Common Washing Machine Problems and How to Fix Them

Getting a week’s worth of laundry cleaned, dried, and folded is not an easy feat, especially if you have a family. It can easily take up a whole day. If your washing machine breaks down, it can throw a big wrench into your entire week. 

Unfortunately, even the most reliable washing machine is still a machine, and that means that parts wear out or become damaged and problems can occur. Take a look at what you need to know about some of the most common washing machine problems and how you can solve them. 

Soap Stays in the Dispensers 

You depend on your laundry detergent to get your clothes as clean as possible, but it can’t do that if it stays in the automatic dispensers. If your dispensers are still full of soap after the wash cycle has finished, you may have a problem. 

Your first course of action should be to make sure that you’re using the correct formulas in the correct dispensers. Don’t overuse the detergent. It’s a common mistake to reason that if some soap is good, more is better. Using too much soap won’t get your clothes any cleaner. It will, however, build up in your washing machine. You should also make sure that you aren’t using powdered bleach in a dispenser meant for liquid bleach, or vice versa. 

Cleaning your washing machine regularly can help prevent buildup and clogs. Heating a cup of distilled white vinegar and pouring it in the washing machine, and then running the washer on a normal cycle will help clean built-up soap and bleach out of your washing machine. 

The Washing Machine Is Noisy or Vibrating 

A noisy, vibrating washing machine can be unnerving. Is all that noise a sign that the washing machine is on its last legs? Will the vibrations shake parts of the machine to pieces? Before you panic, try rearranging the load of laundry in the washer. Sometimes the problem is as simple as an unbalanced load.  

If rearranging the load doesn’t fix the problem, it may be that the washer isn’t sitting on a level section of the floor. Adding some plywood underneath the side of the washer that’s sitting on the lower part of the floor can solve the problem. The washer might also have legs that need to be adjusted so that they’re sitting at even heights. 

The Washer Is Leaking 

A leaky washer is a problem not just for your laundry, but also for your floor and anything around your washer that could suffer from water damage. As with vibrations or noises, leaks are often caused by a washer that’s unbalanced in some way, so making sure that the machine is level and that the load is balanced may be enough to fix the problem.  

Washing machine leaks could also be caused by clogged drains. Cleaning out lint, hair, or small items like socks that could get caught in the drain may solve the leak. Otherwise, your hoses may be improperly attached, or your hose washers could be worn out. This may require reattaching the hoses properly or replacing the hoses or washers.