Cleaning the Cleaning Machine

I went to the Farmer's Market again on Saturday, but I totally forgot to take pictures! I was wearing shoes that while completely cute, were small torture devices. All I could think was how bad I wanted to get home and change my shoes.

The rest of the day was spent doing housework. Mostly dishes and laundry.

So much laundry.

I've been having a problem lately with my whites not coming out looking clean. It seemed like no matter what I used or how I used it they'd keep coming out dingy and gray.

While playing on one my favorite sites, Pinterest, I came across a tutorial for cleaning my washing machine. I clean the outside all the time, but I never thought to clean the inside. I mean, dirty clothes go in and clean clothes come out. I thought that meant the inside of the machine was getting cleaned too!

The dingy whites were proof that I was wrong.

I am a terrible blogger, and I didn't get pictures! You're just going to have to read my florid description.

The first thing I did was turn the washer on the highest load and the hottest water. While it was filling up I poured in about a pint of bleach.

After the machine was full but before it could start agitating I pushed the button in and made it stop while the barrel was full. I left it sitting like that for an hour.

When I came back after an hour the water was gross. Seriously nasty. It was gray and I couldn't even see the bottom of the machine. No wonder my whites were coming out dingy!

I pulled the button back out and let the machine run through the rest of the cycle.

Then I did it all again, only this time I poured in vinegar instead of bleach. When I went back after an hour the water was beautifully clear and clean!

The last thing I did was just run the machine one last time, no soaking, nothing added. Just hot water. I did this to give it a final rinse. I didn't want the next thing I washed to get accidentally bleached!

I haven't washed any whites in the clean machine yet. I'd just done a huge load the night before I washed it, so I won't know if it makes a difference for a while. After seeing that nasty water, I can't see how it wouldn't!