Tips to take care of your Washing Machine

The washing machine which was once a status symbol has now become a normal necessity in every household.It now finds a place in a nook or corner of the house and depending on where you live whether it’s a house with a laundry room or an apartment with a utility corner or just tucked away in  a corner of a bathroom or nook. The combination of water plumbing and electrical plugging can also lead to potential damage if certain care and caution is not taken care by us while handling the washing machine and the place where its kept. Presenting a few tips to keep your laundry room and washing machine & dryer safe from any hazards.


1. Read the manual, care tags, and cleaning product labels.

One of the biggest dangers in a laundry room is an uninformed consumer. Read your machine’s user manual, pay attention when mixing chemicals, and always note if a fabric shouldn’t be washed or dried.

2. Prevent lint buildup.

When home dryer fires occur, lint is often the culprit. Clean out lint screens after every load, and inspect vent pipes, the space behind the dryer, and ducts outside your home to ensure that lint isn’t choking the venting system.

3. Replace water hoses and dryer ducts.

Replacing rubber hoses with reinforced braided ones to prevent a hose from cracking, bursting, and potential flooding. If your dryer vents with a foil accordion duct, you should replace it with a rigid metal duct that won’t collect as much lint.

4 Keep detergent containers away from children’s reach.

Children tend to end up fiddling with detergent powders and liquids as they tend to fancy the smell and soapy nature of the detergent. This could lead to you cleaning the entire room once they have raided the room and gone. There have been incidences where little children have eaten the detergent. So keep the detergents away from the kids reach.

5. Keep machine doors locked, even when the cycle is off.

To small children, the washer and dryer might seem like ideal hiding spots. If your models don’t have built-in safety locking, you can buy a child-safe lock to prevent little ones from climbing inside and getting stuck.

6. Check the  signs of a faulty machine.

If your clothing comes out of the washing machine soapy or won’t get dry in the dryer, there may be something wrong with your machine. Often, coins left in pockets can get stuck and cause mechanical problems.

7. Maintain machines regularly .

An annual checkup or service  for laundry appliances is a must to make sure that all parts are in working order. Post a note by your machines to remind you what the service man fixed on his last visit, and when to schedule your next appointment.

8. Keep the area dry.

The laundry room should be kept dry and free from any moisture. The same thing applies near the electrical points and ensure that there is no moisture there too. Due to the moisture there could be tendency for cockroaches to hide in the machine. Periodically check for these rodents and spray with repellents.

9.Clean the covers.

With the plastic covers used for covering the washing machine , where the covers are not removed for a long time , you could end up with dust and mold accumulating around the washing machine. Periodically wash these covers to avoid dust.