If you have noticed an unpleasant odour coming from your washing machine your first instinct may be to ignore it but you can nip it in the bud with this clever cleaning hack that costs just 17p
A viral cleaning hack lets you clean your washing machine using everyday items for just 17p.
If you have noticed an unpleasant odour coming from your washing machine your first instinct may be to ignore it. But this smell could be a sign that something is wrong inside. Mould and mildew grow in damp environments and can cause a washing machine to smell. Bacteria can grow quickly in the damp environment, feasting on the dirt from old loads of washing.
While not every problem is caused by residue or bacteria, the stale smell you get after leaving a load in the machine for too long can be banished easily using two common household ingredients. The cleaning hack was shared by TikToker @brunchwithbabs who shares cleaning tips and pears of wisdom with her 4 million followers on the platform. Babs’ shows viewers how to give their washing machine a ‘spa treatment’ using just a lemon and a squirt of toothpaste in the 30 second clip.
“Have you ever forgotten to change the laundry load and mistakenly left the wet load in the washer overnight…only to find a smelly washer the next day?,” she asked in the video description. “Here is a hack to get rid of that yucky mildew smell. Just cut a lemon in half and cover the cut side with toothpaste – about a tablespoon. Toss lemon halves into your empty washer and run the washer on speed wash with very hot water. After the cycle is finished, you have a fresh smelling washer – and for very little cost. You can buy expensive washing machine cleaners or…you can make your own.”
The clip, which has over two hundred and thirty thousand likes, was a hit with viewers, with over a thousand leaving comments. Many chipped in with their own tips for leaving their washing machines smelling fresh. “Dishwasher tablet with the hottest cycle. It will smell beautiful and come out sparkling clean,” one wrote. While a second said: “Another tip is to put 2 cups of vinegar in the washer with a few drops of essential oil (peppermint, etc) and that’ll do the same thing”. A pack of four Suntrail Farms lemons costs 69p at Tesco, that’s 17p each, and everyone has a tube of toothpaste in their homes – making this one of the cheapest cleaning hacks out there.
