How to Clean a Washing Machine Door Seal

Should you clean your washing machine door seal?

Is it not true that your washing machine should provide a certain level of cleanliness for your clothes? People are curious as to why this isn’t always the case.

Most of the time, the issue is that they either forget to clean their washing machine’s door seal when it becomes dirty or did not even know they needed to.

It should come as no surprise that a damp interior can encourage the formation of mould and bacteria. This confirms that regular cleaning is required to keep your machine in good working order and to ensure that every load of clothes you wash smells fresh every time.

How often should I clean my washing machine seal?

It’s recommended that cleaning your washing machine door seal is something you should do at least every 1-3 months, making this something you do often is essential to keeping your machine free from bacteria and mildew. However, this completely depends on how often you use your machine.

There are often clear indicators that your machine needs cleaning sooner rather than later, some things to look out for are:

• A musky smell coming from the drum.
• Visible dirt, mould, or dark residue inside the flap of the door seal
• Black marks that are left on your clean laundry.

The best way to clean a dirty washing machine door seal

This cleaning hack has proven to be most effective when it comes to stubborn dirt in your door seal. Surprisingly, you can clean the affected area with common household items like white vinegar and bicarbonate of soda.

Everything you will need:

• 200g of bicarbonate of soda
• 300ml of white vinegar
• A small amount of Washing up liquid
• An old dish cloth
• An old or unused toothbrush for stubborn and hard-to-reach areas

How to clean your washing machine door seal with bicarbonate soda and white vinegar

1. You will need to mix a solution of 100g of bicarbonate of soda and 300 ml of white vinegar and pour It into the detergent draw.
2. Using an additional 100g of bicarbonate of soda, put this in and around the door seal.
3. Use a wet old dishcloth or toothbrush to agitate the affected area inside the seal. This will help loosen the bacteria but isn’t always essential. For best results, use an old toothbrush to get into hard-to-reach areas.
4. Run a cycle for the longest wash cycle on your washing machine and the hottest water setting (70 °c or above will be fine). It is ok to do this while it’s empty.
5. Once the cycle is complete, use a wet cloth to wipe away any loose dirt with hot water and washing up liquid solution, ensuring that the area is clean.
6. As we mentioned earlier, keep the door open to remove moisture and heated air.

Repeating these steps whenever you clean your washing machine will leave your seal looking new – If your seal is beyond repair, and the mould is too stubborn this method may not be effective for you and a deeper clean or having the door seal replaced might be more appropriate.

Why do washing machine door seals become mouldy?

Washing machine door seals usually build up mould and bacteria naturally. If you only use cold temperature washes, the bacteria is never cleaned away by the machine and will continue to spread.

The best way to prevent your washing machine door seal from becoming dirty is to run your machine on the hottest temperature wash at least once per week.

Once the machine becomes extremely mouldy, it can sometimes become difficult to reverse the damage. This would mean that you need to replace the door seal altogether.

To avoid this from becoming a common occurrence consider trying these top tips:

1. Once the washing cycle is complete, remove the laundry from the machine immediately to avoid moisture build-up.
2. By leaving the door open, you can easily stop the accumulation of dirt and mould. By doing this, you can remove moisture and heated air after you have used your washing machine.
3. Always run your machine on a hot temperature wash at least once per week.

Keeping your washing machine clean is something that you need to do from the week you buy it. It’s important to prevent the build up of a dirty washing machine instead of waiting and then trying to clean it after.