try to dismantle your washing machine and start poking around without knowing what you’re doing, you risk breaking your machine.
• The cost of repairing it will be much higher than if you were just calling someone to get rid of a funky smell.