Black flakes from washing machine

[Fcw75]

Has anyone ever encountered black flakes in the drum and on your clothes for your top load washing machine after washing?

[Mustank]

i know already. these are scums caused by unintended mixing of detergent and softener

 

very hard to get rid one. one \ way to prevent is this:

 

once a week, you throw rugs inside to wash. then you pour bleach inside. no softner allowed in this wash.

 

you can try dump a few bottles of bleach inside to soak overnight see can work or not but i doubt it can clear all. this type prevention better than cure.

[Fcw75]

i know already. these are scums caused by unintended mixing of detergent and softener

 

very hard to get rid one. one \ way to prevent is this:

 

once a week, you throw rugs inside to wash. then you pour bleach inside. no softner allowed in this wash.

 

you can try dump a few bottles of bleach inside to soak overnight see can work or not but i doubt it can clear all. this type prevention better than cure.

 

U kenna before too bro?

 

Wah lau, like that how do we know which detergent and softener is OK sia?

[Mcf777]

bro,

go to NTUC and serach for those detergent that wash/clear the washing machine dirt.

I forgoten the name/brand. It a small packet type.

[Fcw75]

bro,

go to NTUC and serach for those detergent that wash/clear the washing machine dirt.

I forgoten the name/brand. It a small packet type.

 

Bro, I tried those. Seems to make it worse...hahaha.

[Mustank]

thats bec the bleach is getting rid of the scums. thats why so much scum. but i don think one time can settle all.

 

ypur likely solution is buy a new one and maintain the new one by bleaching it once every week. the bleaching wash can be used to wash rags

 

now that i am doing this, no more scums

[Mustank]

it doesnt matter which detergent or softener. still need bleach every week

[SimonTan]

Every week I wash my toilet carpets.

I use mama lemon and 60deg temp. Sometimes I use car shampoo, mr.muscle, baby bottle cleaner, etc to wash the carpet. Yes I tried those descaling powder and those glass shine detergent(for dishwashing machine) as well.

This helps to remove any scum and dirt in the washing machine very well.

 

 

[Whathefish]

Has anyone ever encountered black flakes in the drum and on your clothes for your top load washing machine after washing?

does your WM come with a flirter? a small little bag by the side? You can remove it n wash...

last time i have this problem...buy a cheapo one...without the flirter by the side....

 

now still using another cheapo one but with a flirter by the side

[SimonTan]

The filter is always clean in my samsung WM.

I took out the filter a few times to check....never find any rolled up wool or hair balls.......once found a few blacken coins that's all.

I think the filter is useless for fibres....only good to trap solid objects like coins.

But I am still puzzled how the hell the coins got there.

The holes in the stainless steel drum is like 5mm size....impossible for the coins to slip thru there.

 

Magic!

 

Edited July 28, 2011 by SimonTan

[Dwoon]

Mine's front load. Don't get black pieces on the drum (drum is basically very clean)..... but the scum is residing inbetween the rubber seal/lining where it contacts the door.

 

So once every few months, gotta wipe the lining crevices and channels clean. Else when taking clothes out can get the scum marks onto the clean clothes. Worse is sometimes during the washing/spinning cycles, the clothes may get into those crevices or channels.... then also get scum on it and must re-wash.

[Speedlight]

I got it b4 last year. The technician who came said tt its due to softener thats being used. Need to remove the entire drum for cleaning though. Took him an hr to clean the whole drum. And he recommends powder softener. However, I couldnt find any powder softener in the supermarkets and thus I stopped using softener altogether. Its been months since the cleaning and its as good as new.. No flakes nowadays =) O and by the way those packets to clean the drum is of no use. Have tried countless times cleaning on my own. Seems to make it worst

Edited July 28, 2011 by Speedlight

[Donut]

why must use softener?

 

I have never used softner before, coz i know it creates alot of problem for the machine AND the clothes......

[Fcw75]

I got it b4 last year. The technician who came said tt its due to softener thats being used. Need to remove the entire drum for cleaning though. Took him an hr to clean the whole drum. And he recommends powder softener. However, I couldnt find any powder softener in the supermarkets and thus I stopped using softener altogether. Its been months since the cleaning and its as good as new.. No flakes nowadays =) O and by the way those packets to clean the drum is of no use. Have tried countless times cleaning on my own. Seems to make it worst

 

Thanks for the feedback bro. Your case is very similar to mine. I have asked the Hitachi technician to come down 2molo to see. Think will ask him to remove the drum for cleaning.

 

Is yours a Hitachi too?

[Fcw75]

Ok, just to update anyone who might face this problem in the future.

 

Today the Hitachi guy came and took the whole drum out of the machine for cleaning. There were so many black scums on the outside and underneath of the drum! Took him almost a hour to clean the bugger.

 

No way will the drum washing powder do the job so thoroughly. In fact it will make it worse.

 

The cause of this problem as he said is the fabric softener. So for those who using softener, please use the minimum and also try to avoid the concentrated kind. If want to use the concentrated kind, use very very minimum.

 

Washing powder also no need use so much.

[Kb27]

Reviving this thread, as I am reviving my old Samsung washing machine, with icky black particles floating around. These are fungi/mold.

Here's Samsung answer:

 

How to remove black particles on clothes from Samsung Washing Machine?

Last Update date : Oct 20. 2020

Black particles can accumulate on the walls of the inner bowl when you are using cold wash and/or hot water tap is running on low pressure.

During washing cycle, the particles will sometime disconnect themselves from the bowl and contaminate the clothing. 

To remove black particles, follow these steps to clean the Washing Machine:

1. Fill the Washing Machine with 3/4 of water
2. Add 1 to 2 litres of Clorox/Bleach
3. Leave it overnight
4. On the next day, do a clean tub or quick wash to wash away the molds (do not put in any clothing). You may want to wash the tub a few time to remove the Clorox smell

 

Alternatively, you can also follow these tips to resolve the issue:

1. Start a washing cycle by setting the washing machine to its hottest temperature, highest capacity and longest available cycle
2. Add four cups of white vinegar to the hot water, close the lid and allow it to agitate for several minutes
3. Open the lid to stop the machine and allow it to sit for an hour so that the vinegar can perform its job and get rid of the bacteria hiding in area such as nooks, crannies and hoses of the machine

After running a full cycle with the vinegar, you can stop or repeat the process if the washing machine is still dirty.

The vinegar does a fantastic job of removing any mineral buildup and it also soften any soap scum and other residues that may be building up within the washer and hoses.

[Watwheels]

Omg. There are special detergents that cleans your WM. YOu can get them in online shops and DIY shops.

Pls try not to use bleach if there are plastic parts on your WM, it will make them brittle and break easily.

Edited November 17, 2021 by Watwheels

[Kxbc]

Had that same problem when using a top load. Didn't manage to resolve. Stained some clothes permanently when I did not remove all and iron them. The black stains literally melted and got stuck to the clothes. Can't remove at all. 

Changed to front load. Issue resolved. Uses less water too. Only thing is the wash cycle is longer.