Hi We Have a ge front load washer and dryer and it seems that our clothes smell musty at times. I've tried leaving the door open on the washer when not in use. Could there be another prooblem??

Is this a front-load washer or top load?

Is the machine operating properly, or are your clothes getting a musty smell?

The musty smell has a few solutions, One may work but probably a combination of all will work best.


Immediately move wet clothes to the dryer, do not let them sit in the washer for a long time.
If your clothes smell, put mouthwash with your clothes directly in the tub during the wash cycle (this will not stain your clothes)
leave the door open when not in use (lets it dry out)
If the washer smells, use bleach and hot water in an empty cycle once in a while (kills just about every kind of bacteria or mold which may be causing the smell)
Use washing machine cleaner once in a while(can be found at your local grocery store isle next to detergent)
Dry your clothes completely, damp clothes can start to smell again.

If you are looking for a new washer, try to find a newer model that features a stainless steel tub with silver impregnation. The silver is a natural disinfectant.

"In washing in the HE washers I think that if you have more than 3 loads a week you should maybe wash your washer at least once a week. I have started wiping the door off and leaving it open between washing and that helps a
lot with the smell. This is why I think if you could wash the washer once a week it would probably do better. You never had this problem in the old washers." Try this in your washer.

I use 20 mule team borax and leave the door open when not in use and have no more musty smell in washer or clothes.

yes musty is actually cooked soap
from the dryer
take a clean just washed towel and put it in the washer alone with no soap
turn on the machine and watch what happens you will see the suds start to form
with this unit, if your using too much soap it will be spun into the cloths and then cooked in the dryer
do one towel load without soap then cut you soap usage way back
anything more than a tablespoon is way to much

remember you bought this unit to save water

1/6 the water 1/6 the soap
and he should be less

Switch from liquid to powder detergent, no fabric softner (I know...I love it too), clean the gasket and run a cycle with bleach only. Leave the door open whenever possible. This fixed my smelly washer, now if it would only spin!

I have the same problem with my machine. Also a frigidaire. After speaking with many repair people apparantly this is a common issue. With mine the gasket that seals around the door has separated completely from the machine and you can literally lift is away. If you pull it back you can run your finger along the metal of the machine and lift of soft black mold. I am in the midst of trying to get my machine replaced with another brand under warranty. This has actually caused severe allergic reactions to my family and took over 6 months to find.

Make shure to do a cleaning cycle. As well, wipe out the inside, the rubber gasket and the door when done washing for the day. We also have found that
leaving the door "Open" for several hours, when finnished, eliminates any future
smells.

hi there,

the musty smell is from the door boot or gasket. deposit from clothes and detergent get trapped in there and have nowhere else to go. i would recommend purchasing Washerfresh tables to get rid of the deposits. they are available all over.

I have the same problem with a 3 month old ge front loading washer.after 1 month it started off smelling musty..I thought it was my imagination, now at 3 months old our clothes smell so bad I think we might just have to buy new clothes! everytime I wash a load the clothes smell worse and now you can even smell it just walking into our closet 2 floors up. A new washing washing machine should NOT be doing this! so far leaving the door open in between washes has helped a little but I plan on tipping it back and finding the hidden filter today. Isn't it lovely that they don't mention a filter that needs monthly cleaning or it's location in the manuals?!

if that's a front load washer your only supposed to use an he detergent designed for front load machines others can build suds that when they dry can cause odors also its recommended that you leave the door cracked when the washer is not being used